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This topic comprises 2 pages: 1 2
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Author
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Topic: Film Lubrication and How to Walk the Fine Line Between Over-/Underdoing It
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Karl Borowski
Expert Film Handler
Posts: 161
From: Sulking in GameFAQ Forum
Registered: Sep 2009
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posted 09-11-2009 12:24 AM
Hello all, first post here.
After 3-1/2 years hiatus, I am back up in the projection room, this time for a corporate chain instead of a single-screen theatre.
Fortunately, despite the stereotype, I am in a very clean shop.
What bothers me is that there are situations where perhaps things are "too clean". Fire glass and lenses seem to be cleaned to the point that it is counter-productive, with static charge and maybe stripped rear lens coatings, but what is even more concerning to me is over-lubrication of film.
We thoroughly scrub down each projector every night with cleaner/lubricant, either with toothbrushes or cloths, but I have noticed that it almost looks as if we are over-doing it on our prints.
You'll see spots where some sort of gunk has actually congealed in spots on segments of films.
So how do you know where to walk the fine line of too much/too little lubricant on films?
Granted, most prints end up being melted down, but I was heartbroken the other day to run my prized trailer of Red October only to find that someone had left so much grease on it that it had congealed and actually almost looked as if the emulsion was partially lifted off in spots where grease had dried on and caked to the touching film base in contact with it
Thanks for the tips folks.
P.S. Is there any difference between the treatments that should be given to acetate vs. estar while we're on this topic?
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Karl Borowski
Expert Film Handler
Posts: 161
From: Sulking in GameFAQ Forum
Registered: Sep 2009
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posted 09-11-2009 12:48 PM
Sorry, don't remember the brand OTOH, just a clear lubricant/cleaner in a 16 floz bottle.
From time to time we'll use WD-40 as a film lubricant as well, but I am not the one involved in this area.
We clean the gate, pressure plate, and all rollers with it every night, so it can come in contact with the film on the rollers, in the gate area, the capstan, and really anywhere else through the film path on the projector.
Isn't a nightly cleaning of a high run-through projector standard procedure?
There definitely is buildup of brown gunk that comes off with the cleaning, but I always have the tendency to over-apply vs. under-apply. With no real recommendations as to how much lube/cleaner to put on a rag/toothbrush, I am worried that the first roller in particular is getting covered in this stuff.
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John Hawkinson
Film God
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Posts: 2273
From: Cambridge, MA, USA
Registered: Feb 2002
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posted 09-11-2009 12:59 PM
You need to find out exactly what it is. But it's highly likely that using almost any lubricant as you have specified is extremely bad practice.
WD40 should never come into contact with film. It absolutely will leech dyes from the film and damage it. It is also not a very good general-purpose mechanical lubricant, because it is sufficiently volatile that it evaporates and doesn't leave much behind to lubricate.
You absolutely should not clean the gate, the pressure plate (or rails), the pad rollers, or the sprockets, with any kind of petroleum product. That is absolutely a problem.
You should clean with a mild solvent. Opinions vary. We're quite happy with 99% isopropyl alcohol (isopropanol). Some swear by FilmGuard. Others like VM&P naptha. Still others are rich enough to use 1,1,1-trichloroethane (formerly sold under trade names like Renovex). But all have one thing in common: they are chemicals approved for contact with film.
(Additionally, because they are solvents, they tend to evaporate and leave minimal residue behind; that is desirable in this application. You don't want to apply something that will come into contact with the film.)
Yes, frequently cleaning is standard procedure. But not with lubricants (special exception: lubricants designed for use with film, like FilmGuard).
Some clean nightly, some clean after each show, some with other frequencies. It really depends on how dirty your projectors get, which depends on a lot of factors. Probably the biggest one is the use of FilmGuard...
All lubricants function somewhat as solvents, so it is not surprising that crap comes off when you use a lubricant. But the other properties of most lubricants are absolutely killers in this kind of application.
--jhawk
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Tony Bandiera Jr
Film God
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Posts: 3067
From: Moreland Idaho
Registered: Apr 2004
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posted 09-12-2009 12:12 AM
Gordon: Then my contact here in LA is wrong, he told me waxing doesn't happen anymore. I however stand corrected.
Joe, I have, so far, in both my Kinotons and in the several Simplex XL's I service and use Filmguard with, NEVER had to re-adjust the tension. The only effect of Filmguard use I've noted is quieter running, never had jump issues. Sounds like the machines you've run into are not set up correctly.
I can say that setting the proper tension on Simplexes (especially with the curved gates) takes a lot of patience and testing. I have been able to successfully get CURVED GATE XL's to run film in reverse without munching the film, (for short lengths of course) and have always been able to get "studio gate" XL's to reverse (pretty much as much as you want) without Wrong's expensive gate release.
Karl:
To reemphasise: WD40 is not to EVER be used on film!! It WILL cause permanent damage!! In fact, WD40 has NO safe use anywhere in a projection room on ANY projection equipment! WD40 is NOT a lube in any event, is was formulated to displace moisture ONLY. (The WD stands for Water Displacement.)
Sounds like your other product is CPI, again do a search on this site to find out just how bad Ron Purtee and CPI has screwed up this industry.
PLEASE do yourself and anyone who may get prints after your theatre runs them a big favor and invest the modest cost of a bottle of Filmguard and cleaning media. If you need a media cleaner you can find them here in the Equipment For Sale forum.
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