Gregg MacPherson

Has anyone used or had a good look at a Proaim matte box MB-900B. They are a really cheap price, normally about US$400 - 500. Have some good design features that look like being a study on the big brands, but I'm guessing they will have some defects in the build quality or materials. The only opinion I heard on these sofar was from an engineer on the DVXuser forum. He really liked it for the price, but some or all of the lock knobs have plastic heads. For those who don't know it, it's a swing away with one 4x4 and two 4x5.65 holders. Maybe is being replaced by a new model. http://www.proaimshop.com/pas/product.php?productid=17604&cat=255&page=1 If you've used one but don't want anyone to know you can PM me (smiling). Cheers Gregg

I have the big orientable Kinoptic ACL view finder. I was wondering if it was possible to modify this to take an extension VF. This may mean making the extension as well or just modifying an Arri etc, some of which are really cheap now. Ignoring the mechanical design issues, can one just extend the tube in front of the eye piece and add another element? If the extension was about 220mm then what elemnt(s) do we need to add, roughly where. Has anyone done this? Can one modify an Arri extension or an Aaton one? Cheers Gregg

I got an amazing deal on some almost new looking 4x4 filters. They're all Tiffen, Schneider, glass sandwich. I noticed that a couple of the Tiffen ones had what looks like delamination of the centre layer starting from the edges in a few places. Does anyone know what causes that? Is it solvents? Does it spread? The Schneider ones have some sealant on the edges but the Tiffen ones look like they don't. Is it worth sealing those edges? I have some expertise with epoxy. Could easily do it. Thanks for any ideas, Gregg.

I really enjoyed your trailer. I like the idea that such a didactic piece of poetry/philosphy is so formally appealing in the images. The trailer being all close ups while we know the film is all wide is also very intriguing. Trailers are often much more formally free or interesting than the films themselves. I'm hoping that is not true of "A Song of Praise". On the level of content, it made me want to argue philosophy with the writer. I couldn't yet tell whether he was writing things he only partially percieved. Quite provocative. That's good. Cheers Gregg.

Reading the ACL 1.5 manual, Eclair had a 4Ah battery for cameras that ran a lot a higher speeds. It had a different casing, connectors and charger. I had thought of hooking a couple of the 1.9Ah batteries up in parallel. I'll give it a go. But I'm getting the idea that with the tweaking for noise this camera has a higher than average current draw at high speeds. I think Andrew's idea of using a 15.6V battery sounds good. Looking forward to switching to NiMhi when I can afford it. Cheers Gregg

This may be useful so I'll report on progress with this. From the previous owner I got that Visual Products had serviced the camera about 2 yeras ago, when they optimised the clearnces for minimum camera noise, with the current draw being higher but still "within limits". I don't yet know what those limits are. Andrew Zorawski at AZ Spectrum had upgraded the motor electronics previously so I sent him a detailed email. I got really good ideas back from him. I didn't ask him yet if I could paste his reply here, so I'll summarise: - Recommends for 75 fps a battery of at least 4Ah and up to 15.6V, a cable no longer than 1.5m. - The proper current for the 74fps motor just with the camera body (no magazine) with 12V battery is: 24fps - 0.8A 50fps - 1.8A 75fps - 2.7A - If you already have good batteries, make sure the motor is well positioned on the camera. By slightly loosening 3 fixing screws, run the camera at 24fps and gently push the motor and check if the current is decreasing in some positions. Sometimes the motor is too firmly pressed against one side. If this happens please put a spacer on the one side; important is correct coupling between the motor and the camera by a rubber disk. - Can try to put no more than one drop of oil ( can be auto oil 40/30) on the motor's bearing (on the camera side). - Can try to adjust the motor drivers by two potentiometers at speed 24fps. Potentiometers are located at the bottom rear of the motor electronics box. Turn these a small amount to minimise current and motor noise. Remember to note the origional position so changes can be undone. - If these things don't help then the problem is with the camera body or magazines. Cheers Gregg.

