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Victor 16mm


Brent Stevenson

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Hi,

 

I just brought a 16mm Victor cine camera model but I can't find any instruction manuals for it online. Does anyone here know how to load it? I'm a complete novice, previous experience with Super 8 and Digital. Any info on the camera in general or help would be much appreciated.

 

Thanks,

B

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G'day Brent,

 

I've got a model 5 Victor, lovely elegant creature, but they're not as sturdy as something like a Bell and Howell Filmo of the same vintage. Mine got overwound and jumped gears, now it only winds a few turns before stopping. So be careful not to overwind it..

 

The film gets threaded in a similar way to many other sprocket driven wind-up cameras, with the two spools forming a '∂6' pattern as the film leaves the feed spool and enters the take-up spool (viewed with the lenses/gate away from you). The sprocket drum keeps a constant loop feeding through the gate, make sure you form it to the right size:

 

victorthreadedalt.jpg

 

There's a manual for the model 3 here:

 

http://communication.ucsd.edu/bjones/Moviecam/manuals.html

 

You need to use 2R film (with perforations on both edges) unfortunately, as the sprocket drum has its teeth on top while the claw pulls the film through at the bottom. Double-perfed film is still available, but in a limited range of stocks.

 

It would be a very good idea to test the camera with some exposed/expired stock first, both as loading practice and to make sure the camera is working properly. For a very basic test in the absence of dummy stock, run the camera while holding the square block at the base of the lower (take-up) spindle - it should slip without too much force, and the camera should keep running strongly. It will probably slow down after a while, so keep a mental note of how long you can film before that happens. Remember it's a 70 or 80 year old machine, so it may well need some service to be able to operate properly.

 

Good luck with it!

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