16mm Scope Lens - Advice Needed Please.

[Melvin England]

A couple of Blackpool's ago I picked up a 16mm scope lens for a very very good price thinking "That will come in handy some day....." The lens was made by Bausch & Lomb Optical Co. in Rochester, New York. It is 2" which fits my Bell & Howell perfectly and gives a stretch ratio of 2:1

Well, today was that "some day" as I projected my first ever full length 16mm scope film.

However, on projecting the scope film, Young Winston, a couple of obvious problems arose on the screen. Firstly, there was a haze around not only the stretched image making it a rather soft focus to watch, but also around the outside of the image, too.

I must stress at this point that the lens is not foggy at all, nor does it have any signs of fungus. Theoretically, it should have been perfect.

Secondly, and this may be a separate issue, although the image was stretched correctly, it appeared that the image may have been in a different scope ratio than 2:1 because it was obvious in places that there was a little more of the top of the image that went beyond the top of the picture into the hazy bit. Is this possible ? Are there actually different scope ratio lenses for 16mm available ? Please see the next thread for a set of photos that can demonstrate what my problem is.

As you can see, at the moment I am completely confused and really don't know what to do. Can someone explain this phenomenon to me, please? I know definitely that it is NOT a print fault. I also ran a tiny segment using another trusted flat lens and not only was there NO hazy ghosting, the image was pin sharp, as it also was when I put my super 8 scope lens to my eye to check the picture in its correct format.

To quote Lennon & McCartney.......... "HELP! I need somebody!"

Thanks.

[Melvin England]

Photographs as promised.

The second and third ones probably demonstrate my dilemma best.

[Steve Lee]

Hi Melvin.
This could be down to humidity, with the weather that we have at the moment. I have a simular problem with my Beaulieu 708. For me this only happens in the winter months, after about 10 minutes when the lens gets warm it starts to haze up.
I know that someone before me has been inside the lens, as I can see a small fingerprint on the inside of the front element.
Is there any sign of tinkering on your lens? The biggest telltale signs would be on the heads of the grub screws around the barrel, that hold the lens together. All it take is a microscopic drop of liquid from a lens cleaning tissue to cause the problem.
Steve

[Ed Gordon]

THE FOLLOWING TIPS ARE DESIGNED FOR THEATERS WHO HAVE A SHARP FOCUS ON THEIR FLAT FILMS BUT NOT ON THEIR SCOPE FILMS.

https://www.film-tech.com/warehouse/...amorphics.html

[Adrian Winchester]

Melvin,
Your first paragraph makes it sound like you could be using the scope lens instead of rather than in addition to whatever lens you would normally use. I don't suppose that's the case, and you're clearly used to projecting Super 8 scope, but if not, what's the other lens you're using, as this could possibly be relevant?

[Melvin England]

Thank you very much everybody for your input.

Steve - As you can see by looking at photo #6, it is VERY possible this lens has been dismantled sometime in the past and the humidity / liquid situation inside the lens has occurred causing the problem. The screw looks to have been tampered with, don't you agree ? The question is.... what is the solution ? Do I leave it in front of a cool fan for 24 hours or so, or do I also need to access the lens to dry it out and re-assemble ? Any realistic suggestions would be welcome, please.

Adrian - As you can see, the scope lens is one complete unit with removable focus lens at the 2" barrel end and the scope glass at the other. Fits into the Bell and Howell bracket beautifully. The only other way I could possibly achieve a scope presentation (with a hell of a lot of messing about with a result that is not ideal) would be to return the original 51mm lens back into its focus bracket and place the scope section of my super 8 Kiptagon Iscomorphot in front of it. Like I say, is possible but very messy.

Ed - Thank you for your input, too.

All info is greatly appreciated.

.

[Ed Gordon]

Melvin, you will have to disassemble the lens to clean the elements. Before doing this, I would take the lens into any good camera repair store and ask what they charge to do the work. If you decide to tackle this yourself, here is a video on how to do it.

Direct link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_oONjRSZ7_k

1,814 views Feb 28, 2021
This is my tutorial video that shows you exactly how to modify your Bell & Howell 2x anamorphic lens to make it more usable. As it is from the factory it takes seven complete turns of the focus ring to go from near to infinity. With this simple modification you will be able to cut the rotation down to almost less than one complete rotation of the focus ring.