I think with Eclair it depends a bit on location. If you have a service guy not too far away that affects the decision. Parts are a problem, I mean availability of new parts, but is this a problem also for the earlier Aatons? Cheers Gregg

I have an ACL II with the latest electronic base and latest Thomson chrystal controlled motor. All in as new condition. I ran some tests with scrap film and this brought up some questions about the supply voltage needed at high speeds. With 1.9ah NiCad batteries discharged to 12.9V I can run at 50fps, but we don't get to speed at 75. My guess is it's somewhere between 50 and 75fps. The sync light stays on. The loaded battery voltage at 50/75 fps was 11.5/11 V. So I tested with a 12V car battery. This battery had 12.35V and then 14.16V with the engine running (alternator charging). On its own, 12.35V the battery would not run 75fps, but at 14.16V it did fine. The current draw at 24/50/75 fps was 1.6/5.7/7.6 amps. I didn't try the NiCads freshly charged yet. - Does anyone know what the current is supposed to be at different speeds? My ACL I was supposed to have about 1amp at 24 fps. - Are people using special batteries for higher camera speeds? The (ACL 1.5) user manual talks about higher capacity batteries being useful if doing a lot of high speed, but it's still a "12V" battery. If we go to a high capacity high discharge NiMhi then I think we can maybe solve the supply problem. But I want to see if the current I measured is ok. Any ideas anyone? Cheers Gregg.

Do you already know about the AZ Spectrum ones? About $1600 new. http://www.az-spectrum.com/nprvideo.html If it has to be dirt cheap then maybe you can rig a small CCD camera on the eye piece. There was an ACL that sold recently on eBay that had one of those. I should have asked the guy to share the basic specs for this forum. Re the multiple postings for this topic. They don't like that. Cheers Gregg

It may be that CP cameras are the best value for money but I never liked those cameras. There are some real bargans coming on eBay for Eclair ACL very recently. Eclair ACL 16mm camera package (sold US$468) http://global.ebay.com/Eclair-ACL-16mm-camera-package/170688011030/item Eclair ACL II 16mm camera kit - no reserve (sold 620 pound about US$1000) http://global.ebay.com/Eclair-ACL-II-16mm-camera-kit---no-reserve/180707508303/item I think that having access to a service techniciuan is an important factor in what you buy. If you can't easily get a checkup and lube you are adding to the risk that your camera will go downhill, maybe even fail. This is true for any camera I think. Cheers Gregg

Trying to attach the picture.

I have a couple of English 400' mags that have sat for a while and the take up sprocket has become quite stiff. Feels stiff when moving it with the magazine inching knob. I have parts drawings for the French but not the English mags. The French mags have a roll pin fixing the brass drive gear onto the take up sprocket shaft. Can't see one on the English version. If anyone has worked on this part of an English mag, am I right that the take up sprocket shaft assembly needs to be romoved to lubricate or replace the bearing? The brass gear needs to come off, yes? But how? I'm trying to attach one or two photos after removing the oblique drive shaft and the footage counter. The small aluminum gears were pressed on, but came off really easily. The top one drives a toothed belt for the footage counter. Having trouble with the attachment function, may try another post. Thanks for any ideas. Gregg.

I thought that was really nice. I think of it as a film rather than a music video. Well done Daniel and Anna. I like the genuine feeling of the emotional theme, and the images have a sense of the genuine also. I liked the finely textured interior shots that were framed by areas of black. I really liked the Anna in the snow images. I did wonder if maybe the start of the film was a bit bit loose formally. And maybe the meaning of the black makeup needs to be more developed. Were the fogged edges for real? Cheers Gregg.

I know this is getting off topic, but it's too interesting, have to ask. Are the coatings such as on the Zeiss superspeeds affected by the heat? How are the coatings put on in the first place? Cheers Gregg.

Mathew, One could argue about all this. Shipping costs will apply to any cammera. But I think arguing about whether the suggested cameras fit the price range is not that interesting. My thought, although we don't know anything about the projects, was that shooting features on 16mm with a $700 budget to buy a camera was unrealistic. Rick, In the features you want to make is there much hand heldd camera? Find someone in your area with an ACL, or Aaton and see if they will let you have a look. Maybe they will help. Cheers Gregg

In defence of my suggesting an ACL, there are some bargains out there. Check this, which sold a couple of days ago. If the seller had been more patient the price would have been higher (maybe twice as much). http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=200627376480&ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT But yes, $100 out of his budget range, and if it needs a lube or any service at all the costs jump. Given that the poster was testing a 16BL and talking about S16 mods for that I felt compelled to pont out ACL's. NPR are also cheap, but I don't know those cameras. Cheers Gregg.

