Vintage Movie Camera Fun

[kevinpreston8]

I started out making movies of my own with my dad's Bell and Howell Regular 8mm camera. This was the standard 8mm format before Super 8mm came out. Slightly smaller frame size.

I made a whole number of films, usually involving model train wrecks, model planes colliding with buildings, GI Joes with severed heads, Erector set space ships, etc. They were terrible films but I enjoyed making them.

I dabbled with 8mm a bit more in high school, then I bought an expensive (for me at the time) Super 8mm outfit, which I still have. This was all done, obviously, prior to home video becoming affordable.

I have in the past year collected a series of both Super 8mm and Regular 8mm vintage cameras. I have paid as little as $.99 for a camera. People don't realize it, but third party Regular 8mm film is still available, and Kodak themselves still make Super 8mm.

I have been having fun taking movies and sending the film off for development. I already got a test roll back, shot on my vintage Bolex Macrozoom Super 8mm camera. I just sent a roll in shot off my Bolex P3 Regular 8mm camera. Here is the P3:

 

[kevinpreston8]

Another camera....

Here is a Bolex S1, brought out closer to the end of Regular 8mm production. While the "P" series had a built-in meter, this unit had automatic exposure with manual override. It had the backwinding mechanism (to do dissolves), fading, and multiple film speeds.

 

[kevinpreston8]

Interesting Camera

This one is interesting as it is one of the handful of Regular 8mm cameras that were NOT wind up (clockspring) driven. It is the Honeywell Elmo Pocketauto Zoom 83 model.

This item is powered by a cartridge of 4 AA batteries, and a seperate 4 batteries power the "Zoom 83" grip. The battery compartment was completely corroded when I got it, and I had to "rebuild" it, clean the inside, and even then I could not get it to go. I finally had to resolder some wires inside and manually oil and spin the motor until it finally clanked to life. The thing spins great now, speeds work, meter appears to work. It will be tested with film shortly.

This has a very nice additional screw in lens that gives you a wider angle. As with other 8mm cameras, this is mostly metal and rather loud in its operation.

 

[jasonl]

I can just imagine a nerd walking into a camera shop in the 1960s going. "OOhh oooohh.. You got the Honeywell Elmo Pocketauto Zoom 83? I've been waiting for months for it to come out. WOWWWW!"

 

[petek]

Kevin are you still collecting 8mm camera's ? I see them now and then at the thrifts but leave them behind. Dad had a B&H windup with the big plug in floodlight bar with two huge flodlights on it. He took lots of movies of all our camping trips etc and we just had them converted to DVD and VHS a couple of years ago thankfully in time, a fair bit of the film had deteriorated though but it's clear from what's left that even as a precocious 5 years I exuded star quality. Let me know if you're looking for anything in particular so I'll know when I'm out and about to pick it up.

 

[kevinpreston8]

Guess.....

Ok, here is a major challenge for you.

There is something very wierd about this movie camera.

It does something strange and very ahead of its time. See if you can guess what it does.

What I will tell you:

It's American, made in New York.

It is Regular 8mm, NOT Super 8mm.

It is from the very early 1960s, designed in the late 50s.

It was made for consumers.

It was very expensive when it came out, the equivalent of about $1400 in today's money.

Please take a guess without resorting to internet research.

Donuts to who guesses first.

 

[petek]

My guess is records sound ?

 

[veg-o-matic]

Autofocus?

 

[frontaloadotmy]

My Guess: It exposes both sides of the film without it being removed and turned over/reloaded

 

[westytoploader]

Very neat 8mm cameras Kevin!! My favorite has to be the "mystery" camera at the bottom.

I'm not sure what it does...though it looks to be the first "palm-grip" setup I've seen, versus a pistol-type grip with a trigger switch.

 

[jasonl]

It self destructs!

 

[kevinpreston8]

Solution

Pete K is right. This is a Regular 8mm SOUND camera. It was the only one manufacturer that I know of that made one. After all these years of playing with cameras, I had never even heard of this.

This is a Fairchild Cinephonic 8 Camera. It has a zoom lens, built in light meter, and unbelievably, records sound, or at least it did.

This thing had a 12V nicad rechargable battery in it. Again, remember this as a 1964 model of a range that started in 1960. When was the next time you saw rechargable sound movie equipment, video cameras in the 80s?

Super 8mm didn't come out with sound until a few years later. This predated all that. You could actually take full color sound movies on regular 8mm film in 1960.

