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» Film-Tech Forum ARCHIVE   » Operations   » Film Handlers' Forum   » Say goodbye to tail wraps, thrown prints and poo (aka: SAFETY RINGS) (Page 2)

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Author Topic: Say goodbye to tail wraps, thrown prints and poo (aka: SAFETY RINGS) Thomas Procyk Phenomenal Film Handler Posts: 1842 From: Royal Palm Beach, FL, USA Registered: Feb 2002 posted 12-09-2003 02:57 PM                     I've never thrown a print, either, but I've seen a platter throw one. Any warped or badly-timed, or ORC platter will occasionally flip out and the last two reels hang off the brain. Good invention, but it appears that there's space between the print and the ring, so when you were shaking the platter, did the film flop around inside the blue ring, but stay on the platter? I'm also not seeing how it secures the tail. More pictures and/or an explanation of this thing is needed. =TMP=  |  IP: Logged Brad Miller Administrator Posts: 17775 From: Plano, TX (36.2 miles NW of Rockwall) Registered: May 99 posted 12-09-2003 03:04 PM                     Thomas, It's a "one size fits all" prints design. So long as the print isn't allowed to go flying off of the edge, it doesn't much matter how much space there is. Sure if you're running a REALLY short film, the edge of it wouldn't go hitting the wall of the safety ring because the brain would catch the smaller inner dimaeter of the roll, but in the situation of a really short print it still keeps the tail secure. Besides, almost all platter accidents happen in the last hour of the film, where this ring does it's job quite well. By "secure" I think you are taking the word too literally. It doesn't have to be tucked or pressed up against the film roll with a poo. When speaking of "securing the tail", this means to find some means to keep it from flopping over the edge of the deck. If the tail falls over the edge, it will get caught up underneath the platter at the axle. At that point every turn will wrap the tail tighter and tighter until after a few minutes it pulls taught and will make the entire print go flying onto the floor. The safety ring guarantees neither can happen.  |  IP: Logged Joe Redifer You need a beating today Posts: 12859 From: Denver, Colorado Registered: May 99 posted 12-09-2003 03:12 PM                        Check out how easy it is to move the ring from one deck to another: Clicky Clicky Quicktime 600KB. After you've done it a few times it gets even easier than this. And yes, space was VERY tight.  |  IP: Logged Jim Leko Film Handler Posts: 90 From: Redondo Beach, CA, USA Registered: May 2002 posted 12-09-2003 04:34 PM                     Looks great. Although in the year in a half I have been working in the booth, the only thrown print I have seen was LOTR:TTT, during the employee screening, because the print was still on the buildup platter. The buildup platter is normally on the bottom, but it's moved to the middel of the tree when building up (duh). Normally, our 2 top platters (at every projector) have grip tape on them to help prevent brain wraps, and thrown prints. It's an old GCC thing I think. AMC is letting us keep it I guess (my boss says so anyway). Very effective. We have only had 1 brain wrap in the last year and a half off these platters. We have had about 3 off of the non-grip tape platters, and the only time we play movies off them, is if we have 2 prints per projector. 98% of our shows play off the grip tape. Interesting product though. I will speak with my boss about getting those for our non-grip tape platters.  |  IP: Logged Kevin Wale Expert Film Handler Posts: 167 From: Guymon, OK USA Registered: Aug 2003 posted 12-09-2003 04:36 PM                     That's great. It does seem better than the poo thingy because those do fly off from time to time. Now if a way can be found for SPECO platters too all would be albe to enjoy it. (I still have a soft spot for LP270s lol)  |  IP: Logged Kelly Skaggs Film Handler Posts: 68 From: Springdale UT Registered: Jul 2003 posted 12-09-2003 05:57 PM                        For Showcase in Cincinnati our in house booth tech came up with a similar ring we used. It worked great. We had it in use at all the Cincinnati Showcases for over 3 years, and never lost a print due to being thrown or tail wrapped. I kept telling the guy that came up with it he needed to patent and sell it to other theaters.  |  IP: Logged Mike Blakesley Film God Posts: 12767 From: Forsyth, Montana Registered: Jun 99 posted 12-09-2003 07:06 PM                        The late Larry Flesch (60-year Montana exhibitor) designed something similar to this about 10 years ago, and I kept telling him he should take the idea to a manufacturer, but he died without doing it. So now Brad is going to get rich instead. I'm going to equip 100% of my booths with this thing! (Well, OK, that's only one, but someday I hope to expand....)  |  IP: Logged Lee Davies Film Handler Posts: 28 From: Bolton, England Registered: Jul 2000 posted 12-09-2003 07:09 PM                     This is a fantastic idea, and I hope it sells really well. Has there been a distribution deal done for the UK yet, and which dealers are/will be selling them?  |  IP: Logged Daryl C. W. O'Shea Film God Posts: 3977 From: Midland Ontario Canada (where Panavision & IMAX lenses come from) Registered: Jun 2002 posted 12-09-2003 07:34 PM                        Authorized Dealers of Film-Tech products. In the UK: Jack Roe (CS) Limited  |  IP: Logged Darren Crimmins Expert Film Handler Posts: 130 From: Dallas, TX, USA Registered: Jan 2002 posted 12-09-2003 08:45 PM                     If you have witnessed a print throw even once at your specific theater, than your booth needs one, no matter how long you have been there. For the price, there should be no reason why you should not get one for each platter system, even if just for peace of mind. I have been working with the prototypes for almost a year now, and the couple or extra seconds it takes to move from platter to platter, like Jason said earlier in the thread, is easier than the "old fashioned" securing of the tail. It is so easy, that no matter what homemade solution a theater has been using in the past, nothing can guarantee a non-print throw more than having durable plastic flanges on the edges of the platter physically making it incapable of film falling off the sides. Having print throws diminished 100% is better than 99.99%, because there is still a chance. The link with the picture above says it all.  |  IP: Logged Max Eldright Film Handler Posts: 2 From: Montgomery, AL, USA Registered: Dec 2003 posted 12-09-2003 11:13 PM                        Simply amazing... I've never tossed a print, but have come close on a few occasions. Never have had a tail wrap, except from those terrible suction cups (throw them away, and tuck the sound in). I've actually wondered if such a thing existed, and have even made a poor attempt at fasioning one myself. I swear almost every time I come up with some fairly decent idea, I find someone already marketing it... Oh well. Nice job! Looks like a winner. My only concern would be how quickly it can be moved from one platter to another, but if it just slips on like a lid that shouldn't be an issue.  |  IP: Logged Mark DeLettera Film Handler Posts: 54 From: Venice, Florida Registered: Aug 1999 posted 12-10-2003 07:10 AM                     quote: the only thrown print I have seen was LOTR:TTT, during the employee screening, Ahhhh..... Now there is Brad to the rescue! His new 'user-name' should now be: "Brad Miller: Lord of the Platter Rings"!!! Just bustn' on ya Brad, I couldn't resist.... GREAT Design! Good Luck with it.  |  IP: Logged Dick Vaughan Phenomenal Film Handler Posts: 1032 From: Bradford, West Yorkshire, UK Registered: Jul 2000 posted 12-10-2003 08:57 AM                        Just need the "Go Large " version for the 150 minute IMAX platters Looks great. Keep up the good work Brad  |  IP: Logged Thomas Procyk Phenomenal Film Handler Posts: 1842 From: Royal Palm Beach, FL, USA Registered: Feb 2002 posted 12-10-2003 12:11 PM                     Aah, so this just keeps the print from falling off the edge... But don't you think that a platter which would be likely to throw a print would also "unravel" the end of the print as it's whipping around with an untucked, untaped, unsecured tail? Images of a foreign print that comes on cores in those metal cans comes to mind. It's all still there and it didn't fall apart, but it's all unraveled and loose in the can. What i'm saying is, with or without this ring, if you don't secure the tail from unwrapping the end of the credits as it plays, you'll still have a good chance of a brainwrap at the end of the show. Even using 8 or 9 suction cups on a 3.5-hour Bollywood print, we'd still have the tail end and a few layers looser than the rest of the print near the end. Those people commenting that they've never thrown a print but are going to buy the ring remind me of a scene in "Family Guy": "Hello. I'm selling Volcano Insurance." "Go on." "A volcano can strike at any time!" "But we've never had volcanos in Rhode Island!" "So don't you think we're overdue for one?" "Touche salesman!" =TMP=  |  IP: Logged Brad Miller Administrator Posts: 17775 From: Plano, TX (36.2 miles NW of Rockwall) Registered: May 99 posted 12-10-2003 02:23 PM                     It really doesn't matter even if that did happen Thomas. Since the brain pulls the film from the center of the roll, the film does not have to be wound tightly. Have you worked with AW3 platters? If so have you ever worked with one that was not properly calibrated? Imagine this, a Christie platter with the LO pot as low as it will go and the HI pot as high as it will go without making the platter spin when at 0% of the payout arm. That's the worst possible timing scenario you can create...and yes I've done it with the safety rings and intentionally pushed the film way off of center during movies. Sure it pays out rough intentionally screwing up those things, but the film always made it through. I'll shoot and post a video of this sometime in the next week.  |  IP: Logged

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