8mm Forum: Help, new to this, have a B&H Filmo 400

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Posted by Eric W. Cook (Member # 2196) on September 05, 2010, 10:06 AM:

Hi to all! I'm very new to the world of real film and I'm writing today, mainly because my wife and I inherited a Bell & Howell Filmo-Master 400 from 1948 with a few family films.

So I hope it's OK, but I have a couple of questions about this art form:

1. I've tried to learn from this and some other sites: I gather we have a regular, soundless, projector made for 8 mm films. Beside following the original instructions that we have with the projector, any advice before I plug it in and try to see if it works - it all looks brand new (my wife's grandfather was an engineer and kept everything immaculate, - and my wife remembers it being used about 15 years ago), but I don't want to damage anything through ignorance or anything that may have come from it's just sitting in a closet for 15 years. There is a little brush that seems to be for dusting the gate, lens, etc., do we need any other lens cleaning cloth, and the original can of oil is empty - is 3 in 1, or Singer sewing machine oil ok to use on this machine?

2. Should we use some sort of cleaning agent on the old films we have, one is dated 1949, before we run them in the projector. One film had a rubber band around it, should we cut away the white blank film where this was to prevent an debris from entering the projector? If we use one of the cleaning products mentioned in other posts - how do I apply it without some sort of special machine to the film.

3. One of the reasons we were given the films and porjector was that in the past I have played live organ accompaniment for Silent movies, but these were DVD projections my church had licensed to show in a public venue, and I have noticed that many silent films are available used in 8mm format, is this B&H projector going to project them at the correct speed many collectors seem to indicate it will cause a flicker and be slightly too fast -

I've seen some recommendations for (I believe) this projector - this one is on ebay, is it a reasonable machine and/or price:

http://cgi.ebay.com/Paillard-Bolex-18-5-L-Super-8mm-Projector-Original-Box-/350389368805?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item5194d577e5#ht_500wt_1154

Sorry for so many questions, I hope someone can give us some good advice.

Thanks in advance,
Eric

Posted by Martin Jones (Member # 1163) on September 05, 2010, 10:26 AM:

What an interesting and perceptive range of questions you have asked; you have obviously taken the trouble to think things through.
I'm going to answer just one aspect... you ask if the films will show slightly too fast?
If the machine is from 1948 you can assume that it projects at 16 frames per second, which was the standard silent speed at the time.All regular eight commercial films made at that time (and probably all regular eight ones, period,) were for that speed, so no problem there. And if the "family films" were made with a camera purchased around that time the same applies. The only possible source of error is if either the camera or the projector (more likely the former) didn't run at exactly the right speed.But you probably would not notice the difference.
As to "flicker": a projector run without film will APPEAR to flicker; once there is film in it the flicker will not be evident.

Over to others for further advice. ENJOY!!!
Martin

Posted by Eric W. Cook (Member # 2196) on September 05, 2010, 10:51 AM:

Thanks Martin!

I thought that I had read or seen on my Kino/Criterion film commentaries that silents were played too fast in many cases in the past, hence the un-natural fast paced movement, and if I show 8 mm's at home with piano for friends, I don't want to show the films at the wrong speed - am I making sense? That is my concern, plus the flickering, (I'm sorry I don't have the jargon and terminology down tight yet) - maybe I confused and conflated the two issues?

Anyways thanks for the great information. It has helped clarify things for me.
Eric

Posted by Barry Fritz (Member # 1865) on September 07, 2010, 11:52 AM:

Regarding the Bolex, all the 18-5 machines are wonderful. However, they only run at 18 and 5 fps. The 18-5 Super and the 18-5L Super run Super 8 film (duh), but if you opt for the 18-5L, don't buy one that has the older incandescent lamp (it is commonly called the "spaceman" lamp). That lamp is obsolete and if you can even find one, will cost you 60 to 100 dollars depending on vendor. The new version 18-5L has a halogen lamp that is brighter, last longer and is readily available. If you do get a Bolex 18-5 you will most likely need to replace the 3 drive belts. It's easy and they are readily available on eBay.

Posted by Eric W. Cook (Member # 2196) on September 07, 2010, 12:33 PM:

Thanks for the advice Barry. I think for now I'll just stick with the B & H we have until I become more knowledgeable about the whole art form and the mechanics involved; your advice was a great help.

Any advice about cleaning the film or prep-ing the B & H before we try to run it?

Thanks!

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