8mm Forum: Intermittent problem with Bell & Howell 256EX projector

This is topic Intermittent problem with Bell & Howell 256EX projector in forum 8mm Forum at 8mm Forum.

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Posted by Gareth Randall (Member # 1329) on July 10, 2018, 05:53 AM:

Hi guys,

I recently found some 8mm films at a garage sale. While playing one in my B&H 256EX (bought by my parents when they got married in 1964), it suddenly started making a much louder clattering noise and the picture went to pot, as shown in this video: 8mm projector fault

The next film I ran through was fine, the one after that was fine until about 5 minutes in and then the same problem exhibited again.

This is likely to be a mechanical fault rather than anything to do with the condition of the film, isn't it?

Posted by Brian Fretwell (Member # 4302) on July 10, 2018, 03:59 PM:

Is it losing a loop somewhere? It looks a little like that.
This can sometimes be cured by cleaning/lubricating the film.

Posted by Nantawat Kittiwarakul (Member # 6050) on July 10, 2018, 09:48 PM:

Dumb question,are film perfs still in good shape?

If yes,then I suspect moldy/moisted film resulted in sticky emulsion - making it too stiff for the claw to pull it through. A good cleanup should help. [Roll Eyes]

Posted by Gareth Randall (Member # 1329) on July 11, 2018, 06:39 AM:

Thanks guys. I'd never heard of "losing the loop" before.

Coincidentally I tracked down a copy of the original owner's manual for the projector (while searching unsuccessfully for the service manual) and there's a section in there about losing the loop, what the effect is and how to correct it - you just push down briefly on the auto-threading button. If it happens again, I'll give that a try and see what happens.

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