I just came back from a trip to London, I shot 4 rolls of Ilford Delta 400. I chose the Canon EOS30 with the STM 40mm lens to take with me. As it turned out it was the correct choice. I found the lens the ideal perspective, the AF was helpful, especially when shooting quickly. The large bright viewfinder nice and clear, even with the yellow filter on.
One thing that isn’t quite so helpful is that it winds the end of the film completely back into the cassette. I like to re-use my cassettes at least once, and even if I’m not, I prefer to trim the film in daylight, ready to load onto the reel. No problem I have a film puller.
Mine (pictured left) follows exactly the same pattern as most. You insert part 1 into the cassette, turn the film a few times until it’s all nice and loose, turn slowly until you hear a click, insert part 2, the pull out slowly. The end of the film comes out between the two bit’s of plastic. That’s all fine except it doesn’t!
I tried patiently for 8 times on each film. No dice! I’ve always had a bit of trouble with it, but this was the end. To prove the point that it’s not me, I tried another puller I have access to (luckily), but of different design pictured below. First film, end retrieved 2nd attempt, the remaining three cassettes all first time!
I’ve decided the best course of action is to just bin mine – and buy a new one like the one above. So if you find yourself looking for a film puller, keep an eye out for a clone of the one above, and avoid the one like mine – you’ll save yourself a lot of frustration!
S.H.O.U.T. 
I have tried 4 different film pullers and never was able to get one to work. I get frustrated and destroy the cassette in the dark and load the film onto reels there. I do make sure I don’t wind my film all the way into the cassette because, like you, I prefer to start the reel in the light. Sadly some of my cameras rewind all the way!!!
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Hi Brian, certainly the “Kaiser Type” seems to be more miss than hit – I’ve got an old Hama Film Cassette opener if I get to the point of ripping open the cassette. I’m old enough to remember when one could pop off the end of an FP4 and re assemble the cassette again. They don’t make ’em like that anymore! – Best regards Andy
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My film puller seems to work perfectly EXCEPT with rolls of Ilford HP5+ for some annoying reason.
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Hello – strange isn’t it? I wonder if HP5 just happens to be a bit thinner? You wouldn’t think that such a small difference in thickness would make any difference! Strange you’ve had colour problems with your last roll of EKTAR too – I found my last roll, of “the Tarrants” was difficult to scan too – quite a bit of “imbedded magenta” that was awkward to get rid of! Someone should invent something digital to sort out all these problems!! 🙂 Cheers Andy
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Yes, magenta in mine too. But also greens in the shadows, making balancing it all a bit of a chore. Hopefully a one-off as I like the results it gives otherwise.
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I tried something similar to that first one, and yes, it ended in the trash.
I’ve had better luck with the “use the leader from a fresh roll of film” method. It’s not perfect, but I manage it about half the time.
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Hi Shawn, I’ve never tried that method – perhaps now would be a good time! Although I’m going to order that “other type” and see how I get on! All best wishes, Andy
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