Advice for Starting Projection? Simplex X-L Projector

[Leo Enticknap]

Kinda agreed. The issue would be getting the word out there that you have the stuff available in venue-friendly quantities. 55 gallons = let's say, 200 quarts, allowing for wastage when repackaging. At, let's say, $30 a quart, that's $6K out of an initial investment of $1,203. Once you've added repackaging and marketing costs, it should still be possible to make a reasonable margin on that, I'd have thought. Assuming two cups for a projector flushout and you do it twice a year, a quart is a year's supply. So if you can find 100 venues (assuming a changeover pair per projector) within the five-year shelf life of the oil wanting to buy a quart, the deal should work out.

Is this the STATE in Modesto? Circa 1934?

I think you could be on to something:

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[Ryan Gallagher]

Kinda agreed. The issue would be getting the word out there that you have the stuff available in venue-friendly quantities. 55 gallons = let's say, 200 quarts, allowing for wastage when repackaging. At, let's say, $30 a quart, that's $6K out of an initial investment of $1,203. Once you've added repackaging and marketing costs, it should still be possible to make a reasonable margin on that, I'd have thought. Assuming two cups for a projector flushout and you do it twice a year, a quart is a year's supply. So if you can find 100 venues (assuming a changeover pair per projector) within the five-year shelf life of the oil wanting to buy a quart, the deal should work out.

Considering the tiny markets, if one was to try this, I would assume it would be "safer" to do initial trial phase via the 50gal orders, and maybe stick with that unless it becomes obvious 55gal shelf life is not gonna be an issue. Less profit but better usable time on the product for the customers.

Makes me wonder what the known shelf life on Century branded oil was... we still have almost a gallon of the stuff, and for better or worse are still using that stock.

[Josh Jones]

In a world of no options, McMaster has various grades of turbine oil that will work just fine. A local distributor of lube oils can find an equivalent they stock. I was able to get ISO 10 for my brenkerts in 5 gallon pales. Not cheap, but it should last the life of me and my fleet. In a pinch you can also get gallon jugs of ISO 32 hydraulic oil at any auto parts and implement dealers. This should be the right viscosity for Simplex machines. As long as the containers are dark and air tight, I wouldn't worry about shelf life.

JJ

[Jesse Crooks]

To get back to the original question, while you certainly want to find a qualified technician to assess them / tune them up (and provide ongoing support), the good news is that Simplex X-Ls are tanks. Chances are you could top off the oil and they would just run for years to come.

One thing you could do in the meantime is clean them, which is a great way to get more familiar with them. You can find some pointers here.

One of the main weak points is the amount of oil that most Simplexes leak. They typically require a drip dray beneath the projector (I use a baking sheet lined with shop towels), and oil seeps in through the seals from the drive side into the operator side. Learn where the oil tends to get in so that you can keep it as clean as possible. Most of it gets in around the intermittent and the seal around the lower continuous sprocket assembly. Pay attention to where you find it after the projector has been sitting for a while. Depending on how badly it leaks you may also need to regularly clean everything downhill from the projector head... the oil can run towards the motor bracket on the front of the soundheaad, down the reel arm, etc.

On the soundhead, the belts will be shot from sitting idle for so long. It's an easy job for someone with mechanical ability, but if none of you are familiar with the projectors you probably want a tech to do it. The take-up belts are probably also shot. Hopefully they left the soundhead pinch roller open during its many years sitting idle. If it was left closed it would have developed a flat spot and will need to be replaced. Likewise if it is cracked or otherwise worn. And good luck finding NOS (Simplex Part #: G-1985). It makes contact with the picture area of the emulsion, so it can cause film damage if it's in worn or dirty. The bearings on the sound drum shaft may also need to be replaced after sitting for so many years (a job for your tech). If it doesn't spin perfectly smoothly it will cause scratching. You will also want to reapply the damping fluid as described in the manual, but don't overdo it. The fluid can run down the damper arm to the roller and prevent it from spinning freely. You'll want a technician to do an A-chain alignment.

The clutches should be assessed and at least recalibrated. You may need to replace the clutch pads or other parts depending on the level of wear.

