This is topic Are good carbons for arc lamps still available? in forum Film Handlers' Forum at Film-Tech Forum ARCHIVE.
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Posted by Joe Schmidt (Member # 822) on 04-19-2001, 12:23 PM:
Where do arc carbons come from these days?The Byrd theatre in Richmond, VA still runs arcs, and they have a Master Brenograph and the C-14 spotlight so will need such exotica as 13mm x 8" positive and 9mm x 8" negative, perhaps, depending on the DC Voltage. Of course if at some point in the past a whole case of the carbons in each size had been purchased, with just
occasional use this supply could last for decades
Related question, could Breno stuff be converted to xenon? If you've ever been around any, the gases vent direct out the top into the room & that stuff is poisonous. osha would have cardiac arrest. I could envisage a round hood of some sort above the equipment connecting to a powerful
exhaust fan on the roof. That would help.
Thanks!
Posted by Gordon McLeod (Member # 33) on 04-19-2001, 06:25 PM:
There used to be a brenograph in toronto area that had 2 Zies XenosolIII's fitted on it
Posted by Scott Norwood (Member # 30) on 04-19-2001, 06:47 PM:
Carbons are definitely still available. For a theatre that's only open on a seasonal basis (which includes most drive-ins), buying carbons is cheaper than converting to xenon. The Cape Cinema is open May through October and they still use 6mm/7mm carbons.
A friend and I recently found a couple of boxes of old 8mm/7mm carbons in a closed-down theatre, along with lots of stubs. (We donated them to the Byrd.) I'm sure that there are plenty of people and old theatres that have stockpiles as well, which (sadly) will likely never get used.
Of course there are other uses for carbons besides film projectors--for example, carbon-arc Super Trouper spotlights are still quite common, and the large searchlights also usually burn carbon.
Posted by Jerry D. Cox (Member # 701) on 04-19-2001, 08:23 PM:
Joe the 13mmx8,an the 9mmx8 or Low intensty carbons,They may be hard to find,You could try "THE MARBEL CO" In Nashville,Tn. Talk to Randy if he does not have them he may be abel to tell you where to get them.
Posted by Ken Layton (Member # 133) on 04-19-2001, 10:32 PM:
The National carbons that were made by Union Carbide are now made by another company called National Specialty ProductsHere's the link:
http://mamat.com/Specialty%20Products.html
Posted by Robert Throop (Member # 61) on 04-20-2001, 12:32 PM:
In about 1980 I visited the Imax booth at Pyramid Place in Niagara Falls, Ontario. They had a Brenograph F7 that had been converted to xenon. The carbon lamphouses were removed and replaced by a pair of small Cinemecannica lamphouses. I think they were 450 watt. Also Radio City Music Hall had an F7 that had been split up. Each unit on a separate pedestal. These were converted to HMI in the mid seventies using the original lamphouses.------------------
Bob Throop
Posted by Bill Enos (Member # 440) on 04-24-2001, 12:02 AM:
At the Byrd we use 11mm on the pos. side and 8mm on the neg. side at 70 amps in the C-14. The 8mm on the neg. side is generally a pos. stub left from the Magnarcs. The Bren. F7 uses an 8mm pos. stick on both sides, no point is buying negatives. Yes it is vented into the room but there is a strong exhaust in the ceiling directly over it, smoke, etc. get sucked straight into it. The Magnarcs use 8mm x 14 pos. & 7mm x 9in. neg. Carbons had been no problem to get until last Nov. when Marble apparently made an ordering error and ran out of 8mm and National made a large batch of 8mm that had defective cores that made only light from glowing carbon. Both claim to have resolved their problems. Randy at Marble says he'll not make that mistake again, National says they will have carbons at least for the next year or so, no comment on anything past that. We will stock up on sticks for the follow spot and Breno. and convert the projectors.