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Topic: Film Guard question
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Randy Stankey
Film God
Posts: 6539
From: Erie, Pennsylvania
Registered: Jun 99
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posted 07-25-2012 06:48 PM
Like Chris says, it doesn't work instantly and it depends on how bad the damage is.
It also depends on how long it's been since the damage occurred. If the damage occurred some time ago, microscopic bits of dirt will fill in the scratches. It will take a long time for the FilmGuard to get that dirt out.
I have used FG a lot. I used to get some pretty beat up prints and, done properly, it can make a marginal print play "pretty good" and it can make a so-so print play well.
The way I suggest doing it is to give the film a good run through with clean, freshly saturated pads on the film cleaner then let the film sit on the platter, untouched, overnight. Then, the next afternoon, rewind the pads, as per the instructions and clean the film again. On the third showing, you should start to see good results.
It's the soaking overnight which I believe loosens the dirt.
As to soundtracks, yes, FilmGuard will help restore good sound to a scratched up soundtrack but, once damaged, it's nearly impossible to get perfect sound again unless the damage was very light in the first place.
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Randy Stankey
Film God
Posts: 6539
From: Erie, Pennsylvania
Registered: Jun 99
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posted 07-25-2012 08:48 PM
If the noise is faint, you ought to be able to quiet it down enough that you have to listen hard to hear it. You might clear it up all together but, from a distance, it's impossible for me to judge. I'd have to see and hear the damage.
That, having been said, I have had some prints with soundtracks that were scratched up so much that they sounded like bacon frying. A generous application of FilmGuard, by hand, at the workbench plus two runs through the cleaner cleared them up enough that they could play to an audience without any complaints from customers.
As I said above, I think allowing the FilmGuard to soak in overnight is the key to repairing (or I should say "covering up") the damage. The instructions do say something to the effect that the first application won't have full effect but it's hard to elaborate on all the details in a single page of text.
Without regard to the details in the instruction sheet, whether or not you allow the film to soak overnight, the real magic of FilmGuard doesn't happen until after two or three passes through the cleaner.
When you start to see pink, blue and green streaks appearing on the gauze roll, that's when it's really starting to work.
As it is, now, with movie theaters being dominated by digital projection, you can't afford NOT to be using FilmGuard!
Regardless of the technology used to project your movies, you ought to be doing everything you can to put on the best presentation you know how.
P.S. - Anybody who scratches film should get a three-day, mandatory, unpaid "vacation" from work unless it happened due to an unforeseeable circumstance like a machine malfunction.
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Randy Stankey
Film God
Posts: 6539
From: Erie, Pennsylvania
Registered: Jun 99
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posted 07-26-2012 01:11 PM
I have hand-cleaned film at the bench, both, with a piece of soft cloth (a film glove) and using a Kelmar machine affixed to the bench.
Both ways work but each has their own good and bad points:
Using a cloth is more tedious and tiring because you have to hold the cloth onto every bit of film on the reel(s). It is also more difficult to apply the liquid evenly.
Using the machine is easier and allows an even coating but, if you run the winder too fast, you can easily scratch the film.
Further, using a cloth in-hand allows you to concentrate your efforts on specific parts of the film that you think need more attention.
I generally avoid bench cleaning unless I think the film really needs it. Often that is because the film needs more work that just the projector can do. I believe bench cleaning should be a last resort.
In order to start using FilmGuard, you'll need a bottle of the liquid and a box of the pads, of course, but you'll also need the cleaning machine, the bracket and the bolts to mount it onto your projector or platter.
Any reasonably competent person who knows one end of a wrench from the other should be able to install a Kelmar cleaner onto a projector in less than an hour.
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