Philip Forrest

I have a few Filmos with critical focusing aids and only one is reasonably bright, the others are in varying states of tarnish or de-silvering and are basically done. They are really a pain in rear to use practically. Calibrate your lenses so the focusing scales are accurate then use a tape measure. The Parallax compensating tripod base is far better to use, in my opinion.

The only lens Nikon made that focuses the other direction was the 45mm f/2.8 GN Nikkor.

Look into the lens and shine a light into it. Then shine the light into the eyepiece of the viewfinder. If it lights up, you're looking at your viewfinder prism.

I'll reach out to a former US Navy combat cameraman whom I know and describe the problem. He went to the Navy's repair school as well, back in the era of regular Filmo use.

One thing I noticed when I got mine working was that the spring itself needs to act like a clutch. That is, it needs to not be too tight, nor too loose. When too tight, the magazine will pull too much film after the take-up diameter increases enough to pull the lower loop. When too loose, the weight of the film will overcome the spring tension and it will bunch up in the camera. The problem is that the magazine rate of pull is not linear through the entire 400' and the take-up rate is dependent on the spring drive pulley in the camera. The motor itself isn't a factor here as the problem exists even if you use the manual crank to operate the magazine. So, in the last 100' the spring needs to slip and continue to pull the pulley just enough to take-up what the camera feeds through. Phil Forrest

Give me a day or two and I'll find my stash of belts. I can get you the part #. Phil Forrest

Doesn't this motor have a viscous clutch? Would that be what is oiled?

Robert, Where in Jersey are you located? I'm in Philly and could show you some tips on basic servicing and troubleshooting using one of my Filmos. Nothing deep into the camera, just removing the shutter plate itself in the case you ever find it really stuck. Phil Forrest

Let me know if you want another Model K, I have two of them, both modified to shoot 1R film. Phil Forest.

Since you are trying to reconstruct the lens to as-new spec, you're going to need an experienced tech who has the parts to spare. In the UK, I'd try CRR Luton first. That is a very low-production and high dollar lens, so there won't be much in the way of spare parts, if any. You can't simply swap in the mount, linkage, and aperture ring from a lens which would physically fit over the rear element, as those are all lens-specific. You can see this in the difference between a pair of 50mm lenses, one f/1.7 and the other f/1.4. They may physically fit each other but the aperture rate of movement is different between the two. In a nutshell, the only parts which fit the 85/1.2 are those from another 85/1.2. Good luck! Phil Forrest

It's both a lens hood and a Series VI filter holder. The hood would be of particular interest to a person who shoots an old 35mm Canon rangefinder camera, which commonly had 48mm threads in a few of their best lenses.

A clamp, monopod, shotgun mic, good audio recorder, plenty of storage with a way to back it up, a portable power supply (solar panel, rechargeable UPS, something like that). Don't bother with lights, just get a fold-up reflector. Sunscreen, good sunglasses, a camera bag or two with good weather shielding available. Have a good local interpreter available. Pack what just you can carry, so if you need to, you can. Phil Forrest

Maybe use a VOIP if cost is concern? That's how I talk to my brother in Melbourne a few times a month. Phil Forrest

Eric - One of our PHs (Photographer's Mate) got the nickname "Tumbleweed" because of a Prowler... ? You can't see that jet blast travel along the deck when they are turning to set up on the cat. It maybe took 1/250 second of him not paying attention to the aircraft turning and being blown starboard aft. He didn't fall off, just got banged up a bit. We stenciled TUMBLEWEED on his float coat and the name stuck for the rest of the time he was aboard. I can't imagine being on a flight deck when an F-4 went to full military for takeoff. The Tomcats and Prowlers always rattled my teeth, I'm sure a Phantom would have just made them fall out. I was in from 1997 - 2005 during the last of the Cold War era mission-specific airframes: F-14D, FA-18, E-2C, S-3, EA-6B (A-6 Intruders had gone to the reserve force by the beginning of my service). All our portable motion work was done on Hi8 but all the stills were film, mostly Kodak VPS or Tri-X. Intel was all black and white from TARPS as well as airborne observers. I know that the military was still teaching film basics as of 2006 but I lost touch with most folks and I'm sure they have gone completely digital since then. Phil Forrest

In my opinion, I think the Filmo 70DL is probably the best of the lot. It's got all the latest refinements of the DR but there is no risk of getting your viewfinder cog out of alignment when you load the camera. The later production DRs DO have slip-in filter slots behind the turret, so that is one thing which may draw one to the camera. As for the 240, it's not user serviceable like the 70 series. It certainly does have a very long-running motor but mine is in good condition and sounds like an EA-6B Prowler spooling up to take off from an aircraft carrier. All of my 70s (70A, 70DL, 70DR, 70KRM) sound fantastic, and while not quiet enough to synch sound and not hear the camera, it's not terribly distracting. I love the sound of my 70DL, and further love its reliability. Phil Forrest

