Rust - Arriflex SB 16mm camera

[Iolo Edwards]

Hi,

Can anyone suggest how I should treat rust on the inside of an Arriflex ST's door (see photo)? If I run my finger along it leaves a residue. Also, there's some very fine paint flaking off inside the camera and some fine dust/rubbing in the corners of the magazine cavity on top of the camera, which falls and collects inside the camera where the 100ft film is. Any suggestions on what I should do to maintain it would be much appreciated.

Thanks.

IMG_0302.heic

[Simon Wyss]

A tech’s job to remove the crab, wire brush the arms, and apply fresh lacquer

There could be more corrosion to the camera. Have it looked after.

[Iolo Edwards]

10 hours ago, Simon Wyss said:

A tech’s job to remove the crab, wire brush the arms, and apply fresh lacquer

There could be more corrosion to the camera. Have it looked after.

Thanks. Do you know of anyone who could do the work? Maybe in the UK?

[Uli Meyer]

12 minutes ago, Iolo Edwards said:

Thanks. Do you know of anyone who could do the work? Maybe in the UK?

Not in the UK but someone who knows the Arriflex 16 cameras extremely well. http://cameraservice-bogner.de/

You may want to inquire about sending equipment for service in the EU beforehand. Since Brexit this may be a little more time-consuming than before.

[Mark Dunn]

I would be tempted to tackle this myself- you can undo the flat-headed screws and use emery paper to clean the parts of the arms that you can't get at with the wire brush. Then re-paint with matt black enamel.

Edited October 3, 2022 by Mark Dunn

[Iolo Edwards]

10 hours ago, Mark Dunn said:

I would be tempted to tackle this myself- you can undo the flat-headed screws and use emery paper to clean the parts of the arms that you can't get at with the wire brush. Then re-paint with matt black enamel.

Thanks Mark. I'm tempted to do it myself actually.

[Steve Switaj]

On 10/3/2022 at 12:01 PM, Iolo Edwards said:

Thanks Mark. I'm tempted to do it myself actually.

Buy some good screwdrivers before you start.

You want the type gunsmiths use, with the ground, parallel sides. You can buy the kind with one handle and a set of 1/4" hex tip inserts to save some coin, but you want a set with a good variety of tip widths and thicknesses to choose from. 

If you use "normal" tapered screwdrivers from the home improvement store - even good ones - the blades will not fully fill the slots side-to-side and top-to-bottom and will concentrate force on 2 points at the top of the slot. Combined with the force need to dislodge some of the old fasteners, you *will* bung up these old, soft, slotted screws.

 

[Mark Dunn]

51 minutes ago, Steve Switaj said:

You want the type gunsmiths use, with the ground, parallel sides.

I think these are what we call jeweller's or precision screwdrivers. The ones on my desk have the parallel tip. But as Steve says they should be as near the full width of the screw as possible. These are good German set screws, not the stuff you use for carpentry.

If you don't already have a set you can buy single ones like this (I'm guessing on the size)

https://uk.rs-online.com/web/p/screwdrivers/3232339

A cheap jeweller's set may not go wide enough.

You're saving a good deal by going DIY, so money spent on good tools is never wasted, within reason.If the screws seem very tight, a little bit of oil or WD40 may help.

Edited October 5, 2022 by Mark Dunn

[Iolo Edwards]

On 10/5/2022 at 5:40 PM, Steve Switaj said:

Buy some good screwdrivers before you start.

You want the type gunsmiths use, with the ground, parallel sides. You can buy the kind with one handle and a set of 1/4" hex tip inserts to save some coin, but you want a set with a good variety of tip widths and thicknesses to choose from. 

If you use "normal" tapered screwdrivers from the home improvement store - even good ones - the blades will not fully fill the slots side-to-side and top-to-bottom and will concentrate force on 2 points at the top of the slot. Combined with the force need to dislodge some of the old fasteners, you *will* bung up these old, soft, slotted screws.

 

Great, thanks Steve - great advice.

[Iolo Edwards]

On 10/5/2022 at 6:29 PM, Mark Dunn said:

I think these are what we call jeweller's or precision screwdrivers. The ones on my desk have the parallel tip. But as Steve says they should be as near the full width of the screw as possible. These are good German set screws, not the stuff you use for carpentry.

If you don't already have a set you can buy single ones like this (I'm guessing on the size)

https://uk.rs-online.com/web/p/screwdrivers/3232339

A cheap jeweller's set may not go wide enough.

You're saving a good deal by going DIY, so money spent on good tools is never wasted, within reason.If the screws seem very tight, a little bit of oil or WD40 may help.

Great, thanks Mark.

[Eric Eader]

Hello,

May I suggest, rather than using WD-40 or Oil, that you use  "Kroil"  by Kano?   (Kanolaboratories.com)

Aerosol or liquid.  Only the tiniest bit for camera, though.

This stuff was invented for offshore oil-rig use in the North Sea area and will positively penetrate and separate frozen/rusted parts.

My neighbor back in Virginia acquired a railroad jack about the size of Fender/VOX amp that had been rusting for 50+ years in a back yard.  He had tried the customary penetrates without success over a few days.  (If he hadn't told me that he'd been trying this, I wouldn't have known as there was no evidence to show he had), I sprayed about 1/3 of a can of Kroil over the gear area over a period of time--1/2 hour.  Waiting some more time the thing loosened up and the gears turned and he took it to his friend to clean up for resale.  

Once a can of liquid is opened do not allow it to tip over as the oil WILL find a way out of the can!!

I cannot praise this stuff highly enough.

I only hope that HazMat regulations will not prevent you from acquiring it!  It is (or at least "was") prohibited in California along with other solvents that absolutely worked for different purposes.

"Our leaders are the finest men... sooo we elect them again and again."

"That's what I learned in school today."       

Song off an album I discovered in a trashcan circa 1964.

Hope this helps.

 

[Mark Dunn]

12 hours ago, Eric Eader said:

 use  "Kroil"  by Kano

Seems to be very expensive in the UK- £46 for a small can and 2 months back order.

I don't think there's any suggestion that these screws are seized or rusty, which is why I suggested WD or machine oil rather than penetrating oil.

In fact if I had neither I'd use a drop of cooking oil, assuming the screws are actually stuck. They may be fine.

 

Edited October 7, 2022 by Mark Dunn

[Robert Hart]

You will get better penetration with diesel fuel than cooking oil. You might try some diesel diluted with some automotive acrylic thinner. As the thinner gases off it will leave the diesel behind. Do this outdoors as the fumes are toxic. Be careful with the cooking oil as a preserver. It may gel and over time loctite some things together. Because it is edible, other things may also live on it in the future like mould. You might also try holding a soldering iron tip to the screw heads for a while to soften any loctite that may be on the threads of the screw. If it works for old BSR turntables it might work for your recalcitrant screws. Do not do this if the screws are holding together any plastic parts or you may damage them.