my profile | my password | search | faq & rules | forum home

» Film-Tech Forum ARCHIVE   » Community   » Film-Yak   » Repairing 8mm Proj. - Kodak Instamatic M80.

Author Topic: Repairing 8mm Proj. - Kodak Instamatic M80. Randy Stankey Film God Posts: 6539 From: Erie, Pennsylvania Registered: Jun 99 posted 11-04-2005 07:16 PM                     I have been called upon to get an old 8mm projector running again. It's a Kodak Instamatic M80. The snubber/damper assembly at the top of the film feed slot will need to be replaced. Besides that and the blown lamp, there are likely to be one or more parts/belts inside that need to be replaced as well. The plastic that some of these parts are made from gets very brittle with age. Will need the parts/service manual, a reputable source for parts and any advice that would be helpful. Is this model projector good enough to repair or should I just forget about it and get a cheapie off ebay? Thanks!  |  IP: Logged Monte L Fullmer Film God Posts: 8367 From: Nampa, Idaho, USA Registered: Nov 2004 posted 11-05-2005 02:32 AM                     Hi Randy- You can look at this site for a 12 buck manual for that animal. I bet if you snooped around thrift stores, you could find an almost fancy new one - like I did with a KODAK 265 Sound Moviedeck..for 8 bucks. - Monte  |  IP: Logged Randy Stankey Film God Posts: 6539 From: Erie, Pennsylvania Registered: Jun 99 posted 11-05-2005 09:55 AM                     That's pretty much what I imagined people would say. I've been searching for information on it. 90% of the links Google sends me are redirects to Ebay auctions. The majority of the rest of them are places selling photocopies of the original owner's manuals for $20.00 I found one site that sells the service manual and has a supply of parts. The snubber/damper goes for $25. It turns out that there are several plastic parts in this projector that get brittle with age and simply self destruct over time. The snubber is one of them. There are a couple of drive wheels and things that are made of a kind of rubber that dries out and hardens, too. So far, if I bought all the parts I thought I needed, I'd be spending at least $50.00 to fix the damned thing! If, as you say, I can get a working one for $10.00 I'm probably better off. Are there any certian models of projector that stand out that I should be looking for? It needs to be Super-8/Regular-8 convertible (The M-80 is.) Are there any models that are known to be particularly rough on film?  |  IP: Logged Monte L Fullmer Film God Posts: 8367 From: Nampa, Idaho, USA Registered: Nov 2004 posted 11-05-2005 12:47 PM                     quote: Are there any certain models of projector that stand out that I should be looking for? It needs to be Super-8/Regular-8 convertible (The M-80 is.) Are there any models that are known to be particularly rough on film? ..going back to the Kodak Moviedeck that I picked up: works great with both formats, runs pretty quiet - just slick up the film with FG and your set to go.. - just can't help you on the other brands, especially from Germany, on their handling of dual formats. -thx Monte  |  IP: Logged Brad Miller Administrator Posts: 17775 From: Plano, TX (36.2 miles NW of Rockwall) Registered: May 99 posted 11-05-2005 02:34 PM                     The Elmo GS-1200 series projectors are commonly considered to be the Cadillac of Super 8mm machines. Personally I prefer the Beaulieu 708EL Pro just a tad bit more, as it's built like a tank. You may want to ask over on the 8mm Forum for recommended models.  |  IP: Logged Monte L Fullmer Film God Posts: 8367 From: Nampa, Idaho, USA Registered: Nov 2004 posted 11-05-2005 02:59 PM                     quote: Brad Miller Personally I prefer the Beaulieu 708EL Pro just a tad bit more, as it's built like a tank I can see why. Seeing a pix of this machine can really put the others to shame ..... like the Ernemann for 8mm... -Monte  |  IP: Logged

All times are Central (GMT -6:00)

Printer-friendly view of this topic

Hop To: Select a Forum: Category: Operations -------------------- Digital Cinema Forum Film Handlers' Forum Large Format Forum Ground Level Feature Info, Trailer Attachments & REAL Credit Offsets Category: Community -------------------- Film-Yak Film Handlers' Movie Reviews The Afterlife Bob Maar's Joke-A-Thon Category: Classified -------------------- Equipment and Supplies Wanted/For Sale Help Wanted/Seeking Employment Category: System -------------------- Software Beta Testing Forum

The Film-Tech Forums are designed for various members related to the cinema industry to express their opinions, viewpoints and testimonials on various products, services and events based upon speculation, personal knowledge and factual information through use, therefore all views represented here allow no liability upon the publishers of this web site and the owners of said views assume no liability for any ill will resulting from these postings. The posts made here are for educational as well as entertainment purposes and as such anyone viewing this portion of the website must accept these views as statements of the author of that opinion and agrees to release the authors from any and all liability.