8mm Forum: New Guy

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Posted by Fredrick Crawford (Member # 3553) on March 19, 2013, 03:55 PM:

Thought I would do a post to intro myself. I am new to this hobby of watching and collecting 8-16mm film. I was once in the music biz as a sound engineer and worked a bit helping my editor friend in TV back in the 70's. Lifelong TV/Movie junkie from the classics to foreign/indie films.

I came to this forum because during my searches for info on 8mm, I kept being directed to forum conversations here. There are a few of you that I reconize because I have seen your pics and read your opinions so much, like Barry from Minnosota who is in love with Bolex 18-5 as I am ;-)

I just started with 8mm and have a Bolex 18-5, B&H 456A, Revere Eight and a few others in mint condition from craigslist and Ebay and always searching garage sales for film and accessories. I have yet to run film through any projector as I want to make sure that everything works well but I am dedicated to getting my first mini feature up and running! So, if you have any suggestions, advice or just random thoughts for me, feel free as I am here to learn. I need some good advice so I don't fall off the cliff too hard while learning to climb...

Thank you,

Fredrick

Posted by Pasquale DAlessio (Member # 2052) on March 19, 2013, 04:51 PM:

WELCOME TO THE FORUM FREDRICK!!!!

PATD [Wink]

Posted by Laksmi Breathwaite (Member # 2320) on March 19, 2013, 05:27 PM:

Yeah same here. Sounds like your on a good start.

Posted by Bill Phelps (Member # 1431) on March 19, 2013, 05:40 PM:

Hello Fredrick!

Well it sounds like you are excited already and you haven't even ran a film through your projectors yet....when you do you'll be hooked! There is lots of great info and folks on the forum to answer just about anything. Judging from your background in engineering and TV you should be right at home with film collecting.

Bill [Smile]

Posted by Fredrick Crawford (Member # 3553) on March 19, 2013, 05:49 PM:

Thanks guys for the welcome! I will be asking a lot of questions soon as I start to get my lil horde of equipment sorted out.
I need to learn how to clean these things before I play with them but really looking foreword to it!

Posted by Matt McBride (Member # 3311) on March 19, 2013, 06:33 PM:

Welcome to the forum Fredrick. Never feel shy to ask away any questions. There are many many knowledgeable people on this site who love this hobby. [Smile]

Posted by Gerald Santana (Member # 2362) on March 20, 2013, 01:23 AM:

Fredrick,

Welcome to the Forum. For the projector all you'll need is some alcohol and a little mineral oil or "sewing machine" oil. Some projectors are lubed and greased for life however, there are places to clean and maintain in specific ways so that you do not damage parts.

Clean the gate and the rollers, then turn the machine on and see what it does. If nothing turns, clean out the inside as the belts may be worn or turned to goo. You'll wanna clean that out and replace belts, etc.

Once you have a film or two, as Bill said, you will be hooked!

Posted by Janice Glesser (Member # 2758) on March 20, 2013, 01:57 AM:

Welcome Fredrick!

Posted by Vidar Olavesen (Member # 3354) on March 20, 2013, 05:37 AM:

Welcome to the forum and it's a wonderful forum and a wonderful world of REEL movies ...

A nice place to check out : http://www.bfcc.biz/

Loads of info and suppliers

My first film ever, in 1977/78 was Island of Mystery, a Disney 200 foot (7 mins or so) from the feature Swiss Family Robinson. Cheap enough and a good start for an 11 year old. I guess you ain't 11 :-) My fave films is Battlestar Galactica 2x400', Mission Galactica 2x400', Alien 400', Star Wars 400', Empire Strikes Back 400', Twins of Evil 200' (still looking for this) among many others of course.

Posted by Jean-Marc Toussaint (Member # 270) on March 20, 2013, 06:33 AM:

Bienvenue !

Posted by Gary Crawford (Member # 67) on March 20, 2013, 07:16 AM:

Welcome ! Always good to have another Crawford on the forum.

Posted by Fredrick Crawford (Member # 3553) on March 23, 2013, 11:44 AM:

Thanks for the links, advice and welcomes!
I am still learning how to navigate the forums and figue out where everything is, I will in time.

Finding time right now to get my projectors cleaned and ready is tough. I have a bunch of Castle films to start with and my Bolex 18-5 should be coming in the mail Monday. That will get me going for sure!

I do have questions about different projectors, like which is the best model, where to find decent buys and prone problems with certain models to look out for. Is there a section of the forums that is a good place to post questions of this nature? Newbie stuff mostly. I am also in the buying mode and want to add a 16mm sound projector to my 8mm/super8 projector collection so I have all my film interest covered.

Thanks again for any help or direction...

Posted by Vidar Olavesen (Member # 3354) on March 23, 2013, 11:49 AM:

All different opinions here I believe. Myself, I bought a Eumig Mark-S 710D, had problems with that and is now only for my Regular 8's. I do like the Elmo's, so an Elmo ST-1200 is capable of 1200 feet spools, which is nice. I am waiting for two new projectors myself, another ST-1200 (this time I get the HD MO model, so it's capable of magnectic and optical sound too, as well as a twin track) and my sure to be new "love" a GS-1200 Xenon. Also on my way is a GS-800 (Hey, Christian, forgot me?) and an Elmo ST-180

I also got a Prinz (which is going to a friend of mine) and a Chinon 6100 ... Both okay, but as I said, I love the Elmos

ST-1200's are usually about 200 to 300 dollars I believe and well worth it

Posted by Fredrick Crawford (Member # 3553) on March 23, 2013, 12:37 PM:

Thanks for the info, Vidor. Other than the Elmo, the other brands are new to me. Will do some research on these.

I have a chance for a B&H 1592c 16mm that looks good, full featured with sound but I read that the worm gear is a common problem and a $250 fix if bad. I can get this for about $50 in an auction and wonder if that might be a good starter till I can buy something better?

Thanks again

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