8mm Forum: Worst Money-Saving Botches

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Topic: Worst Money-Saving Botches

Simon McConway
Phenomenal Film Handler

Posts: 1085
From: Doncaster, UK
Registered: Jun 2004

posted May 04, 2017 01:21 PM

Anyone seen anyone else really ruin good cine stuff by botched repairs caused by trying to save money. I saw a collector ruin a decent 16mm print when he emulsioned the rusty reels rather than replace them. The paint never dried but it ruined the sides of the film! Or the other guy who sprayed the whole of the insides of a decent Bauer projector to quieten it down rather than pay the £50 to have it fixed.

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Tom Spielman
Master Film Handler

Posts: 339
From: Minneapolis, MN, USA
Registered: Apr 2016

posted May 04, 2017 03:53 PM

I don't have specific examples but some repairs are definitely the result of short term thinking. Since much of the equipment we use is now very old, we have some insight into what lasts and what doesn't.

So I do cringe a little bit when I see some modifications being made that will address a particular issue in the short term but in 10 years will cause more problems than they solve.

But for a lot of people 10 years is a long time for a piece of equipment and they don't worry about what may happen after that. When I make a repair, I try to make it keeping the next owner in mind.

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Steve Klare
Film Guy

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

posted May 04, 2017 04:10 PM

I got a machine once where the seller replaced the power inlet. He connected the white wire, he connected the black wire.

-he left the green wire dangling.

This was kind of a shame: the green one is the only one of the three that's there to save your life!

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

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Patrick Walsh
Jedi Master Film Handler

Posts: 723
From: Christchurch, New Zealand
Registered: Jul 2006

posted May 04, 2017 05:49 PM

not so much on 8 and 16 but on 35 yes I have seen many cheap fixes and botches made to save a buck here or there.

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"Raise The Titanic!", It would of been cheaper to lower the Atlantic!

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Maurice Leakey
Film God

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

posted May 05, 2017 02:34 AM

Many 16mm Bell & Howell users think that replacing a cracked worm gear will be a simple task, but they end up with problems. Even if the worm change is successful they probably do not know that it is necessary to set the mechanism for correct auto-threading.

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Maurice

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Mark Todd
Film God

Posts: 3846
From: UK
Registered: Aug 2003

posted May 05, 2017 04:03 AM

Must be about 20 years ago but I threaded up a super 8 film and sat down watching to then suddenly hear this dreadful noise as something went through the gate.

Tuned off the machine and looked at the film.

Instead of a splice someone had used 2 metal staples to splice the film, and there were more further on.

Amazing, not least as the obvious noise etc and the film path and so on.

Best Mark.

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Andrew Woodcock
Film God

Posts: 7477
From: Manchester Uk
Registered: Aug 2012

posted May 05, 2017 04:49 AM

Been there Mark! [Big Grin]

Luckily it was coming off the spool towards my cleaning cloth on my editor during cleaning and thankfully, before watching it.
It got completely entangled in the cloth due to the staple!!

As Clouseau himself would say,..
"You Idiot, You Stupid Stupid Fool!" [Big Grin]

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"C'mon Baggy..Get with the beat"

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Alan Rik
Film God

Posts: 2211
From: New York City, NY, USA
Registered: Jun 2003

posted May 05, 2017 07:16 AM

Slightly different but I worked at a video store and once saw a rental retuned that the customer said wouldn't play. They were right . The previous customer broke the tape and "fixed" it with a big thick piece of gaffers tape!

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Adrian Winchester
Film God

Posts: 2941
From: Croydon, London, UK
Registered: Aug 2004

posted May 06, 2017 08:24 AM

Simon - putting film on a reel with wet paint is stupidity on a scale I've rarely come across, or did the collector actually paint the reel while the film was on it?

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Adrian Winchester

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Andrew Woodcock
Film God

Posts: 7477
From: Manchester Uk
Registered: Aug 2012

posted May 06, 2017 09:45 AM

Buy aluminium ones only. No rust and no hammerite or vinyl silk emulsion required! 😀😀

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"C'mon Baggy..Get with the beat"

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