Throw it away.

Usually if it is a powder (not yet in water solution) there sould  not
be any *use before* date, so *no expiration* untill you prepare the
stock solution.

HIH,
Jeremy

Hi Keith, I use and enjoy Microdol-X.  It is a fine grain speed reducing
developer.  I'm familiar with it and have been using it for years.  It is
still available in the U.S.  I never bought it in cans, but that may be a
difference between availability in the US and in the UK.  And 5 liters of it
is a lot, at least for me being "only an amateur".  I buy the 1 quart
packages, and it lasts for 60-90 days in dark brown bottles.  I use it as a
one-shot, mixing it 1:3.  On the average, out of 4 quarts, I'll use 3 of
them before they go bad and ending up have to throw away a quarter to half a
bottle because it has expired.  Or I'll use it to test a new lens or
technique, where negative development isn't so critical.

I found that I get good highlight and shadow detail with Tri-X.  The big
knock on Microdol-X is that it kills speed: I expose Tri-X at 250.

Once you open the can, you're committed to using the entire contents.  Even
the powder will oxidize unless you keep it in a really tight container
afterwards.

Good luck,

-- Mark

It looks, according to Kodak's UK site, that Microdol (at least Pro)
is still available:

http://wwwuk.kodak.com/global/en/professional/products/chemistry/bwFilmProcessin
g/microdolX.jhtml

The page also includes a link to a data sheet.

Offhand, I'd guess that the 86 02 indicates manufacture in 1986; worst
case scenario is that it's oxydized past usability. Why not shoot up a
test roll and process it in the Microdol?  If I remember correctly,
it's a nice fine-grain developer.  A couple of pages I found on a
quick web search indicate that you should probably overexpose your
film by about 20%.

It is possible to tell even without opening the can.  Shake it and listen -
if it is good it should shakes freely with a fine 'chiss' sound.  You
should be able to feel the powder flowing freely from one end of the can
to the other.  Checking the powder flow was a valuable skill when all
developers came in cans and often the dealer had a dud can or two
on the shelf.  The same test for caking should be done
when purchasing bagged processing chemicals.

If the powder doesn't flow the developer is definitely bad.  If it
does flow there is a finite possibility it is still bad.

Open the can.  If its a fine bright white powder the stuff is as
good as new.  If very lightly tan and it mixes to a very slightly
tinted solution it is still good but the mixed stock may not keep
for long.

If the powder is brown (and usually cakey) (or mixes to a brown
when dissolved in water) then chuck it.  Any ordinary 'MQ'
(Dektol/MX/D-76/ID-11...) developer that has gone darker
than a light straw color has passed it's use by date.

Chemicals in cans should, in theory, keep until the can rusts
through.  In practice Kodak wasn't very good at canning - they
should have taken lessons from the Campbell Soup company.

Mixed MX stock can keep for several years if you use distilled
water and boil the water before use.  When the level in the bottle
gets low a spritz of Dust-Off can be used to chase the oxygen
out of the bottle before capping.

I use in 1-shot at 1:3 dilution.  This gives a very fine and
very regular grain pattern.  Used FS with TMAX-100 the negatives
are close to grainless - so much so that the resulting print
looks a bit out of focus when a 20x24 print is made from a
35mm negative and examined under a 10x loop.  Tech-Pan holds
up very well under this scrutiny.  For best results keep _all_
chemicals and the wash water at the same temperature ( +/- 1F)
and be sure not to overexpose the negatives.

mar1705 from Lloyd Erlick,

Even if you open the can and use the contents, keep the
empty! It's a great memento of a bygone era, and makes
a dandy pen holder. If it's left unopened, its function
as a paper weight will be unimpaired, and it will hold
its future value as an antique. Your heirs will thank
you for a life of ease.

regards,
--le

  I am probably repeating what othes have said. If the
powders are white and free flowing the stuff is OK. These
old cans were hermetically sealed and have extremely long
life. The later Kodak bags were supposed to be the equal of
the cans but certainly were not. Nonetheless, I've found
bagged stuff which was still good after ten years. I think
it depends a lot on the handling the bags have gotten. If
the metallized plastic coating is intact they are quite
impermiable but I think handling causes micro-cracks that
allow entry of moisture and air.
   Kodak can probably translate the date code. I don't know
about English or European sales but, in the USA, cans were
discontinued more than twenty years ago (actually I think
more like thirty years ago).