This is topic Bringing an ELMO ST-1200 projector back in life in forum 8mm Forum at 8mm Forum.


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Posted by Dimitris Papas (Member # 5156) on December 12, 2015, 11:06 AM:
 
Dear friends,
a friend has kindly gifted me an ELMO ST-1200 projector. He bought it 40 years back and never got to use it, not once. I have a couple of 8mm films stored and I thought I could try and play them.

The projector is indeed shiny as new but four decades of disuse took their toll. The belts have been dissolved into tar and the lamp doesn't work eventhought it doesn't seem to be burned.

In addition, the 18-24 button (1) can't be pressed. That whole part that is supposed to move seems to be stuck.

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I mean to give it a shot and try to resurrect this beauty and I thought I might get some useful ideas here, in your forum. On the net I found the service manual as well.

On ebay they sell belts but if I'm not mistaken, as long as there are capital controls going on here in Greece, I cannot pay via PayPal. I searched the net and I see there are local stores selling all kinds of belts but I need to know the sizes.

So, to make a start, can anyone tell me what the sizes of the belts are? (The upper one, with the cogs, seems to be ok).

And any ideas as to the stuck 18-24 button?

I'd appreciate any help.
Thanks in advance!
[Smile]
 
Posted by Dominique De Bast (Member # 3798) on December 12, 2015, 11:49 AM:
 
Nice project ! There may be oxydation in the lampholder. The best is to replace it (with a new lamp as an oxyded lamp in a new lampholder would be a shame). You can, to make a test, try to put some drops of vinaigar (the projector unplugged of course) it may temporarly remove enough oxydation to work for a while. I cannot help about the 18/24 selector as mine is also faulty although the projector was repaired and serviced, I don't remember what the repairman told me but as I keep this projector for 24 fps films, it doesn't really matter (I can move the selector but the speed is not 18 fps, 24 fps works fine).
 
Posted by Andrew Woodcock (Member # 3260) on December 12, 2015, 11:53 AM:
 
The clutch mechanism will be partly seized or maladusted. Easy fix once removed and inspected / lubricated and adjusted correctly.

Just two screws to remove the clutch section and work on it then outside of the machine in a vice on a workbench.

[ December 13, 2015, 07:47 AM: Message edited by: Andrew Woodcock ]
 
Posted by Pasquale DAlessio (Member # 2052) on December 12, 2015, 01:31 PM:
 
The belt black goo (I call it elmo's goo) can be cleaned with isopropyl rubbing alcohol. That's what I have used. It's a pain in the but project because they really make a mess. Good luck with your project. This is a great machine to use when you get it running.
 
Posted by Thijs de Kort (Member # 4897) on December 14, 2015, 02:38 AM:
 
Hello Dimitris,
If you are looking for the belts you can take a look here: Belt-set Elmo ST-1200
If you need other supplies for the projector, take a look here: Spare Parts ST-1200
Thijs.
 
Posted by Dimitris Papas (Member # 5156) on December 17, 2015, 10:08 AM:
 
Thanks for the feedback, everyone. [Smile]

@Dominique, not sure which part you mean with "lampholder". Here's a couple of pictures. As far as I can tell, there doesn't seem to be any visible rust.

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@Andrew, I unscrewed the one screw that seems to hold the clutch mechanism but I couldn't get it off. Apparently, I'm not as handy as I thought. I'll have to retry it.

@Pasquale, I had gathered as much about alcohol as I had to clean my hands, the first time I touched the rotten belt. Indeed, I used alcohol to clean the wheels and now they're mostly ok.

@Thijs, thanks for the links. It's good to know there are all kinds of spares available, in case I need something. They are kind of pricey, though, and I had hoped to keep the budget low.

I think I'll print out the service manual and bring the machine to a technician.

As for the belts, I think I'll try and figure out which wheel is connected to which and use a piece of tow to find the length. Then I'll try my luck at local stores, in order to keep costs down. (I saved a piece and it's square, 3mm thick)
 
Posted by Dominique De Bast (Member # 3798) on December 17, 2015, 12:21 PM:
 
That's indeed what I call the lampholder. If the problem is not what I suggested, it is logically located before the lampholder, a case I have never encountered so far, so I'm afraid I cannot help :-(
 
Posted by Dimitris Papas (Member # 5156) on December 18, 2015, 10:25 AM:
 
Dominique, only now did I realize that I could take off the lamp. And indeed, it seems you were right, there was rust, or rather salts, on the plugs. I've cleaned both the plugs and the lamp socket with vinegar and now the lamp works! That's one major problem solved. Next, I need to find drive belts.

