8mm Forum: came across these 16mm projectors.

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Posted by Louis Li (Member # 776) on October 13, 2007, 07:30 AM:

on my hunt for a 16mm projector.
i came across a few projectors that stood out.

1. GB equipment L516
2. Eiki Junior talkie
3. filmosound specialist
4. premier 20 Simplex ampro

these looked really old and big.
i wonder if anyone has one of these

Posted by John Whittle (Member # 22) on October 13, 2007, 09:37 PM:

Louis,

It would really help if you could post pictures since these machines often went by other names in other countries.

I don't know what the Eiki Junior Talkie was, perhaps the first MS-850 projector, but a picture would help.

The Bell & Howell Specialist label was used for both the 399 and a later 500 series machine.

The Ampro 20 had various amps of different power ratings.

I think all these machines had tube amps and phototube pick-ups for sound which would be noiser than the later solar cell solid state amps.

In any event, try and find two or three since you'll need parts.

John

Posted by Louis Li (Member # 776) on November 17, 2007, 08:50 AM:

finally managed to get some pictures but my apologies for the bad quality taken by phone camera.

(the house-like is an example of a portable cinema [mounted on a bicycle] ..where a few cents would allow you to catch a few ft of footage, those wires [above the windows] opens up the doors that shut the windows)

Posted by John Whittle (Member # 22) on November 17, 2007, 11:02 AM:

The Eiki looks like it was their first projector. If you look at the threading path, you see that it's basically an RCA 400 projector. The power outlet on the front was moved to the side on the MS-850 and the paint changed to a brown and there were casting changes in the lamp house, etc. The lens and lens holder look the same as it was on the 850 and 860. The Ampros look much like the common US versions. The others I can't identify, perhaps others will.

John

Posted by Louis Li (Member # 776) on November 17, 2007, 11:50 AM:

whats a RCA 400? sounds like another kind of 16mm projector

Posted by John Whittle (Member # 22) on November 18, 2007, 10:32 AM:

Here's the RCA 400. This was a very popular projector and eventually RCA sold the tooling to a company in India that continued to make it with improvements as the Photophone. They added a solar cell and solid state amp. You'll notice the similarity to the Eiki Junior in the sprocket size the the threading pattern. Internally they also shared many common features. I don't know if Eiki had developed their modular approach with the Junior Talkie. I'd love to see one some day.

Posted by Jeff Taylor (Member # 442) on November 20, 2007, 09:57 AM:

FWIW: The RCA 400 was a great machine, quiet, simple, rugged, gentle on film, supremely easy to thread, and the senior model shown with 6V6 output tubes had great sound. They were an offshoot of the PG series machines of the war years, and were produced from the late 1940's through the early 1960's. What John shows is an early MI-1314 model with governor motor and metal and fiber gearing. It accepted up to a 1,000 watt lamp. Later they switched to induction motors and nylon pressure plates and would accept 1,200 watt lamps. A 400 junior model was lighter and more compact and used the same mechanism with a smaller line voltage (non-transformer powered) amp. The last ones were the 415 (detachable reel arms) and 416 (folding reel arm) models which used an all miniature tube amp and in my opinion were less satisfactory. RCA then switched to the 1600 series machines which were short lived and then the tooling for these was sold to Viewlex.

Posted by Stephen Spicer (Member # 950) on November 21, 2007, 02:20 PM:

The GB516 is a war-time utility projector. Doesn't have a pressure plate if I remember correctly. I Used to have one, but that would have been nearly 30 years ago!

SS

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