NOVICE Looking to buy an 8mm film projector with sound

[Jennifer Fein]

Need something that is reliable enough that won’t ruin anymore vintage film reels. So I can film off the projection to digitize. Budget is very small so I’m looking for the best option on a small budget. Am willing to forgoe the sound recording if I can preserve the film after projecting assuming it doesn’t get ruined. And go back to sound at a later date.

some recommendations on brands would be amazing. I’m a novice so any materials ect I would so appreciate the advice. )

[Robert Held]

Hi Jennifer,

I'm assuming that if your films have sound, they're Super 8. If that's correct, I project my sound Super 8 films on a Chinon Sound 6100, which is a Japanese model from the 1970s. They can usually be purchased on eBay for under $150 shipped, but usually need a bulb, etc. (see below). The Chinon Sound 7000 is also a good option with some additional features for around the same price. You may be able to find them locally on Facebook Marketplace for less. Chinon made some great projectors. Sankyo did as well. 1970s Japanese projectors tend to have really nice auto-loading and smooth operation. In any case, a commonly found Super 8 projector from the 1960s - 1980s that is in good working order should not harm your films. The qualifier of good working order can be an issue, as most vintage projectors need some work to operate properly (even new-old-stock ones), such as cleaning and lubrication, a new belt and most commonly a new bulb.

If your goal is digitization, I recommend reading some of the threads on here to see some options other than projectors. Used frame-by-frame scanners such as a Wolverine Moviemaker are similar in cost to a decent projector. They won't give professional results, but will give much better quality than filming the projection. In addition, people here have built some impressive "real time" digitizers with older camcorders (e.g. https://8mmforum.film-tech.com/vbb/f...sample-footage).

Robert

[Melvin England]

Jennifer - I totally endorse everything Robert says. If you decide on a Sankyo, which are excellent machines, please make sure it, like any you may purchase, has a variable speed control. The reason is the speed can be adjusted slightly to stop those awful bars dropping across the picture when transferring with a camcorder if that is the method you intend to use.

Good luck.

[Jennifer Fein]

All the film reels are 8 mm actually I didn’t see any super eight only 8 mm and I can see they have sound because there’s a little bar on the bottom of the film. When you hold it up to the light that being said, is there a specific model you could recommend to project the film? That’s easy to thread and relatively reliable also thank you so much for your responses.!!!

[Robert Held]

Can you share a picture of the film with the sprocket holes and the sound area? Thanks!