You may try CRR Luton for the physical work. I'm willing to bet you could get the lenses polished, cleaned and lubed and that will bring them up to as good as they are going to get. Firms that coat lenses are growing more and more scarce these days. Those formulations aren't going to have biting contrast even in new condition anyway, but they should have excellent sharpness. Phil Forrest

Cerium oxide paste is what I use to refurbish lenses. It'll take all haze off, with the exception of etched glass that looks like it's been sandblasted. Get the kind used to polish, not cut, telescope optics. Phil Forrest

I just acquired a Schneider Variogon 17 - 170 T/2.2 from what I believe was a Philips LDH1 camera. It came with mechanical coaxial cables for control of focus and zoom, as well as a few teleconverters. Anyone ever use or heard of this lens? The Philips camera looks like one of the cameras we used to have in Navy news studios. I wasn't involved in the gear at that time, as I was primarily a still photographer and writer, so the broadcast side I have little experience with. Thanks for any information you can offer. Phil Forrest

There is a long-running thread at Rangefinderforum.com showing results from 5222 shot as still film stock. https://www.rangefinderforum.com/forum/cameras-gear-photography/rangefinder-forum/image-processing-darkroom-lightroom-film/film-developing-chemistry/53844-shooting-eastman-double-x-5222-in-the-leica There's a lot of different developers used and quite a few folks have pushed and pulled the film. It's not motion, but it may help with finding out the look of the tonal curve when pushed. Phil Forrest

Just get the camera CLA'd and shoot with the H16 as-is. It will teach you more about distance, taking your time to properly compose, focus, and expose your shots than a reflex will. I started with a Filmo 70DR, eventually collected a bunch of them, got a Bolex REX4 and then realized that I just wanted to use my parallax finder Filmos more. Aside from that, I can completely overhaul a Filmo with confidence, but not a Bolex. If you have to have a reflex camera, and not a lens with a dogleg viewfinder, just sell the H16 and save up for what you want. All that said, your H16 is certainly not useless. Phil Forrest

The Filmo 70E is a C mount camera without a turret. It is rather like the 70 (first version) but with the later 8-64f/s speed governor. The shutter plate is a very stout piece of aluminum but is not interchangeable with any Filmos with a turret, due to a slight change in where the four mounting screws sit. The turret locks ONLY work on specific cameras, namely the 70HR and 70KRM, due to those being the only models with the threaded hole for the turret lock. If you wanted, you could find a HR/KRM shutter plate with the threaded hole (make sure to get the dampener as well) and transfer the whole shutter to a camera like a 70DE or 70DR, but there may be differences in the thickness of the HR/KRM shutter plate due to the presence of the dampener. The Pan-Cinor mentioned is not a very heavy lens like the Angenieux 12-120. The only real problem with putting a heavy lens on is that it can physically turn the turret while shooting and you can't see the image decentering while it's wandering south. Either machining, stamping or 3D printing (even carving from wood) a cradle to hold the whole camera steady with the provision to add support rods (like a dovetail attachment), would be the best way to make this happen without modifying the camera. There is a very rare cradle for a HR/KRM out there somewhere. Bell & Howell made at least one and I've seen a photo of it under a KRM with a 400ft magazine on the back. It's meant to hold a motor though, so it's big, but it's the right piece of unobtanium for the job. Phil Forrest

Nikon made an MR3 mechanical/electrical 3-pin switch to add a mechanical button to the electrical release port on many of its cameras and motor drives. This could be used as the first part of the interface for an electrical plunger. Phil Forrest

The Cine-Ektar 152mm f/4 is a good, sharp lens but I've found that even after cleaning, it is still prone to flare and lower contrast. Use the hood and keep the sun out of the frame when it's not absolutely intended. It's one of the better built and very light lenses of its focal length out there. Phil Forrest

There should be a little cap in the shutter plate that covers a hole. This should get some oil. Use a decent synthetic sewing machine or watch oil, not WD40 or 3 in 1, both of those will eventually turn thick. Use a needle dripper or a fine watercolor brush to apply oil in small amounts. You don't want it splashing all around in the shutter and governor. It's not hard to take the shutter out of the camera and give it a really good cleaning. That doesn't involve anything to do with the main spring. It can possibly quiet it down and you can ensure all the cam surfaces are perfectly smooth. If your camera is very early and has the felt governor in the shutter plate, you may need to replace the felt and do a real timing test with a measured length of leader to get an accurate frame speed. Dom has a great Eyemo (and Filmo) writeup at his cinetinker.blogspot.com blog. Phil Forrest

I've removed Remjet on Kodachrome after soaking in a bath of Borax. It's gross and messy, but the weak base effectively loosens it allowing mechanical removal. Make sure to do at least one wash after that. Aside from that, I'm not sure why anyone uses color motion picture stock for shooting stills (unless you have a short end left over you got for free) due to the pain of different development and the Remjet issue. It's certainly not cheaper than still film, of which there are plenty of great emulsions out there. Phil Forrest