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Footage Counter Problem H16


robert louis

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You would need to remove the mechanism from the casing to access the footage counter, then it’s probably a quick job to reset the spring return or fix whatever else the issue is.

Removing the mechanism requires removing the top viewfinder and the front, and most of the control knobs and levers, and on reassembly you need to reset the shutter timing and make a new light seal. 

Probably 1-2hr job for an experienced technician.

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Probably an example that never got a service, the counter return coil spring sticky with dried grease

Have had an H-8 lately with serious wear on gears because the poor camera was used in its original state since first sale 60 years ago.

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7 hours ago, Robert Hart said:

Have you tried manually pushing the counter reset trigger before putting the cover back on?

Yeah Bob, that's the only quick and safe fix. It works but it takes a long time from 100' to go back to "A". Since I'm not really a repair guy for kind of complex fixes that's what I'll do. It was made in 1944 and works pretty good for a Bolex which sometimes gets a bad rap for quality, but I think they are excellent camera's. This one sounds way better than my B&H Filmo 70. Thanks. RL

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The slow response suggests light fractions have evaporated from the original lube over the years and what remains has become gummy. 

As a hack you, might glue a thin piece of shim material or plastic about 0.7mm thick (cereal packet cardboard) where the release plunger contacts the inside face of the cover. 

Another hack you might try would be to get hold of some light mineral thinners like automotive acrylic thinners which will evaporate away before spreading too far inside. 

Run no more than about ten drops down the channel the plunger slides inside of in the hope that the thinners will migrate to the contact surface and rehabilitate the lube. Do not infuse any more or the governor bell and its special friction pads may become implicated. All bets then will be off.

I do not know what that contact surface is. It may be a metal-to-metal friction clutch or some sort of ratchet. If it is a clutch then a risk may be that there is a thin pad of added friction material like felt, leather or rubber. If it is a felt disk, then no harm is likely but the thinners might ruin other materials. 

I had to take mine apart many years ago when it got water in it from being shipped to me in a freezer truck. The taking apart is not for the faint-hearted. 

The only thorough option is to have the camera serviced. The rest of the lube in the camera will also be in a poor state. 

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I’ve serviced  a lot of Bolexes and never come across one where the footage counter was stiff because of dried lubricant. I tend to just put a drop of oil on the counter shaft but if that has dried out it doesn’t matter much - there is virtually no resistance to turning a small aluminium disk and the amount of movement is very small so wear is really not an issue. It does only one rotation forward and back for each roll of film. The problems I’ve come across were all caused by poor servicing - the footage disk got a bit bent (the most likely culprit),or the return spring was incorrectly fitted, or the spacer washer was missing or someone used thick grease to lubricate it which only adds resistance. It may be affected by corrosion, but you would see that in other areas too. The only way to fix it is to remove the mechanism and see what’s going on.

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On 12/17/2022 at 10:36 PM, Dom Jaeger said:

I’ve serviced  a lot of Bolexes and never come across one where the footage counter was stiff because of dried lubricant. I tend to just put a drop of oil on the counter shaft but if that has dried out it doesn’t matter much - there is virtually no resistance to turning a small aluminium disk and the amount of movement is very small so wear is really not an issue. It does only one rotation forward and back for each roll of film. The problems I’ve come across were all caused by poor servicing - the footage disk got a bit bent (the most likely culprit),or the return spring was incorrectly fitted, or the spacer washer was missing or someone used thick grease to lubricate it which only adds resistance. It may be affected by corrosion, but you would see that in other areas too. The only way to fix it is to remove the mechanism and see what’s going on.

Dom, you mean the silver pin that goes against the door lid, cause if that's what you mean there's not much of a crack around the pin. I don't want to let oil run on top floor.

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5 hours ago, robert louis said:

Dom, you mean the silver pin that goes against the door lid, cause if that's what you mean there's not much of a crack around the pin. I don't want to let oil run on top floor.

No, I mean the turning shaft inside that holds the footage counter disk. The plunger doesn’t need anything. I’ve never seen one not work. Honestly, the whole footage counter system doesn’t really need lubrication. 

Again, the most likely cause for a sticky footage counter is a bent disk. It’s easy to bend when you have the mechanism out of the body if you’re not careful. Or someone greased the mechanism which is incorrect as it just adds drag that the return spring has to overcome.

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32 minutes ago, Dom Jaeger said:

No, I mean the turning shaft inside that holds the footage counter disk. The plunger doesn’t need anything. I’ve never seen one not work. Honestly, the whole footage counter system doesn’t really need lubrication. 

Again, the most likely cause for a sticky footage counter is a bent disk. It’s easy to bend when you have the mechanism out of the body if you’re not careful. Or someone greased the mechanism which is incorrect as it just adds drag that the return spring has to overcome.

I see Dom. Thanks. I think I'll leave it to a repair guy down the road.

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