8mm Forum: Reel sizes

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Topic: Reel sizes

Vidar Olavesen
Film God

Posts: 2232
From: Sarpsborg, Norway
Registered: Nov 2012

posted January 22, 2013 03:46 PM

I am unsure of the reel sizes. Is the 16mm twice as thick as the Super 8/8mm? To me it looks like a Woody Woodpecker cartoon of 6-8 minutes is as big as a 400' on the Super 8 format ... Is this correct? How long playing time do you get on a 1600' 16mm reel?

Anybody know of a place I get get several boxes/cans/reels?

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Mal Brake
Jedi Master Film Handler

Posts: 591
From: Neath, South Wales, UK
Registered: Jun 2003

posted January 22, 2013 04:10 PM

A one reel 16mm film would be on a 400ft spool with a running time of up to 10 minutes (at 24fps)
1600ft 16mm spools will hold up to a max of 40 minutes of film.
So for all practical purposes 16mm spools will be twice the size of 8mm ones for a given running time.

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I'm gonna live forever or die trying

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Vidar Olavesen
Film God

Posts: 2232
From: Sarpsborg, Norway
Registered: Nov 2012

posted January 22, 2013 04:23 PM

Thanks for confirming my suspicions ... Now to find some boxes/cans/reels to get the cores onto

Where do you get your films? Are the films generally more expensive than Super 8? I've gotten quite a few deals, actually better than Super 8 deals. Paid about 100 dollar for 5 full features, which I thought was very nice :-)

Thanks again

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David Ollerearnshaw
Phenomenal Film Handler

Posts: 1373
From: Penistone Sheffield UK
Registered: Oct 2012

posted January 22, 2013 04:36 PM

Reel measurements are based on 35mm practice. 1 reel in 35mm is about 1000ft (300m), about 11 minutes. A 400ft (122m) in 16mm runs the same time. In super 8 200ft(61m) is 10 minutes. In standard 8 it would be almost 15 minutes.

1600ft would be 44 minutes. Think that was the standard spool size that 16mm came on. All the features I have bought are on them. The largest would be 2200ft to fit most 16mm projectors.

I do have 16mm 6000ft spools which I use with a extender. All the films I have would fit on one of these.

Could someone confirm my theory.

You may find this useful: Kodak Film Calculator

Have a play with this, I entered 222 minutes, which is 'Lawrence Of Arabia' In the Columbia catalogue the listing classes it at 22 reels 222 minutes.

8mm 4448ft
16mm 7992ft
35mm 20047ft

I wonder how much that would cost?
I always used to call a reel a reel, but a reel is only 200ft anything larger is a spool. It used to drive my projectionist mate mad.

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I love the smell of film in the morning.

http://www.thereelimage.co.uk/

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Pasquale DAlessio
Film God

Posts: 3523
From: Bristol,RI, USA
Registered: May 2010

posted January 22, 2013 05:06 PM

That's unreel!

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David Ollerearnshaw
Phenomenal Film Handler

Posts: 1373
From: Penistone Sheffield UK
Registered: Oct 2012

posted January 22, 2013 05:10 PM

Think I REELLY got carried away there. Mine you on the wine. [Wink]

--------------------
I love the smell of film in the morning.

http://www.thereelimage.co.uk/

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Bill Brandenstein
Phenomenal Film Handler

Posts: 1632
From: California
Registered: Aug 2007

posted January 23, 2013 12:10 PM

Reely? I've only heard of spools being used on sewing machines!

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David Ollerearnshaw
Phenomenal Film Handler

Posts: 1373
From: Penistone Sheffield UK
Registered: Oct 2012

posted January 23, 2013 01:30 PM

When you could hire super 8 I think some previous hire had used a sewing machine where they had broke the film. Must say though I did used to remake the splices, and tell them I had done. It used to get 50% off hire charge every so often.

Wonder if the spool thing is just UK?

--------------------
I love the smell of film in the morning.

http://www.thereelimage.co.uk/

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Bill Brandenstein
Phenomenal Film Handler

Posts: 1632
From: California
Registered: Aug 2007

posted January 23, 2013 10:14 PM

And here I thought FILM WEAVE had to do with optical registration!

(owwwww, that's so bad....)

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