The trick was the camera had a full sound system build into it, this is why it is so wide, and heavy, at 4.5 pounds.

Unfortunately, this has proven to be a most difficult time to restore to functionality, if it is even possible.

While Regular 8mm film is still available, this took a special prestriped film that had a magnetic strip put down on it. Silent 8mm film should work, however, this camera used special spools that held 50 feet of film as opposed to the standard small 25' spool. Again, I thought I could cheat and just use smaller spools, but the damned sprockets are keyed differently. I could respools, but I don't have any of the originals. What I could do to workaround that is to modify two loose 8mm spools, and then spool fresh film onto them, etc.

However, I may never get that far on this. Finding a replacement battery proves difficult, and not sure if the unit will run on its cord. Moreover, the driving mechanisms are so jammed that nothing will turn. I actually need a gear puller to get the main drive gear off, and nowhere can I tell what is binding. Things are pressed on and pinned on, so it is like a puzzle to try to get working. Not to mention the drive belts are rubber and worn away, and I knocked a coil of wire (not sure what it does) off the circuit board. Ouch.

The film played on a special Fairchild projector (I have one on order) with a sound head that picked up the sound.

Working or not, it is a fascinating look at early technology that is largely forgotten.

Below is the flip side of the camera...mic and headset connections.

 

[kevinpreston8]

Film used

Here is the original film used in this.

 

[ironrite]

Beautiful Cameras

It is so neat to see some of these cameras. I'll have to keep my eye out here too for you. Never know what will pop up in the thrift stores.

Hope the Fairchild comes through the restoration process ok. It puts my Sony DV camcorder to shame. Film is just something you can't duplicate with video. What fun to make your own vintage commercials with some of these.

 

[Maytagmom]

How ironic...

My brother and I just got our families 8mm home movies transfered over to DVD...1300 feet of film, about $400.00 give or take. The cost was outrageous, but watching these old movies has been a blast!! No sound, but we did get some nice elevator music for the background.

He still has the old Bell & Howell projector, but told me the other day he can't find the bulb for it. I told him they could be found...he just doesn't have access to the internet.

The camera my parents used was bought in 1958, but unfortuneately, was stolen in a home burgulary back in 1990. I think it was a Kodak. My parents bought everything from either Sears, or Monkey Ward back then.
We also had the huge flood lights for filming. You can see it in the DVD movie's how people squinted their eyes when that sucker was pointed at you. They were bright.

The processed film even has the price stickers on them (from '64), I think it was something like $1.85 back then. Rather costly at the time.

 

[kevinpreston8]

Comments on lights

My dad had the Bell and Howell setup too. His lighting bar, which came with it, was mild by comparison to others, it was two 300 watt flood lights.

I dug this off the shelf, something my friend gave me. This is a Powelite "Portable Sunshine" unit with spots for four floodlights. The label on it says Copyright 1950. It was purchased at Trice Jewelers in Denver, which is still in business and has been since 1948. The receipt is barely legible.

The reason for these lights is that all the movie film was very slow speed, as in, not sensitive to light. It was really best for outdoors. These films were down around 25-40 ASA, so you really needed alot of light.

 

[kevinpreston8]

Projector bulbs

Try Don's bulbs. I have not done business with him to tell you my satisfaction level, but he has a huge stock.

http://www.donsbulbs.com/cgi-bin/r/t.pl?searchb=bell+and+howell

 

[Maytagmom]

Thanks for the link to DonsBulbs!

As soon as I find out the Model # of the projector, I will probably order it.

The lightbar looks very similar to ours also. IIRC, we use to use it to tan with back in the 70's...roflmao. Remember the Q T tanning lotion that turned ya orange?

Nuff said

 

[kenwashesmonday]

I get all my projector bulbs from eBay. Just type the 3 letter bulb code into the seach box. There are still lots of schools emptying their closets and sometime you can get a lot of 5 bulbs for almost nothing. Stock up!

Ken

 

[Cybrvanr]

Bulbdirect is a great place to find practically any type of projector bulb ever made. They have the lamps for the old Bell & Howell 16 mm machines, so I know they'll have one for the 8mm's too. I've got an old Canon model 518 movie camera that I love shooting Kodachrome 40 in. The colors are so vibrant! Black & white film is fun too! It's funny looking at the black & white because it looks so old, and then you see a late model car go by, or some other piece of high-tech gear in the pictures.