Start Film Partway Through With Autoload Projector?

[Josh Hafen]

Hi everybody. I recently got my hands on an Elmo ST-1200 HD and I’m so happy about it. I have a film that is on three 400’ reels and I’m thinking about splicing it all together onto one 1200’ reel to be able to watch all at once.

I was wondering if it’s possible to load a film into the projector from a point in the middle of the film rather than always from the beginning. I want to be able to test my splices once they’re done to make sure they run smoothly but I want to be able to test them without running the whole reel first. Hopefully I’ve explained that well.

I used to have an ST-800 and I found that, although difficult and probably not very good for the film, I was able to remove a film in the middle once it started by taking the plate off and lifting some levers. Is it possible (or safe) to reverse this process and put the film back in?

[Douglas Meltzer]

Josh,

Interesting question! Since you can remove the film from the film path on the ST-1200HD, I assume (I've never tried) you can do the opposite. You would have to be careful about making sure the loop sizes are correct.
This is where 16mm slot load projectors have an advantage.

If you need the manual for your projector, you can find it here.