Last evening for the first time in some while I had an hour free so out came the eki and it’s long play unit.I already had a film called Th Captive two 1600 black and white French film about the end of ww2.The film has an X certificate and was distributed by a firm called Compton films with English subtitles.
Anyway away we went all well I phone out and ready to take pics for here.Took a couple of pics and got into the film all well and then as one does after about twenty minutes looked behind me to see a small sea of film all over the floor.projector working fine long play take up stopped dead as a dodo.Lot of swearing 🤬 film show ceased,more swearing 🤬.
So this morning went out to the remains of the long play ,tried it and worked first time,more swearing 🤬 Followed by 😃.
Decided to take the unit apart and spent the next hour cleaning and tightening all screws etc.The amount of carbon from the motor was incredible so whole lot given a spring clean and a burst of electrical spray for good measure.Seems to be working fine again now,so I guess it was my fault for not cleaning 😜😜
Anyway for those who want to see the inside of a long play mechanism I took a couple of pics

The top two show the internal bits and the bottom is what it normally looks like.
I suspect that this equipment is getting to a point where a lot of TLC is the only way to keep it going,still hope to run film again soon.📽📽

Great job, Gwyn!

Yes, TLC is a definite prerequisite for film collecting these days given my Super 8 projectors et al are 40-plus years old. (I tend to hold my breath any time I fire up my projectors .... 😀).

I'm always right beside the projector when playing a film for fear of a jam or anything else that could destroy my precious investment of history.

Me too Don. i sit right next to the projector , so I'm quick, should anything unexpected happen.

Agree! It’s almost like an exercise routine — that is, I’m having to concentrate more on the projector at times rather than actually watching the film/movie. That’s why I have to be in the right mood to fire up the film projector, as I have to concentrate on two things at once, which can be fatiguing! 😀

I’m not getting any younger, and I’m finding I’d rather watch the film/movie versus watching the projector! 😀

Are these long play units actually made by the manufacturers of the projectors?

Here's the Eiki unit, but it's much more fun with two projectors.
https://van-eck.net/img/itable/images/fi...33424079614.JPG

#5

Should have gone to Specsavers John!

I remember the days when I was exactly the same btw.
Horrible isn't it!

I can vacuum the whole house now while watching a film, no sweat, no tears.
Enough was enough.

Didn't Barbra & Miss Summer sing a song about this syndrome?

Now THAT’s what I call multitasking, Andrew! 😀 Usually I disappear into the home theatre to avoid vacuuming! 😀

Truly envious that you can watch the film and not the projector —

Normally I sit beside or slightly behind the machine so I can keep an eye on the projector but last evening I was in front and I completely got engrossed in the film hence the mess.The one saving grace is that the film is not to say the least one of my best ones and so I am not too bothered,no one else in the family wants to watch a subtitled film at the best of times.....
Robert regarding your question as far as I am aware this is a professional made long play unit ,I have seen similar on the web and Dave Guest had one for sale.the arms are fixed to a board of the owners making.There are no markings on my set to indicate who made them other than the motors were made by a firm in Bournemouth.As far as I can see you can stick any 16mm machine tween the arms,I rightly or wrongly assumed the name Eki/Elf because that was the name used when I got them.Anyone she’d any light on these long play units?
Hope to run another film soon but work calls!

I also sit next to, but just in front of the projector. I occassionaly look back to check but to date, quite confident of letting it all run. Only time i had a problem was when the elf motor capacitor went with a bang and a puff of smoke. You may recall i put a thread on here about it and boy did it make a mess inside the back cover.

My first job was rewinding electric motors and on the ones with carbon brushes and armature we used to clean between each copper segment to remove built-up deposits.

I worked in the same business myself David for the first 14 years of my own working life, first with an industry-leading and globally recognized industrial motor and pump manufacturer, then at a few lesser known smaller yet reputable repair companies.
What was the name of the company you worked for David?

One of the first British generator sets sits in Manchester Science and Industry museum and I helped refurbish it with a colleague as an apprentice myself.
Sadly the colleague has long since passed away but admirably his work still lives on and fully functions to this day.

It was very interesting work and one which I still have a genuine passion and enthusiasm for even to this day.

As a clue to my own first companies identIty, I can say that this company invented the Maploc Rotor design if that gives anything away! 😂
No more cracked Rotor SC Rings and Windings as a result of a few too many Direct On Line start ups!

A small firm called Hallamshire Rewinds. Started the Monday after leaving school the previous Wednesday. I had laboured for my dad who built them a large oven used for baking the varnish.

They all needed the large oven David!
And a very large tank full of varnish! Boy those fumes!!

Are they still in business?

#9

Truly envious you can dodge the vacuuming and watch a film any time you like in a fully dedicated home cinema room instead of utilizing a living room to do so in like I'm forced to do John!

I have to utilize the living room as well.

When we had the double extension built - I took the new downstairs room and put a motorised 6ft screen at one end, framed posters - the majority of my 8mm and 16mm collection and film and digital projection go hand in hand. When i shut the door - movie heaven.

Sadly no Hallamshire must have gone in the late 90s early 00s. Right about that smell. One lad when testing his windings before dipping and baking tested it on the 48v 3 phase transformer. The only problem he put the 415v on the output. Quite a large flash and bang. Happy days