If you're on a budget Eclair ACL's are great cameras. A well maintained ACL is quiet. They are light if you are hand holding a lot. With 200' mags they are really small. They have clip on mags. One feature of them that is really good is the mount adaptor system. You can change the mount adaptor and use any of the common lenses. If you have a PL adaptor you can rent lenses. There are standard 16 ACL's coming up on eBay for around $1000. Some of those will be fine. Some will need a check over and lube. Cheers Gregg

I ordered a "service manual" (exploded views and parts list) for an ACL from Oldtimercamera. Turned out to be for an NPR. I thought I should notify this group in case it was useful. I don't know how complete the document was. They were good at refunding my money and I notice that now the catalogue descriminates more clearly between ACL and NPR. http://www.oldtimercameras.com/stock/Model.asp?Model=16661&ModelPage=true Was part English, part French. Cheers Gregg

Thanks for that reassurance. I have a couple of English 400' mags that I'm going to try on an ACL II S16 that I'm getting soon. One interesting thing I realized recently. Some 400' magazines have large platters, a proper size for a 400'roll, and some have small platters that look the same as for the 200' rolls. I'm calling it a platter. It's the black round plate that the film roll sits on. The first 400' mag I had (English) had some uneven tracking on the takeup roll. This was probably due to the rubber take up "tyres" being a little loose on the "hub". I fixed this by improvising guides taped to the inside of the magazine, level with the platter. Having seen a 400' platter on a mag for sale recently on eBay I can see the value of it. They are probably hard to find, but maybe not too hard to make. Cheers, Gregg

I have an almost new ACL/PL mount adaptor for sale on eBay starting at USD 281. http://cgi.ebay.com/PL-mount-Eclair-ACL-16mm-camera-/150628406865?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item2312271651 I actually just bought this from Michael Greive in the Netherlands but simultaneously I bought another ACL which will also come with a PL adaptor. That doesn't arrive for another month so I can't compare the two adaptors. Fits nicely on my ACL I. Don't have any PL mount lenses here at the moment to try. Is anyone selling any French 400' magazines? Cheers Gregg.

Dom, are you still there? A friendly local tech who services O'connor (Gary Oliver at Panavision) had a look. The thing needing attention he decided was the apparent gap in the tilt drag feel. He topped up the tilt fluid but could see nothing wrong in the chamber. It's an earlier model 1030 than he's familiar with. I think there are several small drag units aranged radially around the centre in the tilt drag chamber. The result was only slightly better. His conclusion was that the problem may be with the spring system. Lag in the spring response might explain the "gap" feel, but I can feel this gap at different tilt positions. Without understanding the spring kinematics that seems a bit counter-intuitive. Only cost me a case of beer sofar. I'm wondering whether to bide my time and send it to the States for a service or rebuild, or maybe Melbourne. The serial number is: 319003 Cheers Gregg

You could lock the film away safely while you intensively develop ideas/script for a short film. Maybe that takes a month or a year. Who cares if the film is great. If you have some free gear and some willing helpers, then expand the timescale for the production and put as many amazing things in there as you can. Make an amazing and intensively developed micro budget short film rather than a one weekend 1:1 cut feature. Cheers Gregg.

I heard elsewhere some confirmation that any ACL magazine can go on any ACL camera. This still leaves the question about the relative quality or function of the different types. Can we take better pictures with the mags with the extra pressure plate? The designers must have had a reason to add this. The other question about whether the English mags are happy running at 75fps (especially stopping and starting) - I didn't find an answer to it yet Gregg.

Thanks, I'll take a look. Gregg.

Hey you guys, I may be upgrading to an ACL II. I have two English 400' magazines here that I would like to use on it. Do these work ok? What about the French mags that were made before the ACL II? The way I am descriminating between the English and French mags is by the take up system. The English with the rubber tyres running on the film take up roll and the French with a friction drive like the 200' magazine seems to have. The different footage counter/indicators are also obvious I guess. Do the English mags work ok at 75fps? Does anyone know what the purpose was of the separate pressure pad on the ACL II magazine is? Obviously we don't have this feature on ACL I mags, but does it matter? Thanks Cheers Gregg