[dragos]

In what you describe, there are more experimental steps and a few obvious wrong ones.
If you ask me, change everything and make things by the book.
Daguerreotype is a process where there are many variables and everything influences everything, even in its more simple version as Becquerel. Starting with the quality of the mirror, the thickness of the silver layer, quality of fuming box, quantity of iodine in the box, fuming time (it should be seconds or minutes, not hours), color of the plate to know when to stop the fuming (sometimes a few seconds make the difference), exposure, etc, etc, everything is very important. One wrong step could mess your whole process. There’s a reason why very few people do this.

I strongly recommend you read this whole forum if you don’t want to work blindfolded and invest a lot of money and time in frustration. The most important thing is to understand how the process works, so that you are able to make your own adjustments.

[dragos]

I got no answers for this, but I built my fuming hood finally (few months ago). I went to the Chemistry University and I asked some students to show me their fuming hoods. Those were some professional ones, for sure, but I saw the system.
The most complicated part (but not THAT difficult to make actually) is the pulley system that holds the door opened where you let it. You just have to figure out the weight of the door + the friction force given by the sliding action. In my case the friction was kind of big and the door didn’t slide well. Grease did the job perfect, now it slides like professional ones. To find the weight, trial and error will do. The door slides using two U shaped aluminium rails that get one into the other.
I bought a fan for ventilating pubs. The bigger, the better (in certain limits, sure).
I’ll answer to other questions if anybody is interested to build one, if I can help.

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[dragos]

If anybody ever make a research in this same matter, I will write here my results.
I found in an XIX-th century book the information that you only need a silver plate half the size of that which you plate.
So if you plate a copper plate 13X18 cm a silver anode of 9X13 cm will do. Thickness is important only in terms of how long will it be useful, because the silver plate actually replaces the silver in the electrolyte. It actually “melts” in time, but in a LONG time.
Out of 250g of pure silver I made two anode plates of 10X15 cm, 0,5mm thick. That’s enough thickness for a lifetime I think.
There are several electrolytes commercialized for silver plating, I bought 3 liters with 70 euros per litre.
Works perfect. Actually the quality of the final plate depends on the quality of the surface of the copper. Well polished, buffed, just make a perfect mirror out of copper, follow all the steps recommended by the plating electrolyte manufacturer, and the plating will give you a mirror surface of silver.

[dragos]

I calculated that with 250g I should be able to make a 2mm thick 9×12 silver plate, so for 13×18 it shoud be more or less half that thickness. Is encouraging to hear that your plate is less than half a mm. Thank you for the heating tip. I hope to find a jewler who’s able to do this.
I’ll post here some pictures when I get results.
Can you also post some details about your electroplating process, please?
I bought an electrolyte that’s cyanide based (now for 13×18 I have to buy two more liters), but is not specified amperage on square dm, temperature, exposure time, etc. Any experience from somebody who actually successfully did it is valuable for me.
Thank you again for your time.

[dragos]

Thank you, Bruno.
Can you give me more details, please?
How much silver did you have for the 13×18 cm plate and how thick is your plate?
What were the dimensions (more or less) of the lingot you poured before the rolling mill?

I have 250g, maybe I should try to make my plate directly 13x18cm, cause I made the fuming boxes for this dimension.

[dragos]

Thank you for your answers and images, phuphuphnik, I found another thread in this forum with the exact same question, here:

Fuming Box Questions.

Specifically is about limiting the extension of the spring that pushes the dish up. Another solution would be not to draw the slider all the way out, let it always sit on a side of the dish. Both solutions seem technically approximative, though Mike’s boxes are so beautiful, and sure functional.

I’ll dig some more and if/when I come with a better solution, I’ll post it here.

[dragos]

All the answers here:

Sensitised Plates – How well do they keep?

…and here:

Click to access frozen-in-time.pdf

[dragos]

Actually since yesterday I started to read through all this forum.
And I got to this post https://cdags.org/forums/topic/another-dag-box-ques-from-ty/
…which kind of explains my question. At least the theory.
I still don’t understand what happents with the tray (dish) when you pull out the glass slider: it goes up? Pushing what? The frame of the box or the frame that holds the plate? Logical answer is the first, but then, how do you put the slider back, with the dish covering the sliding level?!

Thank you.

[dragos]

Maybe I didn’t explain well, I’ll try to be shorter.

As far as I understand this is a modern improvement for the sensitizing boxes:
(from the bottom upwards, interior of the box)

– bottom of the wooden sensitizing box;
– spring(s?) that pushes up the glass tray;
– glass tray;
– upper part of the box that holds the plate.

[dragos]

I double the question about the time between sensitizing and exposure.
The same about the time between exposure and developing.
…not with too much hope, anyway, your question is 10 weeks old and none of the professionals had time to answer.
Probably is such an obvious thing that is not worth the answer.

Anyway, if you happen to pass by here or get notified of my answer, and already found out the answer to your question, please let me know too.

And when you ask about the differences between the bromine/iodine plates vs. only iodine, do you mean in terms of losing speed time and delay developing, or just appearance?

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