posted March 23, 2016 03:48 PM
Both Mr Grassmann and Van Eck are valid options. And Mr Grassmann is a real authority on Bauer. I own three Bauer P7 machines which I use alternatingly. In my opinion there is very little that can go wrong with these. Unless Mr Grassmann can correct me here. Main issues are: old belts tend to get slippery and replacing them is possible but a real pain as opposed to doing the same with an Eiki. The cam/claw mechanism needs to remain lubricated otherwise the machine can slow down and stall. (There is a special grease tank inside the machine that you fill with Molykote grease) Also the capacitor that gets the motor started can fail, but this one is still readily and cheaply available in electronic stores and is a breeze to replace. Other than that the filmpresser (andruckstuck) can wear and put lines on your film, luckily just outside the projected area. But this line can become visible when you project the film on a machine with a larger filmgate... That's about it. Once your machine is up to date again it will prove to be a solid and fool proof performer. There are many, many Bauer machines around, especially in Germany. Therefore you can easily pick one up as a spare/back up for a very reasonable price.