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Author Topic: Availability Of Reverse Scan Kits for "Westrex Standard" Sound Heads. Paul G. Thompson The Weenie Man Posts: 4718 From: Mount Vernon WA USA Registered: Nov 2000 posted 08-18-2003 11:49 PM                     First, are they available? The soundhead configuration looks kinda funky. A sound head I had to deal with today had three problems. 1. The floating roller (lateral guide in this case) pivot was loose. No big deal...easily fixed. 2. The mono solar cell is a flat panel about 7/16-inch square (just a guess) was busted. A wire was hanging off. By placing the wire on the panel itself, it works. No big deal...a hunk of duct tape to hold the wire on the panel seems to work for now - maybe - until a new one could be "had". 3. The exciter lens is a goofy one. Never seen any like it. It looks like the slit width might be adjustable. Only one thing wrong. The shades that might be used are missing. (like...gone?) As a result, the slit beam width as it falls on the film appears to be a good .100 of an inch wide. Wide anough to scan sprocket holes, sound track, DTS track, frame lines, and the picture as well - all at the same time! Boy, that really makes a helluva racket. No big deal. A hunk of electrical tape across the objective lens to "shorten the width" of the slit and an error purposely thrown into the lateral guide to get the beam off the sprocket holes seems to work OK. Well, I told the owner he needs some "parts" and he had better get them on order mose schoshie...like yesterday. Since Cyan tracks are going to be, I suggested he converts to reverse scan. But since this soundhead is an import, I don't know if such a kit is readily available. The guy who owns the theatre needs a technician. But I don't want to be the technician in this place because of logistic reasons. I just went down there to try to "get him back on the screen" and that's all. I managed to do that. But he won't be on the screen for long. Does anyone know of anyone in the Seattle area who can be his tech, and does anyone know if a reverse scan kit is available for his sound head? I looked for nameplates, model numbers and serial numbers of the soundhead. The only thing I can find is what is etched on the glass.."Westrex Standard." Sitting on top of that thing is a Simplex E-7. Behind it is a big Christie lamp sitting and bolted to some 2X4's on a pedistal which just happens to be missing a lamp table. This is a "Duct Tape" Theatre. I have seen some bad booths in my day, but this one takes the cake.  |  IP: Logged Ken Layton Phenomenal Film Handler Posts: 1452 From: Olympia, Wash. USA Registered: Sep 1999 posted 08-19-2003 01:54 AM                     I suppose if need be, you could install a Smart LASER LENS unit which is a red laser & narrow slit lens in one unit. That way you could get rid of the exciter and that old slit lens assembly. Now for the solar cell, is it a conventional KELMAR mono cell? If so, you can order just the mono cell & wires and bolt it onto the existing mounting arm. All the Kelmar mono cells I've seen you can replace just the cell assembly. Do you have a picture of this particular soundhead?  |  IP: Logged Richard Fowler Film God Posts: 2392 From: Ft. Lauderdale, FL, USA Registered: Jun 2001 posted 08-19-2003 07:28 AM                     Westrex reverse scan kits are available from Kelmar. The unit is basically a Century but the mounting foot on the LED bracket has the same "C" looking mount but the holes are in a wider spacing. Kelmar anodizes the foot with a gold color so people will not confuse it with Century. Component could come up with a Westrex modification if they would do the same with their Century unit but the market is small. Some models of Westrex or the other clones may would require some of the slit lens casting toward the exciter lamp side to be cut off to allow the reverse scan tube to focus to the drum.  |  IP: Logged Pete Naples Phenomenal Film Handler Posts: 1565 From: Dunfermline, Scotland Registered: Feb 2001 posted 08-19-2003 11:38 AM                     Paul, does this thing have two sprockets and two exciter lamps like a Century R2? The Westrex version of the R2 was known as the Westrex 2002 over here. In which case to the best of my knowledge the Kelmar or CE reverse scan kits won't fit. You could fit a Jax Light, but if the existing slit lens is dodgy I'd say no. Same would apply with the ACL laser Exciter module. I've fitted the ACL on a Westrex 2002 and it was a b1tch to align, the rubber exciter mounts kept allowing it to move. I've also fitted the ACL combined laser and optic unit to a 2002 with great success. It went in, it aligned in 5 minutes, it sounds great and I've never had to touch it since (nearly two years).  |  IP: Logged Paul G. Thompson The Weenie Man Posts: 4718 From: Mount Vernon WA USA Registered: Nov 2000 posted 08-19-2003 02:17 PM                     Richard, the mounting of the solar cell does not look anything like a Century. The chip about 1/2-inch square (mabe a tad bit smaller) is glued to the bracket. A fix would be getting another solar panel about that size and gluing it to the bracket. Radio Shack did stock those years ago, but no longer does. To be honest, I didn't really look that closely to see how it was bolted to the soundhead casting. The part that holds the chip bracket of the solar cell assembly on the arm has a bolt pattern of about i inch. One screw is a special screw with a length of approximately 1.5 inches long. The other screw is about 1/2 of an inch. There are 4 holes in that chip holder. Two for the screws, and two for alignment dowel pins. My orginal dimensions of the scanning beam were incorrect. I stated .100 inch. It is closeer to 3/8 of an inch, and the beam sees the sprocket holes, SRD track, Analog track, DTS track and the picture content. The objective lense is very close to the film plane. Probably about .020 away from the film plane. The solar cell chip is even closer than that. It is so tight of a fit that it would be next to impossible to clean the objective lense with a "Q" tip. Pete, the soundhead has only one sprocket like the Centurys. Would you be so kind and post a picture of your sound head set-up so I can get a comparison? I really don't know what the hell I am looking at, as I never seen one like this and is hard to explain. Meanwhile, I'll contact the owner and see if I can get him to do the same. If he does, I'll post the picture so you can all see it. Incidently, the exciter lens diameter is much greater than the conventional Simplex or Century. It would be the same amount as what you might expect to see on an RCA soundhead without the collet threads. It is also mounted kind of weird. The lens bracket looks like it may be a two-piece bracket. The bracket that holds the lens itself has two screwdriver adjustments. One for Azimuth (like the RCA lens) and one for focus.  |  IP: Logged Pete Naples Phenomenal Film Handler Posts: 1565 From: Dunfermline, Scotland Registered: Feb 2001 posted 08-19-2003 02:40 PM                     Unfortunately Paul I don't have a picture of a Westrex 2002, and I can't think of one in operation that I could go and photograph within about 200 miles! Evidently it's not what I thought it was though. If the lens tube is 0.750" diameter you could probably use the ACL lens/laser  |  IP: Logged Mark Gulbrandsen Resident Trollmaster Posts: 16657 From: Music City Registered: Jun 99 posted 08-19-2003 02:49 PM                     Contrary to what others may say going with either a Laser Light or JAX light gets you absolutely nothing except red light. Really no greater perfrmance that is going to matter very much is gained. And you are still stuck with the two weakest links of the "A" chain and thats the solor cell and slit lens. Real reverse scan isn't that much more expensive than either of the other two options and so much more is gained that even considering the other two is about the equivelent to fooliing yourself into thinking that you only need to run two cylinders of the 4 cylinder engine in your car. Labor to install a BACP scanner should actually be a bit less than any of the other systems available and that would also offset the cost of the unit. Mark  |  IP: Logged Paul G. Thompson The Weenie Man Posts: 4718 From: Mount Vernon WA USA Registered: Nov 2000 posted 08-19-2003 02:52 PM                     I contacted the theatre owner. He has a digi camera, and I asked him to send me a picture ASAP. He said he would. As soon as I get the picture, I'll post it.  |  IP: Logged Mark Gulbrandsen Resident Trollmaster Posts: 16657 From: Music City Registered: Jun 99 posted 08-19-2003 06:03 PM                     Paul, I bet its equivelent to an R-2 sound reproducer. Mark  |  IP: Logged Mark Gulbrandsen Resident Trollmaster Posts: 16657 From: Music City Registered: Jun 99 posted 08-19-2003 06:03 PM                     Paul, I bet its equivelent to an R-2 sound reproducer. Mark  |  IP: Logged Gordon McLeod Film God Posts: 9532 From: Toronto Ontario Canada Registered: Jun 99 posted 08-20-2003 01:07 PM                     I have had no complaints with most lasers especially the ACL one true there is still a slit lens and a cell but there is also a lens tube on a reverse scan as well that can get dirty or misaligned just as easily The only disadvantage of the laser is the noise floor of dirt on the film is slightly higher Westrex and the clones are very common the lens tube has a vernier focus (superior to the century loosen the screw and hope it tightnes down not moving the optic you just aligned) Kelmar and I think BACP have reverse scan kits for westrex A lot of the older mono cells in some of the GPL simplex were a square glued to a round plastic tube  |  IP: Logged Craig Hanham Film Handler Posts: 79 From: Wellington, New Zealand Registered: Oct 2001 posted 08-29-2003 06:57 PM                     I had a Westrex 2002 'reverse scannned' about 18 months back using a Component Engineering century kit. Went straight in. in some cases drilling and tapping for mountins is required. Found CE to be reasonably helpful. Hope this helps.  |  IP: Logged

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