Thanks a lot! [Big Grin]

[ December 18, 2015, 11:47 AM: Message edited by: Dimitris Papas ]
 
Posted by Dominique De Bast (Member # 3798) on December 18, 2015, 11:00 AM:
 
I'm happy you have light again :-) However, once you'll have checked all the projector and make it work, I advise you to change the lamp holder as the vinagar cleaning is only a temporarily solution. It is easy and cheap to do, just make sure you choose the right lamp holder as if you don't have the correct wattage capacity, the lamp will have a weaker brightness for a short moment from time to time. That's not only not comfortable when you're watching a film, that's also bad for the bulb longevity. I hope you get your belts soon to check the projector with a film.
 
Posted by Dimitris Papas (Member # 5156) on December 18, 2015, 11:47 AM:
 
Thanks, Dominique.

Some more input.

Here's the rusted plug of the lamp before I rinsed it with vinegar.

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Also, I unscrewed the screw (1) and nut (2) and now the 18/24 switch moves and seems to work, again!

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Now when I press/pull the button (3) one of the two wheels (4 and 5) move towards the big one (6). But they don't exactly touch it and I suppose that's yet another problem.

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I gather that wheel 4 (or 5, depending on the 18/24 button(3) ) should touch and force wheel 6 to move along. Is that right?
 
Posted by Roger Shunk (Member # 2836) on December 18, 2015, 04:45 PM:
 
I noticed the top toothed belt in the pix is that what they put in the Elmo's back then? Can you still get a toothed top belt for that machine? I have never seen one offered before.
 
Posted by Winbert Hutahaean (Member # 58) on December 19, 2015, 05:44 PM:
 
The lamp holder does seem not the original ones for Elmo ST1200. All my Elmo ST1200s have lamp holder where we slide in the bulb. I dont uderstand with the current lamp holder how it can sit properly against the film gate.

Can you post a picture when the lamp sitting?
 
Posted by Steve Klare (Member # 12) on December 19, 2015, 06:38 PM:
 
This looks different from mine: just south of the 18FPS roller(#5) it looks like a pulley where mine has an idler roller.

The replacement lamp socket is supposed to be an improvement. The original socket has two small contact points and can get awfully hot with 10 Amps flowing through it. The replacements grip the pin all the way around and should run cooler.

I did this job too. It makes changing the lamp a little more of a production but at least the pins on the lamps shouldn't evaporate anymore.

I did it twice though: seems better quality sockets make all the difference and there are a lot of cheapies out there.
 
Posted by Dimitris Papas (Member # 5156) on December 21, 2015, 04:30 PM:
 
@Roger, not sure if you can still get a toothed belt. This one came with the machine and I'm sure it's the original one.

@Winbert, this machine has never been used before and all parts are the original ones. I understand, though, that there have been different variations of this particular machine on the market. See, for example, the picture I post below.

@Steve, indeed, there seem to be different variants of this very same model.
[Smile]

____

Further update:

Trying to figure out more about the drive belts so that I can use a tow to find the length, I came across this youtube video and noticed that my machine is different from the one there. The pulleys on mine (appart from a different placement) have one single notch when on that guy's machine they have two notches for two different belts. That explains, at last, why I have the feeling that I need less belts than ebay offers.

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Anyway, I look at the service manual (which seems to illustrate the single notch variant) and I'm trying to figure out how the belt goes. Here below you see my suggestion on picture b, drawn with red.

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Do you think that is correct?
Thanks [Smile]
 
Posted by Joseph Randall (Member # 4906) on December 21, 2015, 05:26 PM:
 
I think the 2 drive belts were only for the ST-1200HD. I believe your diagram is correct.
 
Posted by Pablo Suarez (Member # 1765) on February 11, 2018, 02:25 PM:
 
Hi Dimitris,
did you manage to fix it?
I also have an Elmo ST 1200 with exactly the same pulley configuration as yours. And I also have to change the motor belt.
What is the size that I need? How does the belt go through the pulleys? Is the diagram you posted the correct one?
And most important: how do you thread the belt? Something must be released to make it pass through, but how is it done?
I would be very thankful if you (or someone else!) could help me.
 


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