8mm Forum: Eaton Optina Super 8, who made this fine projector?

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Topic: Eaton Optina Super 8, who made this fine projector?

Paul Robertson
Junior
Posts: 14
From: Vernon, BC
Registered: Jan 2019

posted January 04, 2019 10:51 AM

I have had this projector for a few years now but haven't used it yet and just pulled it out as a possible candidate for my telecine project. It came with my purchase of a Beaulieu 4008ZM2 at a local auction. It is very well made, mostly steel components, cast housing, not much plastic at all.

Just wondering if anyone recognizes it and who manufactured it, probably early 70's??

Cheers

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Steve Klare
Film Guy

Posts: 7016
From: Long Island, NY, USA
Registered: Jun 2003

posted January 04, 2019 10:58 AM

Internally it looks a lot like the Yelco P111B my son has.

It's like the same innards mounted on a different chassis.

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All I ask is a wide screen and a projector to light her by...

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Dominique De Bast
Film God

Posts: 4486
From: Brussels, Belgium
Registered: Jun 2013

posted January 04, 2019 11:31 AM

I think Eaton was a Canadian company. A read one of their super 8 cameras was manufactures in Japan but that's all I know. Maybe all their products came from Japan ?

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Dominique

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Will Trenfield
Jedi Master Film Handler

Posts: 506
From: Shrewsbury, Shropshire, UK
Registered: Mar 2016

posted January 04, 2019 03:08 PM

Eaton was a Canadian department store so the projector would have been a badged product. It was sold 1970-71. The Yelco P111B was made in Japan by Yamawa in 1969-70. I have a projector sold by Boots (another store) which is very similar inside but, like the Yelco, mounted on a different chassis. The transformer, motor and fan are the same as those on my Sankyo Dualux 1000 so they must have been generic parts.

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Steve Klare
Film Guy

Posts: 7016
From: Long Island, NY, USA
Registered: Jun 2003

posted January 04, 2019 03:16 PM

There are resemblances on the business side as well: For example both this ad the Yelco channel the film through a chute along the bottom edge that turns upward to the take-up reel at the very back corner of the machine. They both have this odd little lever which is also a film guide during rewind which I think is used to put the machine in still-frame mode. Also both have a supply spindle on an arm but the take-up spindle is mounted to the chassis.

I've heard these are well liked for telecine because of the continuously variable frame rate control.

Partial thumbs down here: the worst belt change I've ever done! (Seriously: I'm sure there are easier heart surgeries! [Wink]

)

You are lucky it showed up with the belts intact.

(Thumbs up: My kid enjoys it!)

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All I ask is a wide screen and a projector to light her by...

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Kev Morrison
Film Handler

Posts: 76
From: Land of the Mouse, USA
Registered: Feb 2018

posted January 04, 2019 04:04 PM

Steve,

I read your following comment, thought about it, and cracked up:

"Partial thumbs down here: the worst belt change I've ever done! (Seriously: I'm sure there are easier heart surgeries! [Wink] )".

All I could think of his a heart surgeon talking to his patient in Post-Op after surgery, saying "Well, once we opened you up, we found that your heart was actually OK, it just need a new belt. So, we upgraded it with the new O rings...".

Yeah, I know - weird sense of humor!
[Roll Eyes]

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Will Trenfield
Jedi Master Film Handler

Posts: 506
From: Shrewsbury, Shropshire, UK
Registered: Mar 2016

posted January 04, 2019 06:09 PM

Steve is right about the belts. I was given a badged version of this design. The drive belt had long gone but I found a replacement belt in the box still sealed in its packaging. My guess is that a previous owner had given up on trying to work out how to replace it. Getting the belt over the fan and onto the pulley on the motor drive shaft is easy enough. The only way to get that belt onto the pulley on the next driveshaft is to remove the screws holding the rear bracket and stretch the belt onto the shaft and then onto the pulley. After that, there's another belt to another driveshaft for the spindles. On my projector, this belt was made of some elasticated material and was in good condition so I left it alone. Replacing it would be a right pain I guess.

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Steve Klare
Film Guy

Posts: 7016
From: Long Island, NY, USA
Registered: Jun 2003

posted January 04, 2019 06:28 PM

Yes, It's kind of like having to cut off your legs to put your pants on!

I got the new belts in the mail and set them aside for the weekend. I got home from work and found out my wife had bribed our son with the following promise:

"If you finish your schoolwork Daddy will fix your projector tonight!"

It was a long night.

(Since then I've learned this is called "being Voluntold"!)

A kind friend sent me a set of instructions to do this. I'm going to send them to be put in the Manual section.

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All I ask is a wide screen and a projector to light her by...

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Paul Robertson
Junior
Posts: 14
From: Vernon, BC
Registered: Jan 2019

posted January 04, 2019 09:32 PM

Thanks boys, really appreciate the info. Yes Eatons was a large Canadian retail store, similar to Sears but without the automotive and tool depts., shut down about 15 yrs ago. It sure looks well made, and yes the belt is fine on it, and I used the spare to get my Sankyo 1000 going and it works great also. I will look up the 2 projectors mentioned here. I would guess this could be made either in the US or Japan, can't find any country of origin on it anywhere. It doesn't really matter anyway, I was just curious which factory made it, so it's not a Beaulieu. [Roll Eyes]

Going to do a little research to find out what points need to be lubed, and where not to apply lube. I am sure some maintenance is required after 50 years.

Cheers

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Nantawat Kittiwarakul
Master Film Handler

Posts: 280
From: Rajburana, Bangkok, Thailand
Registered: Aug 2017

posted January 04, 2019 10:52 PM

NAIL IT.

https://van-eck.net/itable.php?lang=en&size=0&cat=film&merk=61&type=Fujicascope%20M2

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Just a lone collector from a faraway land...

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Paul Robertson
Junior
Posts: 14
From: Vernon, BC
Registered: Jan 2019

posted January 04, 2019 11:23 PM

WOW! Indeed you nailed it, good job. How the heck did you find that? Amazing. That is definitely it, just modified for North American power connection.

So after some research I found out that in 1966 it was released in Japan as Fuji's first single 8 projector, to go along with their new single 8 camera, same film as super 8 but in a vertical tandem cartridge. And in 1966 it was $159. That was probably a pretty good projector in it's day, and still looks great today.

Thank you again.

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Nantawat Kittiwarakul
Master Film Handler

Posts: 280
From: Rajburana, Bangkok, Thailand
Registered: Aug 2017

posted January 05, 2019 01:43 AM

My gut instinct told me that it must be Japanese-made machine by the "look" of its internal. And I faintly remembered that there's a certain model of Fujicascope projector with that unusual 2-shaft design.

And yes,if the belts snapped/stretched beyond usable it would be the end of its service life. What a b**ch design! [Eek!]

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Just a lone collector from a faraway land...

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Maurice Leakey
Film God

Posts: 5895
From: Bristol. United Kingdom
Registered: Oct 2007

posted January 05, 2019 04:56 AM

The Fujicascope M2 projector was not made by Fuji, it was made by Yamawa who also made projectors for Yelco.

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Maurice

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Will Trenfield
Jedi Master Film Handler

Posts: 506
From: Shrewsbury, Shropshire, UK
Registered: Mar 2016

posted January 05, 2019 07:04 AM

Yanawa are still going strong producing precision-made taps, dies and drill bits for the metalworking industry. This might explain the build quality of the projectors they produced for others.

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