I have three (3) Kodak Ektachrome 160 Super 8 (process EM-26, Type G) cartridges that are undeveloped. How difficult would it be for a complete amateur to develop these? If it is not very complicated or expensive, can someone detail how it would be done?
My humble thanks for your assistance.
Summary:
:-(
E-26 seems to be about impossible to do yourself but there are still labs that handle it. About $30/roll on up a few years ago.
Ron Andrews, who should know IF his claims are true (see below), says that IF you can get the rem jet backing off cleanly, which he has doubts about, then you can self process using the E-6 process, but colours will be wrong.
There is a lot on the web re Ektachrome processing BUT this comment from a man who claims that he helped design it and who then manufactured it is not encouraging. (There seems no good reason to not believe his claims BUT on the net, who knows?) From here Whole thread is worth reading in your case.
Ron Andrews , Mar 10, 2009; 01:42 p.m. You hit one of my favorite topics. I helped design Process EM-26. I later had responsibility for manufactruing the film. The first few years of my kids lives were well documented with this product.
Unfortunately, Process EM-26 is no longer available. If you could get the rem jet backing off cleanly (a very big if) then you could process it in E-6. The color balance would be off, but film this old will have problems with contrast and color anyway.
Rocky Mountain Film Labs is willing to develop the film in their custom process for $48.50 with no guarantee of any image. If you have movies of bigfoot or Elvis (post 1974) it might be worth it.
Another poster on the same page says:
A few more claimed dpricessing sources are listed here dated 2006 and 2007.
This may be Rocky Mountains current E26 page
Kodak Ektachrome 160G marked 'process EM26' can be processed in E6 chemistry, but it has a rem-jet anti-halation backing that must be removed. Ektachrome 160A will also process fine in E6. Both stocks will benefit from overexposure and shortened first development time. The earlier EM24 versions of this stock require a prehardening step and so cannot be processed at E6 temperature, but will work if all baths are kept at around 24°C and development time adjusted to compensate. Not really ideal for novices, there are a few labs in Europe that process this stock - Super 8 Reversal Lab in Netherlands (Frank Bruinsma), Dagie Brundert in Germany and Ricardo Pascucci at Bottega analogica, Italy.
My aunt had several of the cassettes of the Kodak type G Ektachrome 160 movie film, maybe 8 of them. As a gift I sent them to a place in hays KS called vision video. All 8 made about a 20 some minute long film on a CD and it costed me around $400
