filmo door on an eyemo?

[Patrick Neary]

Hi folks-

 

can anyone here say with some authority whether or not you can slap a filmo door onto an eyemo without modification? are they interchangeable? Does it depend on model years?

 

thanks for any insight...

[Guest NCSProducts]

can anyone here say with some authority whether or not you can slap a filmo door onto an eyemo without modification? are they interchangeable? Does it depend on model years?

Good question. Since I've got a Filmo handy, and a whole bunch of Eyemos, let me check... :unsure:

 

The doors look exactly the same, and fit perfectly on Eyemo/Filmo.

So my guess is that it would work fine, on any model year.

 

http://www.eyemo35.com

[Patrick Neary]

Well there it is.

 

Thank you!

[Francis Kuhn]

Hi folks-

 

can anyone here say with some authority whether or not you can slap a filmo door onto an eyemo without modification? are they interchangeable? Does it depend on model years?

 

thanks for any insight...

 

 

I sold my Eyemo a while back, but I do have several Filmos sitting around. I believe the doors are interchangeable, but one thought comes to mind. I know that B&H 70DR and 70HR Filmo doors (and possibly older models) have a small adjustable cam that puts pressure on a tapered metal pin which forces the film gate to lock when the door is closed. I believe the Eyemo has the same cam/pin arrangement. If the Eyemo, in fact, has the same design, you'll see the cam located inside the door about a half-inch from the back edge and in line with the viewfinder. I mention this since the cam must be properly adjusted or it can cause some problems. Since your camera and door are not a factory-matched set, just be sure to check that the relationship between the cam and this tapered pin is set so the gate is closing fully. If I recall correctly, Erwin Hasseler, the Service Manager at the recently closed UT Photo in Burbank (formerly Bell & Howell) told me they would check and adjust this cam differently depending on the individual camera.

 

I once shot a Filmo with a cam that was slightly out of adjustment. It wasn't holding the gate fully closed and halfway through the roll the film jumped off the pull-down claw. The claw and motor kept dragging the film through the gate so I was never aware of the problem, but when I looked at the processed film, the framing was out of alignment--the top of one frame and bottom of the previous frame appeared simultaneously in telecine.

 

To check for proper cam-to-pin clearance, try leaving the film gate slightly open before you replace the door, then remove it and check to see if the cam has forced the gate to its fully closed position. If not, remove the door and hold it so the serial number stamped inside is at the top. Loosen the cam's mounting screw and rotate the cam so the high spot is somewhere around 5 o'clock. This will position the cam to fully contact the tapered pin when the door is replaced. Now, slightly tighten the cam screw, just tight enough so that the cam will rotate with a little pressure. Next, close the camera's gate fully, then slowly place the door on the camera and lock it. This should rotate the cam to the correct position. Remove the door and carefully tighten the cam screw while making sure the cam itself does not move. Repeat the process checking again to make sure the gate closes fully.

 

Just to be safe, you might also tape the door to guard against light leaks after loading the film. In the meantime, I'm thinking of presenting my half-frame Filmo footage to Nike as an idea for their next new look. Remember, you read it here first.