Need advice for an 8mm Viewer-Editor

[Bill Walters]

I have several reels of 8mm film which I would like to review, edit and splice to put together one good reel which I’ll submit to a transfer service to convert to digital. I have a Baia Instaview 120 for editing, but it’s not in working condition.

I’m looking to purchase an inexpensive viewer/edit unit for editing. I know there’s many of these on Ebay and elsewhere but I don’t know much about the brands and models so I’m looking for recommendations. It would be nice to have a bright screen to make the work easier. Any suggestions, recommendations or advice would be appreciated.

[Ulrich Schulz]

I'm happy with my "Elmo Editor 912 Dual Type". Supports up to 240m reels, Super 8 and standard 8mm.

[Philippe Seran]

Hello Bill, if it’s 8mm, there’s Goko and Erno in DUAL version easy to find on ebay. There’s also a Japanese brand : Minette.

[Joseph Banfield]

Since you're only going to use it once just about any model will do. Make sure it can run standard 8mm or Super 8, whichever format you're going to edit. So be sure and check because there are some that are dedicated to either standard 8mm, Super 8mm or sometimes they're designed to run both formats. You'll probably want to make sure the lamp is working too.

To edit your film you will also need a splicer, film cement or tape, depending on what your splicer requires. Splicers are also often film guage dependent with some that are capable of either format. But again, it's best to be sure before buying.

[Ken Finch]

Hi Bill, I am not familiar with the editor you have but have used a number of them over the years and there are few mechanical parts to go wrong. The bulbs are the only things that I have ever had to replace and they are seemed to use the same very common 10 watt 6 or 12 volt type. As you appear to only wish to use this gear once, maybe there is a forum member within striking distance of Chicago who could help you out. Just a thought. We are quite a friendly lot. Ken finch.😊

[Kenneth Fass]

Do you guys happen to know if a Minette Super Single Viewer handles regular 8 as well as Super 8?

[Janice Glesser]

I believe only the Minette S4 handles both R8 and S8. Single eight is not the same as R8.

[John Barbour]

Brand new here and hope this is thread-appropriate. I recently bought a Vernon dual 8 movie editor on Etsy and managed to miss the words "not working" (yes, my bad). I read some archived messages here and replaced the bulb -- still no joy, however. Any ideas on how or where (I'm in Boston) repair work might be available, or do I need to start over and just eat this error? My thanks in advance.

[Steve Klare]

Hi John,

I have a Vernon editor, and I've been pretty pleased with it.

Are you good with electrical things? This is a pretty simple circuit and if either you or someone close by can deal with these things you have a reasonable shot at making the lamp work again.

It's a cord, a transformer, a switch, a socket and a bulb. There is a shock risk, so it shouldn't be taken lightly, but it should be fixable.

[John Barbour]

Many thanks, Steve. I am not especially 'electrical-handy' but your notes are certainly helpful. It sounds simple enough that I suspect I can find someone in the area to take a look at it if I decide I can't handle it.

Like many people, my family has a trove of 8mm/Super8 films reels, most taken by my dad between 1949-1982. There are a few of my own that include footage of the 1972 Olympics in Munich, showing Frank Shorter's marathon victory and Steve Prefontaine's 5000m final. I'm looking to start the digitization process with these.

Thank you again. This forum has already been both informative and, dare I say it, fun.

[Steve Klare]

Ideally you are looking for somebody with a multimeter, absolutely you are looking for somebody that can solder.

-sad to say with the software-oriented youth of today, these are becoming dying arts, so you are likely also looking for somebody at least 40! (-someone who took what we called "shop" in high school! -and really, really liked it!)

[John Barbour]

Good points all, I'll follow up accordingly. (I actually took shop as a HS freshman -- long, long ago!)

[Ken Finch]

Sadly, Steve is so right. Electronic repairers are now very few and far between. Thanks to the throw away society we now live in. Most modern electronic gadgetry is not designed to be repairable. Miniaturisation has made it nigh on impossible. What a waste of rare elements.

[Steve Klare]

I Loved Shop!

My Junior-High Metal Shop class had special-help sessions for the fabricationally-challenged kids after school and even though I was doing fine, I went anyway!

Later-on I went to technical high school and it became Shop 'till you drop!

(-yet not in the same sense as my wife!)