Make sure your lamp exhaust is still working correctly. Roof blower still works, nothing has made a nest in the duct, etc. Chances are there's a layer of dust on the interior. You'll probably want to pull the lamps to clean the interiors, including the reflectors (distilled water only), internal fan, etc. Maybe the lamps will still strike... they can fail when they haven't been used for a long time. If you don't already know how to safely change a lamp, don't attempt to do so... leave it for a technician. But if you know how to change a xenon lamp for a digital projector and have the requisite safety gear, it's probably just as easy or easier for a film lamphouse.

And don't forget about the other equipment. Rewind table, splicer, etc., all probably need some work. And you'll want to make sure you have all the necessary tools and accessories you will need. Reels, splicing tape, various types of leader, etc.

Your house reels / split reels are probably also due for a cleaning. I recommend cotton rags and naphtha (do it outside or with good ventilation). And if you've got a reel cabinet, clean that too. And the port glass. And the floor. And everything else in the booth. If you want to run film, you should be religious about cleaning.

It's a topic that could use far more discussion, but a few Day 1 pointers:

• Expect to clean it before each use. Even if it was spotless when you last used it, there WILL be some oil to clean at the very least.
• Don't let the gate and pad rollers slam shut when you close them. On the gate, keep your hand on the lever to provide resistance as you release it with your thumb.
• The gate tension should almost always be set to 1. Higher than that is usually too high on a Simplex.
• At the end of the reel, if you kill the motor as the tail enters the gate, it gives you the perfect amount of runout. The mechanism will advance just enough to feed out the tail, without fighting you when you catch the reel.
• When the projector is idle, anything spring-loaded should be left with the spring in the relaxed position
  • Pad rollers closed
  • Gate closed
  • Soundhead pinch roller OPEN (very important for reasons stated above)
• Before you strike the lamp, make sure the hand dowser is CLOSED. The heat from the lamp can quickly cause damage. The thin changeover dowser is not meant to withstand the heat for long. Especially if the projector isn't running (the shutter blocks much of the light) it can start melting parts, crack the lens, etc.

Once you get them running, acquiring a feature to practice with is great, but I would start with either a single trailer or even a snipe. That will let you thread, run, thread, run, thread again... it will help you develop the muscle memory a lot faster than running a feature where you're threading up five or six times. Once your threading is solid, advance to practicing with a feature. That will help you work with your changeovers and the pacing of running an actual show, particularly balancing the time it takes to clean the projectors with the time it takes to prepare the next reel and monitor the one currently on screen.

Getting a film program going from a dead stop is not an easy endeavor. It can take a very long time to adequately train projectionist to inspect and project, much less maintain the equipment. These days "regular" film programming is typically something like one screening per month. You have to be very dedicated to get your staff up to the required skill level, and you need to be willing to pay for a lot of training hours. Unless you are willing to put in the time and money, you might be better off hiring outside projectionists.

[Mark Gulbrandsen]

In a world of no options, McMaster has various grades of turbine oil that will work just fine. A local distributor of lube oils can find an equivalent they stock. I was able to get ISO 10 for my brenkerts in 5 gallon pales. Not cheap, but it should last the life of me and my fleet. In a pinch you can also get gallon jugs of ISO 32 hydraulic oil at any auto parts and implement dealers. This should be the right viscosity for Simplex machines. As long as the containers are dark and air tight, I wouldn't worry about shelf life.

JJ

Yep! 5 gallon cans are the smallest I ever found. But shouldn't be over $200 USD for that Lifetime supply...

[Mark Gulbrandsen]

To get back to the original question, while you certainly want to find a qualified technician to assess them / tune them up (and provide ongoing support), the good news is that Simplex X-Ls are tanks. Chances are you could top off the oil and they would just run for years to come.

There is one extremely weak point in Simplex's that an Estar film pileup will kill, and that's the G-1836 intermittent oil pump fiber gear that is behind the flywheel. It's relatively fine toothed and very small in diameter... Like about .750 in diameter. Any theater with one or more projectors should always have one in stock.