8mm Forum: Bolex M-8 questions

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Posted by Gary Huggins (Member # 3948) on February 18, 2014, 03:33 AM:

I just picked up a seemingly mint M8-S which I am already in love with, but:

1. The image isn't quite centered - there's a glimpse of sprocket on the left, titles drift off on the right. How does one adjust the horizontal framing? Is it a claw issue?

2. How often does a 25mm or 33mm lens show up? I saw this in another M-8 thread: "it can also be fitted with a 1.2 lens (from the Sears Tower/B&H's)" - are there certain models of the Sears/B&H machines to look out for?

3. Will it take other bulbs besides the CZX?

Thanks!

Posted by Gary Huggins (Member # 3948) on February 20, 2014, 05:34 PM:

Bump with photos. As you can see, the picture skews to the right - the print's not running dead-center through the gate.

What's defective here- the film, the projector or the protectionist?

Posted by Bill Phelps (Member # 1431) on February 20, 2014, 07:09 PM:

Well I would say the film. I have some prints that do the same thing but not all of them, the majority of them do not. Does this happen when you screen different films? It could be that that image was just printed off center. You can adjust the frame line out of the picture but there is no side to side adjustment that I know about.

Bill [Smile]

Posted by Gary Huggins (Member # 3948) on February 20, 2014, 08:46 PM:

Every print runs the same - that's a mild example, usually there's a sliver of sprocket on the left.

Has anyone encountered this before? Did I get a bum M-8?

Posted by Bill Phelps (Member # 1431) on February 20, 2014, 10:20 PM:

That's odd...a recent example that I encountered was a 2 X 400 Tom Mix film Riders of the Purple Sage where the first reel had a bright white strip along the left side...and I just masked over it and reel 2 was centered fine with no white showing. I have even encountered this on occasion with super 8 on my Elmo ST1200 but looking at the film with a magnifier you can see the film not printed center.

The lens swings out to thread the film, are you sure it is completely seated back in its proper place while the film is running? I suppose if it wasn't you wouldn't have proper focus either. Maybe someone else can chim in with some thoughts....

Bill [Confused]

Posted by Gary Huggins (Member # 3948) on February 23, 2014, 03:28 PM:

Some more examples. Has anyone with an M-8 run into this before?

Films sort of drift out of the gate, revealing sprockets to the left - as if the gate were too wide.

Posted by Bill Phelps (Member # 1431) on February 23, 2014, 03:41 PM:

Maybe someone filed the gate bigger...I have heard of collectors doing this to Eumig projectors because the original gate crops the image to much and they want to reveal more on screen.

Bill [Smile]

Posted by Gary Huggins (Member # 3948) on February 24, 2014, 12:52 PM:

Just discovered a possible clue: the faster the projection speed speed, the more centered the image.

The still was taken at 18fps. Dipping slower than that reveals more sprocket light, faster than that centers the image (not completely, but somewhat).

Should I return this projector?

Posted by Bryan Chernick (Member # 1998) on February 24, 2014, 03:37 PM:

There are two metal guides above and below the pressure plate. I don't see how these would become worn without a lot of film running through the projector but you may want to check them for wear. If they are worn they may allow the film to move from side to side. One problem could be the claw pushing the film to one side if it is bent or loose. Another problem could be the pressure plate is loose or out of alignment. The pressure plate and lens holder are one piece and move forward to enable threading of the film. If this is loose or bent out of alignment it may be your problem. It's a pretty sturdy machine and I would think it would take a lot of force to bend it out of alignment but you may want to check that. Does it feel loose when the pressure plate is closed? Does it look slightly crooked? Running the film faster may put more tension on the film causing it to center better.

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