Super 8 Edit Station

[Nick Norton]

To save some money on digital transfers, i have decided to start cutting and splicing reels together instead of transfering full 50ft rolls.

 

Therefore, i need to create an entire super 8 edit station. However, i know nothing of cutting and splicing or of the equipment i will need to do so.

 

Does anyone have any experience with creating a super 8 edit room, or know of where i can get the equipment to make one?

 

 

Thanks-

 

Nicholas

[Richard Tuohy]

Do not put your film through a super 8 viewer.

Get some 16mm film rewinds and buy a pair of 16mm to super 8 adapters from Urbanskifilm.com

Set up a bench with a white laminex surface and your two wind arms.

You might get an old editor viewer or two and take the arms off those so that you have a few extra arms to put spools on.

Get a bunch of plastic super 8 spools.

Set up a desk lamp.

Get some leader

Get a splicer. Cement is a good option, and cheap. Just watch the dust scrapings.

Otherwise, get a CIR roll tape splicer (not a fuji one which requires perforated tape).

Get yourself a magnifier from a camera shop.

Get some velvet cloth to make a cleaning cloth from.

Get some film cleaner from Urbanski or someone.

Practice making splices.

Decide on just what you hope to achieve. If its just pulling out no good takes, then all you need is a spool for 'good' and a spool for 'no good'.

Leave as much head and tail on your shots as possible so that scratches and dirt etc enters your desired shot as little as possible.

Be extremely systematic. Be extremely careful handling and winding your film. Don't 'sinch' your rolls to tighten a loose wind - wind them again instead.

Enjoy doing it.

Richard

[Bengt Freden]

G´day, Richard,

 

Those are very good advice, indeed. My 'pre-scan' film editing set-up looks like this:

 

A Minette S-5 viewer, with a metal gate and pressure plate (and a steady image) - small rewinds in 'up' position (or removed)

A black cardboard 'hood' on the viewer, like the larger ones on computer displays (for reflexes and ceiling light)

A pair of old Bolex 16mm rewinds, with large wooden handles, and

Super 8 metal reel adapters (from Wittner Cinetec - not cheap but very high quality)

- the rewinds are easily set up on the edge of the table at a comfortable distance from the viewer

Extra-large Elmo Super 8 rewinds, on a side table, that take complete 1200 feet reels (for projection)

'Automatic' plastic film reels (Tuscan!), 200 or 400 feet, which I have prepared with soft velvet strings on the cores

Plenty of Kodak celluloid white leader, with one matted side, for notes or sound start marks with pencils or thin markers

A Hähnel cement splicer, which allows for splices from both sides (for a black one-frame 'invisible splice')

Kodak regular film cement (rapid-drying) with a very thin applying brush

A Bolex tape splicer (for polyester-based film), which punches holes in the perforation edge of the splice (two frames only)

A Wurker tape splicer (spare set-up - haven´t used it yet)

Several pairs of cotton gloves from the pharmacy

A magnifying glass and an aspherical lupe (Calumet)

A pair of sharp scissors

A bright halogen table lamp

A rubber dust blower with a brush

Sharp, thin black markers (for painting the frame of 'invisible splices')

Clean velvet cloths and film cleaner, anti-static cloth

A start/stop lab clock for timing and a 25 frame ruler in front of the viewer

Storyboard/ log notes, pencils and erasers

 

 

Simple as that!

All the best from Stockholm,

Bengt