Duncan Brown

OK, crow-eating time. On my latest camera, which I haven't actually shot any film in yet, it will run just fine with no film in it but if you tap the buckle switch, like I guess the end of a roll of film would, it does indeed shut it off, unlike my previous cameras. Resets by opening the sprockets (like you naturally do when loading a new roll of film) Learn something new every day... Duncan

Wow, I've had 4 16ST bodies (long story) and that is not what happened on any of them. They'd merrily run forever, film or no film. I guess that must be a feature that is not-working a lot! Interesting. Duncan

As far as I know, the buckle switch is only there to kill the camera if there's a jam (film gets too tight, loses loop, etc) There's not supposed to be anything that automatically kills the camera when the film runs out. You just have to keep an eye on that via the film footage/frame counters and the sound and the turning, or stopping of turning, of the feed spool knob. Duncan

There's an Arri-B mount 5.7 Kinoptik on ebay right now, so there's proof that those exist too. Duncan

(Zombie thread, but I just noticed it) The variable resistor built into the rotating cap of that motor can get very flaky after all these years. If you take it apart, clean up the windings and the contact point, ever so slightly shift the contact so it's running on a slightly different path, and manage to get it all back together again without breaking anything, it will probably work a lot better. I'd smear a thin film of contact grease on there too. Duncan

Hey, lookie there, they do have one in Arri-B So now I have seen one that way! The Zeiss 8mm is a very very sharp lens, no problems there at all, but as you note, it's only "wide" not "crazy wide" (and I do love me some crazy-wide lenses, as you might have figured out.) Duncan

I only have experience with these folks for fitting still-camera large format lenses to large format shutters, but they would appear to be up for just about any lens-related machining you could throw at them. Of course, you pay dearly for their experience and attention to detail. https://skgrimes.com/ Duncan

I don't think I've ever seen the 5.9 in a B-mount, so that may be your answer right there (nobody thought it necessary?) I will say that I've bought and sold several of the Angenieux 5.9mm Arri-S lens trying to find one I was happy with and never did. The image just wasn't sharp or clear enough for my liking. To my eye it was an optical design thing, not a backfocus thing. The image was overall sharp, but had all kinds of smeary/flare-y places in it. The Kinoptik 5.7 is, in my opinion, a vastly superior lens. I've also not seen it in B-mount, though it certainly is big and heavy enough to justify it, so I bet they made some that way. The fact that it typically sells for a lot more than the 5.9 would indicate I'm not the only one who thinks it is a better choice! Duncan

I'll toss in a few random thoughts here. -- A dedicated macro lens has other advantages - they are usually very flat field, have little or no CA at the edges, etc. If you can afford it (and mount-adapted stills macro lenses are a great way to afford it) that's a really good way to go. -- Unless you spend a lot of money on a diopter - a really really good expensive diopter - just don't even bother with diopters. Might as well shoot through a plastic magnifying glass as use one of the inexpensive diopter sets. -- Air (distance) is much cheaper than a diopter, and doesn't introduce any optical elements that need to be high quality. Extension tubes are a really quick way to move the focus point closer (at the obvious expense of the infinity end of things.) RAF Cameras makes a series of very affordable PL-PL macro extenders. I even got them to make the shortest one physically possible in PL, because their normal ones brought the focus range basically on top of the lenses I was using, and I needed a bit more distance between camera and subject.

A couple of new ones. An ACL 1 parts catalog from 1970, missing the viewfinder and motor sections 😞 http://backglass.org/duncan/eclair/eclair_acli_spare_parts_catalogue_197009.pdf Who knew Eclair offered a single-system modification of the ACL?! http://backglass.org/duncan/eclair/eclair_acl_single_system.pdf ... and the smaller crummier versions of those if speed or file size is an issue for you: http://backglass.org/duncan/eclair/eclair_acli_spare_parts_catalogue_197009_100.pdf http://backglass.org/duncan/eclair/eclair_acl_single_system_100.pdf Duncan

This says that switch is for "Sync/Pre-select/variable speed" Does that help? https://fm.hunter.cuny.edu/handbook/production2/prod/prod_manual-arri_bl.pdf Duncan

Yes, there is a known number of rotations of the input rubber coupling to one frame cycle at the pawl and shutter. (I forget off the top of my head. Maybe 3:1?) So, as long as your rubber coupling isn't old and slipping, you'd just have your animation motor spin one shutter cycle worth per press of the button, and as long as you assembled the motor to the camera when the shutter was closed, then it would work perfectly from there. The reason for the capping shutter is that the Arri "shutter" is just the mirror moving and blocking the direct path from lens to film. The film is never blocked by a traditional close-by light-tight shutter. This works just fine at speed, not so fine with the camera sitting around with bright lights coming through the lens for seconds or minutes between frames exposed. Sure there's matte black paint everywhere inside the cavity, but low levels of light can still get to the film. (The same reason you need port caps in any un-lensed holes in the turret!) Duncan

I'm not trying to be the price police but having looked at a lot of NPR auctions over the last few years, I'm not sure I've ever seen one that high. It's no doubt a very nicely equipped, guaranteed running S16 NPR and worth much more than your average "no way to test it" N16 NPR, but that price is going to just seem high by comparison. I wonder if you'd do better selling the lenses separately? That way the camera price would look more in the right realm, and a lot of people either already have their own lenses, or are willing to go cheap on the lenses to start and then spend the big bucks later. Just an idea. Duncan

Very impressive! Duncan

Yes it would need the capability for a capping shutter - is the connection for that on the motor? I don't see it on the control box (assuming that the connector on the control box is for a trigger switch for single frame or to turn on the rig when in continuous mode,) Is the 1/4 and 1/2 setting on the motor a gearbox shifter? This all looks very similar (though cruder) to the Arri US animation/timelapse motor, which I believe was also made in NY. I wonder if this one led to that one through some path? Duncan