A local lab posted a video on home developing black and white film, plain setup, no gear talk. I’d skipped similar videos before at the temperature step, but this one broke it into timed chunks, so I took notes for once.
What stuck: the water bath before mixing matters more than the developer itself. Cold water threw off my first attempt more than the film stock did.
I ran 3 rolls over one slow week between projects. First came out thin, second closer, third finally right. About 40 minutes per roll once I stopped second-guessing the agitation.
Cost-wise it’s roughly half of sending rolls out, once the tank is a one-time cost. Dust on the negatives while drying is still unsolved.
No idea if this holds once a heavy work week hits and there’s no afternoon free for it. For now, one less recurring expense to track.