Scanning scratched old B&W negatives

[peterschmidt]

I have been trying to scan old black & white negatives using a Nickon Coolscan 5000. The Digital ICE function doesn't work on black and whites and hence all the scratches are really showing even though the scratches are really minor.
What is the best method/machine to scan old negatives of this kind?

[seanmckinney]

I have just scanned and 'repaired' some B&Ws of my late brother's national service and school boy days. I had to scan photographs as the negatives have long since been binned but photoshop's "convert to greyscale" followed by use of the clone too, followed by the 'smudging' eraser? thing did a great job of getting rid of tears and staining on the original photos.
The images I now have may not stand up to massive enlargement but they suit my brother's widow. They certainly stand up to being used within the family.

I know photos arent negatives and the above process is slow but if your negatives are of sentimental value subjects then the results may be acceptable if no one comes up with a proper solution.