8mm Forum: Ampro Stylist Up & Running again.

This is topic Ampro Stylist Up & Running again. in forum 16mm Forum at 8mm Forum.

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Posted by frank arnstein (Member # 330) on September 12, 2009, 06:28 AM:

Hi to the Forum Members,

Here is a pic of my Ampro Stylist 16mm that has finally run this weekend for the 1st time in many years.
A 240v model, it passed all the tests with only a lubrication service needed to have it up & running again with full sound.
This is one my favourite vintage projectors & it's finally showing sound movies again after all these years.
It looks like an Alien or a Stick Insect & seems alive, coming to get you, so watch out.

dogtor pufferfish [Wink]

Posted by Kevin Faulkner (Member # 6) on September 12, 2009, 11:33 AM:

Did you not have do anything with the valve amp such as replace the capacitors etc. I would have thought they needed it by now.

Kev.

Posted by Damien Taylor (Member # 1337) on September 12, 2009, 01:06 PM:

My stylist was working well until my belt turned to goo, shouldn't be long on a new one now. My amp is also a project in the works, the sound works intermittently, the white noise is constant.

Posted by frank arnstein (Member # 330) on September 12, 2009, 06:41 PM:

Hi Kevin & Damien

Luckily, I didn't need to do anything on this amp.
A second machine here has a problem with the sound exciter lens. The amp. works Ok on that one too but somethings blocking the light signal to the sensor & so it needs more work to fix the sound.
Here is a picture of the amazingly simple barrel shutter & the 750w Lamp on the Ampro. What a sharp & steady picture this machine produces.
The rewind is one of the fastest I have seen. You need to use good reels or disaster could strike during high speed rewind.

dogtor pufferfish [Razz]

[ September 12, 2009, 09:02 PM: Message edited by: frank arnstein ]

Posted by Damien Taylor (Member # 1337) on September 12, 2009, 11:40 PM:

I always loved the barrel shutter! I bought my Ampro off an antiques dealer so it was only used for show, probably ran film twice in the 1950's. It's cosmetically pretty much perfect but suffers a couple of mechanical problems. The rewind button must be cracked somewhere inside because it doesn't hold down properly and one of the belt run runners on the takeup arm has a chip. Damn you bakelite [Frown]

Posted by Kevin Faulkner (Member # 6) on September 15, 2009, 06:25 AM:

Having one blade for the shutter obvioulsy gives good light throughput but dont you get some flicker?

Kev.

Posted by Damien Taylor (Member # 1337) on September 15, 2009, 06:37 AM:

ack, yes too much flicker now. I need help guys. I just got the new belt for my Ampro Stylist, put it on, plugged her in and... it ran at about silent speed, then I turned the lamp on, an it ran at half speed, I flicked it from sound to silent and the whole thing shuts off. The whole thing smells like hot projector too. What the heck is going on, is it time for a major electric service?

Ampro nuts, help me!

Posted by frank arnstein (Member # 330) on September 15, 2009, 07:31 AM:

Hi Damien
Sounds like it may need oiling.
There are a few important oil holes on the machine, with red paint to mark them. One is on top near the framer & there are others, including inside the lamphouse
Make sure its oiled at all moving parts.

Let us know if you have any luck.
dogtor pufferfish [Razz]

Posted by Damien Taylor (Member # 1337) on September 15, 2009, 08:26 AM:

Haha jeez, I feel like a massive idiot. Thank you so much Frank! she purrs like a kitten now [Smile]

Posted by Damien Taylor (Member # 1337) on September 16, 2009, 01:36 AM:

Oh yes, here's a video. Its quite hard to make out since the video is such low quality, but there are some subtle differences on the Stylist Major, primarily, the sound drum flywheel was moved to the back side of the projector, and there was a "still frame" clutch added to the side of the lamp house, where the top belt pulley sits, where on the stylist there was just a raised circle.

Ampro Stylist Major Mk. II

Posted by Martin Jones (Member # 1163) on September 16, 2009, 04:26 AM:

It seems like the main difference on this machine is the "left handed" operating position and the backwards lettering!
Martin

Posted by frank arnstein (Member # 330) on September 16, 2009, 06:10 AM:

Good Spotting Martin..

We must all Salute to the Major....
The left handed operation must have been a great selling feature of this reversed model but I imagine retooling costs would have been quite high that year. Maybe why they stopped making them.

A nice looking machine Damien....

dogtor pufferfish

[Razz]

Posted by Damien Taylor (Member # 1337) on September 17, 2009, 12:10 PM:

Yeah... I know, all my youtube videos suffer the same fate, even the 35mm is in reverse. Why would that be a feature people would want Apple! It's actually less effort to operate the projector while using a laptop as a camera, than it is to transfer video off a real one [Razz]

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