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Author
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Topic: Good news for Eiki owners
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Adrian Winchester
Film God
Posts: 2941
From: Croydon, London, UK
Registered: Aug 2004
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posted January 20, 2005 04:58 AM
Eiki users may be interested to hear about an interesting telephone conversation I had this week, with Bob Halls of Projex Sales in Plymouth. If anyone in the UK knows more about Eiki projectors, lenses, spares, etc, I'd like to know who they are!
Bob confirmed that the 16mm part of Eiki in Japan certainly is still in business and although new projectors are not held in stock, they are still available 'to order'. These are projectors in the SNT series, i.e. the generation that followed the NTs. Apparently, the latest quote for a new one was £1,800. The full range of new lenses are also still available, including what sounds like a fast and impressive 12.5mm lens, although I don't suppose many people need that sort of magnification! Bob also says that the quality of the current zoom lenses is considerably better than those made decades ago.
Projex have a good stock of new and used spares and can order from Japan if necessary. It seems that some Xenon spares may be drying up, but if you have an NT, SL or one of the more recent non-Xenon machines (including the Eiki's sold under the B&H name), you are unlikely to have any problems getting new spares for 10 years at the very least. Bob mentioned one exception with regard to a lamphouse cover for one model; the mould got damaged so no more will be made.
Bob also indicated that there seems to be an upturn in 16mm usage in the UK - he should know as he gets called out to do various installations. Apparently, it's now more common than it was a few years ago for film schools to include tuition in 8 & 16mm film production. There are also art galleries using projectors to present the work of film-using artists using 16mm in innovative ways. Bob mentioned one touring presentation that uses a bank of three Eiki SSLs working non-stop, 7 hours a day for weeks on end!
I must say that this all makes me more optimistic about the future of 16mm projection than I was a few months ago.
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Adrian Winchester
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Jim Smith
Junior
Posts: 4
From: New Haven, IN
Registered: Feb 2005
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posted February 08, 2005 08:57 PM
I have brand new sealed, genuine Eiki round motor belts, part #ST-12181. They fit models ST, RT, NT, SL, EX2000A, EX2000N. They are made in Japan for Eiki by the only family that has produced these belts for years. However, they are not cheap. They are $20.00 each, but they are the genuine article.
I also have some other Eiki round motor belts that I have been testing for a while. They seem to work fine so far. I haven't been using them that long to tell whether they last as long as the genuine Eiki belts, though. They are $12.00 each.
I also have the genuine Bell & Howell Diamond-Cut Textured Gripping Surface motor belts for the 1500/2500 series projectors. These are the belts that came on the projectors when they were new. They seem to last forever. They are $7.50 each. Warmest Regards, Jim Smith
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