These two formulæ are from Tim Rudman’s ‘The Master Photographer’s Lith Printing Course‘, a book well worth investing in if you have any interest in the lith process. Although prices have gone rather silly for this out-of-print volume, it is still possible to get secondhand copies at not too extortionate prices.
Alkaline Fixer 1
Water...........................750 ml Sodium Thiosulfate...............60 g Sodium Carbonate..................5 g Water to make..................1000 ml
Alkaline Fixer 2
Water...........................750 ml Sodium Thiosulfate..............100 g Sodium Chloride (common salt)...a handful! Water to make..................1000 ml
The amount of sodium thiosulfate in ‘normal’ fixer is around 250-300 g., so these are much more dilute and take correspondingly longer to fix prints. I have not done tests to ascertain times as yet.
If you try them, watch the colour of the lith print as it fixes and see if it changes over time.
Thanks, I will see if I can source the chemicals. I have both of Rudmans books….and found the fixer suggestion in there, but was wondering if there was something off the shelf thatI might purchase At Freestyle Photographic, which is a 25 mile drive from me.
Cheers
Joe