Yves Marchon Posted November 10, 2023 Share Posted November 10, 2023 Hi, I am the seller of this beauty. I am pretty sure you can unglue the parts of the prism with acetone, then glue them back again with glass glue or something... Of course precision needs to be spot-on otherwise you will not be able to focus with accuracy anymore ... I think I am capable of doing that job .... ( I use to be a precision mechanic) Should I try for the sake of experiment and experience for ACL lovers over here? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Premium Member David Sekanina Posted November 10, 2023 Premium Member Share Posted November 10, 2023 I would still talk to Simon first - he might know the bonding compound and what solvent to use. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Premium Member Duncan Brown Posted November 14, 2023 Premium Member Share Posted November 14, 2023 I hate posting links that are sure to be dead when someone finds these posts in the future, but someone here might be interested now, so: https://www.facebook.com/groups/8mmand16mmfilmmakersgroup/permalink/10159536948615671/ It's a lot of NPR gear, some of which might be interesting to someone. To my mind, the risk of it being utterly valueless due to mold/corrosion is too high (based on both the pictures and the descriptions) but for the right (lower) price, it might be worthwhile to someone here. I'll try to cut and paste in the entire descriptive text. Duncan ************************************************************************************************************************ Some work has to be done to make these cameras and accessories work again, I advise a full servicing of all the equipment listed below even if some elements are in working condition. The full kit is sold for 2200€. Located in Cannes, France. - 1x Eclair NPR (n°2183) + lens and film gate caps Good and clean condition, sometimes made a strange noise when motor is running, otherwise fluid and clean mechanics. Belonged to Hélène Routchenko (french AD). - 1x Eclair NPR (n°271) Show signs of use and oxydation on some parts but mechanics runs well and fluid. Intended to be used for parts. Belonged to a french documentarist who worked for FR3 and later become film teacher in Nice. - 3x 120m french magazine (1x ORTF and 2x standard) Mags are clean but need servicing, mechanics seem to run well. - 1x Angénieux dove prism viewfinder + cap Some dust and fungus inside, quite clear but dirtyness shows when a light is pointed straight. - 1x Kinoptik viewfinder Some dust and fungus inside, some signs of oxydation on some parts. - 1x Perfectone Compact motor Good working condition. - 1x Perfectone MC1500C 24,25fps motor Runs slow with low torque, need servicing. - 1x Angénieux 12,5-75mm + caps and follow focus gears Very good mechanical condition, serviced in 2021 but fungus made its way back on some elements since the servicing. - 2x Angénieux 12-120mm One is good optical condition except fungus, needs servicing, the other is in bad shape, mostly for parts or paper weight. - 1x Ergonomic handle + trigger for Perfectone Compact motor Good working condition. Middle rosette needs lubing. - 1x Normal handle - 1x 3*3 mattebox + 25-50 matte - 1x XLR cable + trigger - 1x custom sound blimp Made to fit the Eclair NPR with all the accessories, good condition. - 1x 16mm test film + core - 1x 16mm core - 1x metal case Leather handle needs to be replaced - Lens caps for Angénieux lenses - 3x Eclair screws Since I gathered them, the cameras are stored in a dry and cool environnement at my shop, with silica gels inside cases. Don't hesitate to contact me for more informations. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Geffen Avraham Posted December 10, 2023 Share Posted December 10, 2023 Does anyone know where one can find a PL adapter for Eclairs? I know Les Bosher still makes them, but I also know one must be patient when working with him, so in the meantime, is there anywhere else one can find it? Alternatively, I've been thinking of converting an ACL to MFT - to use the cheaper Laowa Nanomorphs, or the Sirui Anamorphics, or the DZOFilm MFT Zooms. Sharp Chinese lenses seem to balance out the softness of Super16 well and yield great results. Has anyone ever done this? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Heikki Repo Posted December 11, 2023 Share Posted December 11, 2023 23 hours ago, Geffen Avraham said: Alternatively, I've been thinking of converting an ACL to MFT - to use the cheaper Laowa Nanomorphs, or the Sirui Anamorphics, or the DZOFilm MFT Zooms. Sharp Chinese lenses seem to balance out the softness of Super16 well and yield great results. The issue with such conversion is the size of the MFT mount. One would need to machine the ACL front quite a lot in order to fit a MFT mount. I can send you a photo of the front without the c-mount. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Geffen Avraham Posted December 15, 2023 Share Posted December 15, 2023 On 12/11/2023 at 2:55 AM, Heikki Repo said: The issue with such conversion is the size of the MFT mount. One would need to machine the ACL front quite a lot in order to fit a MFT mount. I can send you a photo of the front without the c-mount. That would be wonderful, thank you Heikki! P.S. do most Eclairs have a little sliding pin for holding the magazines in place? I hear stories about mags falling off, but mine has a little slider designed to go under the latch and hold it in place. I can't find pictures of other Eclairs that have it. It is a very low serial number Eclair, I think lower than the ones in the 1971 brochures. I don't remember the exact number right now, nor do I have a good photo of it, but I did find this one for now. Thanks again! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Heikki Repo Posted December 15, 2023 Share Posted December 15, 2023 2 hours ago, Geffen Avraham said: P.S. do most Eclairs have a little sliding pin for holding the magazines in place? I hear stories about mags falling off, but mine has a little slider designed to go under the latch and hold it in place. I can't find pictures of other Eclairs that have it. It is a very low serial number Eclair, I think lower than the ones in the 1971 brochures. I don't remember the exact number right now, nor do I have a good photo of it, but I did find this one for now. I haven't seen that before! The issue of magazines falling is related to two different things: the magazine teeth being worn out and what's even more critical, the locking mechanism itself being too flexible (the button bends a locking metal sheet - if it's too flexible, prepare for a disaster or use some extra locking!). My main ACL had the issue previously, I have had mags fall off with destructive results. However, my other ACLs didn't have this issue, the mechanism is very stiff and secure. I then replaced the actual bending locking part from one of those with the more problematic one. Since that's an ACL 1, it's going to be used with 200ft mags (lesser risk of the mag falling due to its weight) whereas now my main ACL mags stay super secure without any clothespin wedged between! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
steven jackson Posted December 15, 2023 Share Posted December 15, 2023 3 hours ago, Geffen Avraham said: That would be wonderful, thank you Heikki! P.S. do most Eclairs have a little sliding pin for holding the magazines in place? I hear stories about mags falling off, but mine has a little slider designed to go under the latch and hold it in place. I can't find pictures of other Eclairs that have it. It is a very low serial number Eclair, I think lower than the ones in the 1971 brochures. I don't remember the exact number right now, nor do I have a good photo of it, but I did find this one for now. Thanks again! the little latch was only on the earliest small base models. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Skyler Carrico Posted January 16 Share Posted January 16 Hi, I'm looking for someone to either sell me a spare or fabricate an ACL power cable for me. The one I have is not well made and is not holding up - the pins keep slipping out of the Jaeger connector, and no matter how hard I try, I can't get them to push in far enough to "click" where they won't slip. So I need an XLR 4-pin cable with a properly secured Jaeger connector on the other side. Ideally a short coiled cable just long enough to reach from the XLR connector at the camera to a side-mounted Eclair battery pack. For shipment, I'm located in Portugal. I will pay handsomely if I have to. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gregg MacPherson Posted January 16 Author Share Posted January 16 I think I remember Jean-Louis Seguin may have made those before. He may have some Jaeger connectors or an easy source. Anyone good at making up cables could probably make one, though I would choose someone experienced who knows the cameras and the specs well. The 4 pin Jaeger can be trickey if one doesn't have skill or experience. The standard cables with 4 pin Jaeger/Canon XLR4 I have seen in two versions. One with a coiled cable about 400mm long with connectors, and one with a straight cable about 250 long total, for the on board battery. For the length, copy a standard length, or consider it carefully. Andrzej at AZ Spectrum, commenting on current draw and V drop at higher fps, advised to keep cables short. So I guess one should also have adequate copper section area (cable size). The spiral cables are really useful though. I like the idea of the off board battery, and with the XLR4 connector on the camera, really robust, the old concern about stressing up the Jaeger connector is gone. Gregg. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Premium Member Duncan Brown Posted February 5 Premium Member Share Posted February 5 Another ebay treasure, whose link will be lost to the sands of time for future readers of these posts, but might be just what someone is looking for right now: https://www.ebay.com/itm/266652201046 Title is "16mm Film Camera Eclair Npr Working Condition converted to s16 by Les Bosher" - it's got 3 mags, the Alcan motor, PL mount and Arri mount (Arri-S I presume) and he links to several Vimeo uploads of movies shot with it. $2300 opening bid (nobody has bid yet), ends in a few days. He says one of the mags has a stuck counter, but if you've been following along on my NPR mag thread you already know how to fix that ? I guess one way to avoid the legendary waits for Les Bosher to work on a camera, is to buy one he's already done! Duncan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jack Amadon Posted February 11 Share Posted February 11 On 7/26/2023 at 7:31 AM, Duncan Brown said: (Not my auction) - an Alcan 54, even one as beat up as this one, is a rare sight for sure - someone should grab this and hope that it works better than it looks. https://www.ebay.com/itm/275966651460 (For the historical record, since ebay links die after a few months, it's a battered but complete looking example for $195 Buy It Now, or Make Offer, from a seller in New Jersey) Duncan This is extremely funny, I'm almost 100% certain this is about the Alcan motor I purchased last year. Incase anyone was wondering, it was not working, and when I sent it out to a camera tech, he completely destroyed it ? On an unrelated note, if anybody has a working Alcan motor I'd be in the market! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Premium Member Duncan Brown Posted March 10 Premium Member Share Posted March 10 Just showed up on ebay - a decent little ACL 1.5 kit, other than the crazy weird short viewfinder. $2500 https://www.ebay.com/itm/226038623169 Duncan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Geffen Avraham Posted March 10 Share Posted March 10 (edited) That's a good find! The fellow who was looking to buy a 16mm camera the other week should consider this. Edited March 10 by Geffen Avraham Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Premium Member Duncan Brown Posted March 17 Premium Member Share Posted March 17 It sold for less than $2500 (ebay no longer shows the final selling price when Make Offer is used) I hope it was someone on here! Duncan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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