|
|
 
|
|
Author
|
Topic: Most Painful Mistake?
|
|
|
Jason Black
Phenomenal Film Handler
Posts: 1723
From: Myrtle Beach, SC, USA
Registered: Nov 2000
|
posted 01-07-2001 10:20 PM
Actually, the more I think about it, the print was actually 6 reels. I remember noting the fact that the credits were, in fact, intact, as they should be. I had NOT noticed that reels 3 & 5 had the reel bands reversed on them , thus causing the mix up on initial build-up. Now a days, I *alyays* look at the imaging on the head AND tail EVEN if it IS a new print. You never know with some of the stuff that comes from the labs these days... Sorry John, but labs aren't perfect either...  ------------------
The early bird may get the worm, but the second mouse gets the cheese!
| IP: Logged
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Pete Naples
Phenomenal Film Handler
Posts: 1565
From: Dunfermline, Scotland
Registered: Feb 2001
|
posted 06-08-2001 09:54 AM
Once held the top sprocket pad arm of Gaumot Kalee 21 in place for three reels, after thing let go from the rest of the projector, I had grooves in my fingers for weeks after that.Another time with a Westrex Westar 2001 I was gingerly easing running film back onto the hold back sprocket that a really terrible join had pushed it off of, when, you guessed it, there was an altercation between said sprocket and mt right index finger, and the sprocket won. Most painful thing I have ever seen was during the Edinburgh International Film Festival, a then colleague had placed a 13,000 foot spool containing the film "Speed" onto the top sindle of the tower, and in his haste (it had been a LONG four weeks) had forgotten to put the securing nut on. As he revolved the tower to thread the mech, said 13,000 foot spool slid off the spindle in slow motion, and landed on my unfortunate friends foot. Result was a lot of swearing, a badly bent spool and a badly bruised foot. I've just realized, the machine in question is the one I'm leaning on in the picture on the left. (The one where my finger got between sprocket and pad roller, and also the tower that dropped the spool onto my mates foot is behind this machine!)
| IP: Logged
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Rick Long
Jedi Master Film Handler
Posts: 759
From: Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Registered: Nov 1999
|
posted 06-09-2001 02:15 AM
Wow, what goof-ups you have all made. Glad none of those ever happened to me Course, there was that time I left the theatre, after replacing a bridge rectifier in a platter only to get a call from the projectionist that the platter was running backwards.....anyways. By the mid-70's most theatres had converted to solid state amplifiers. A few, however, (mainly independants) clung to their still-working vacuum-tube technology. I had just been given my first service route - Northern Ontario - baically a triangle from North Bay to Timmins to Thunder Bay, and I was determined to make an impression, especially at my first stop with tube amps - Sturgeon Falls. First, the service reports (unchanged since the 50's) were a giant chart enabling the technician to enter such data as plate voltages, pre-amp B+, exciter voltages, ect. Since before the great flood, soundmen had been drawing a line through all this and just entering "checked tubes" under the "Remarks" line. Not me boy. I was gonna do this right. Using my trusty Simpson 260, I carefully measured and entered every voltage they asked for. Not only that, but I even typed it up when I got home and handed it in on a Monday morning. Working at my bench, and waiting for the obvious "congratulations - well done" speech from my supervisor, I found him, instead, standing at my bench, drumming his fingers and looking at me like I was an idiot. (Very perceptual man, my supervisor.)
"Ya just hadda do it, dintcha?" he asked. "Now, go get the manual for that amp and check your report against the schematic"
He was right. (I was later to learn that the supervisor is ALWAYS right). The plate voltages were all about 30% low. A little deduction showed the power supply resistors to be at fault. NO PROBLEM! - I vowed to change them on my next service call. Which I did. Mind you, the sound was a little more "hissy" than previously, but damn, those voltages were spec. Proud as punch, I left town and arrived in Sudbury, some 70 miles west.
I had just returned from supper around 8:00 when the desk clerk at the hotel handed me a note.
"Could you come back please, our amplifier caught fire." Turns out the old electrolytic caps couldn't take the higher voltages.
| IP: Logged
|
|
|
|
Aldo Baez
Master Film Handler
Posts: 266
From: USA
Registered: Mar 2001
|
posted 06-09-2001 03:56 AM
Well I've never really hurt myself except the mandatory cuts and scratches from various things. I've also never really done anything bad, although I had to fix someone elses mistake of putting reel 6 of sixth day wrong. Took forever. Once I was tearing down Me, Myself and irene. I had accidently taken the center ring out, and tried unsuccessfully to put it back in the center. Of course I could only put it back sorta halfway. I started tearing down, I slowly, foolishly put the platter at full speed. There was another movie showing at the same time, it was Pokemon (I was tearing down from the top platter.) So I start slowly, then go to full speed, and I kinda get scared since the ring is only in halfway holding the film in the center. Well just as I went to slow it down, the ring somehow came out of the hole and the film flew out. Now if you can imagine, a whole 7 reels spinning full speed its alot of force flying around. What happened was that the film *HIT* the tree part of the platter, the ENTIRE platter tree tilted to its side, HIT the side of the projector then flung itself back flat on the ground. Meanwhile after the print nearly knocked over the entire platter mechanism, its momentum slid it completely off onto the ground, not tangled or anything, perfectly flat like if it was on the platter. Amazingly, even though the entire tree had tilted over and hit the projector, the Pokemon did not stop or fall off, it kept going without a hitch. I was just standing there for about 5 minutes thinking of how lucky I just was. Then I proceeded to build up something else because I didn't want to touch tearing down for a few minutes.
| IP: Logged
|
|
|
|
All times are Central (GMT -6:00)
|
This topic comprises 12 pages: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12
|
Powered by Infopop Corporation
UBB.classicTM
6.3.1.2
The Film-Tech Forums are designed for various members related to the cinema industry to express their opinions, viewpoints and testimonials on various products, services and events based upon speculation, personal knowledge and factual information through use, therefore all views represented here allow no liability upon the publishers of this web site and the owners of said views assume no liability for any ill will resulting from these postings. The posts made here are for educational as well as entertainment purposes and as such anyone viewing this portion of the website must accept these views as statements of the author of that opinion
and agrees to release the authors from any and all liability.
|
Home
Printer-friendly view of this topic