Elmo K100 belt problem/fps.

[Nick Ghent]

Hi, I am new here and have just bought an Elmo K100sm projector off ebay to view some old family films.The seller said that the belts had recently been changed and appear to be in good condition. However, when I loaded a film and began to play it, it began to play ok speed wise but made various squeaks and noises from within. I took the back off and found that the belt had come off one of the guides. I replaced the belt over the pully and began to play the film again. It again made various squeaks and the film speed was now slower than it had been and couldn't be increased using the variable speed adjuster. This results in a very stutter projected image. Slowing the adjuster to minimum causes the film to stop turning. Playing the film in reverse it plays slightly faster and a little less squeaky. I have checked the routing of the belt and it is as shown on the diagram inside the projector cover. I have checked with the seller and he stated that the belt was replaced about a month or so ago and was working fine. I have looked on the Internet and cannot find any info regarding this problem. The only thing I have found is that a loose belt will/can cause the film to play slower than it should. Can anyone tell me how tight/loose the belt should be to operate correctly? I plan on buying a new belt to ensure that there is not a problem with the supplied one as u cannot think of anything else it could beOr if anyone has any other ideas what else the problem may be, I would love to here them.
thanks in advance,
Nick

[Richard C. Patchett]

Greetings
Sounds like it needs serving ( Lack of Lubrication)

[Maurice Leakey]

Nick
Initially you mentioned the word belts. But subsequently the word belt was used.

The projector uses two belts. One for the drive from the motor, and the other drives the two spool spindles.
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/ELMO-K100...wAAOSwqp5eNCoU

As Richard has advised, it probably needs lubrication, after all, it's now around 40 years old. All old grease should be removed and new clean grease applied. I also suggest you fit new belts as advertised above from eBay.

If you haven't got a manual, here is a link to a free one.
https://usermanual.wiki/Manual/elmok...ual.1442223959

I wish you luck.


Maurice

[Nick Ghent]

Thanks for the replies. Just to confirm it was the big belt that had come off the guides. The other one seems securely fixed. I am happy to delve into this project, even though this is my first journey into projectors, but having looked on the Internet i have not been able to locate any 'projector lubricant' any suggestions what I can use?

[Janice Glesser]

Superlube

https://www.amazon.com/Super-Lube-92...perlube&sr=8-3

[Maurice Leakey]

Nick
Superlube may not be available in the UK.
Have a look at a question on our old Forum with talk of Lithium grease.

https://8mmforum.film-tech.com/cgi-b...=010743#000006


Maurice

[Martin Davey]

I have an Elmo K100 and I too had lots of problems with a new belt that would work itself off. I then read somewhere, probably here, that the tension can be altered. I did this and it solved the problem to the point I can run it at 24fps with no problems. The one that need to be adjusted, with a screwdriver, is in the middle of the machine and that is one of the 'lower' wheels than the others.

[Maurice Leakey]

Thanks to Martin for this interesting information.

Maurice

[Nick Ghent]

Thanks everyone for your replies. I had removed, cleaned and relubricated all the upper belt pullys and cleaned and relubricated the gears as best I can while they are still in situ. This has quietened things down and I would say it is now running as quietly as it should. However, it is still running slow and I can't seem to adjust anything to get it to run faster. The central pully with the screw, as suggested by Martin, does not have any 'adjustability' with the screw just securing it and the gearing cog behind it to the case. The only 2 pullys that are adjustable are the 2 at the top, they can swing left or right but make no difference how I position them.
I have ordered new belts, so hopefully this will help increase the speed when I fit them, although the current ones appear ok, at least I will know the new ones are the correct ones and should work, whereas I do not know that the current ones are the correct ones for this model.

[Martin Davey]

I have found this at home which is where I saw how to adjust the tension on the belt. This did sort out any problems with the belt falling off and allowed the machine to run at any speed. Regarding the slowness of the motor I find my example does act sluggish when first plugged in but gets up to normal speed after a few mins.

[Nick Ghent]

Just to update the post, the new belts arrived yesterday, The long belt was slightly bigger in length than the old belt, maybe 5mm. Once both fitted the projector runs better but still seems a little slow. It has to be on full speed to produce a stable image, as I believe the speed control should change the speed between 14-24fps i would have thought the dial should be around the middle mark to produce 18fps.
Apart from that all appears well.

[Philip Hamilton]

Just read through this... Maybe it is the speed control that is faulty.