Film-Tech Forum ARCHIVE: Horizontal Movement On Strong Millennium

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Posted by Paul Salley (Member # 740) on 07-09-2003, 04:36 PM:

One of my Strong Millennium projectors here has a slight vibration which is causing some horizontal movement on screen.
I've adjusted tension on the film bands, checked the drive shaft and all the gears. Everything seems to be fine?

I'm kinda stumped any ideas? Thanks

Posted by Tim Reed (Member # 137) on 07-09-2003, 04:39 PM:

Is the lens turret secured?

Posted by Tim Turner (Member # 1109) on 07-09-2003, 05:03 PM:

I've seen this happen before also. It doesn't seem to happen with all prints thoough. I've found that making the feed and oldback loops (or top and bottom loops, whatever they're called) smaller sometimes helps.

Posted by Hugh McCullough (Member # 1542) on 07-09-2003, 05:06 PM:

I had the same thing happen on a Westar.
When you placed your hand on the motor you could feel it vibrating every three or four seconds.
Never was able to find the answer, so installed a new motor. This cured the problem.

Posted by Paul Salley (Member # 740) on 07-09-2003, 10:13 PM:

The lens turret seems to be fine it locks into place with no movement or play. We have tried running diffrent size loops, but this doesn't seem to help either. I haven't checked the motor, but I will look into it. I do have a spare motor so maybe I'll give it a whirl. Any other ideas please let me know! Thanks

Posted by Daniel Burns (Member # 1549) on 07-09-2003, 10:25 PM:

when i worked at amc we had a problem with this. The engineer looked at it and just said "looks like its weaving", tried nothing to fix it. All of our bands were set at 4 or 5 just to make it look a little better on screen.

Posted by Michael Cunningham (Member # 210) on 07-10-2003, 02:02 PM:

Hmm, how are your lateral guide rollers? Bent, nicked or warped? Do they turn freely and independantly of each other? Can the inboard roller be pushed further in and, when released, snap back out?

- Mike

Posted by Darryl Spicer (Member # 711) on 07-10-2003, 03:41 PM:

I have seen situations were the start celenoid on the motor, I think it's called that, stays on applying continuous start power to the motor. When this happens the motor vibrates everythin on that machine. Does the motor feel very hot to the touch after the projector stops. Does it do it in both flat and scope or just one of the lenses. Check the lens elements for loosness.

Posted by Paul Salley (Member # 740) on 07-10-2003, 04:22 PM:

Our lateral guide rollers seem to always lock up due to condensation, the spring area ends up with small amounts of rust. We do clean them regularly. They don't turn as freely as I want them too. I will check this out today. Also I'll check for the heated motor, And also I'll check on the lens senario.
Thanks guys for all the tips!!! [thumbsup]

Posted by Mark Gulbrandsen (Member # 72) on 07-14-2003, 09:00 PM:

All of the above is a very good example of why there are OTHER projectors of superior build which your employer SHOULD ahve selected....that don't have any of these prolewms.
This is all very typical with Simplex's with turretts. Mainly check for excessive vibrations and that the ball bearings securing the turrett to the frame are ok. Next would be the lens mounts with in the turretts. Either your print is bad, or its somethng on the turrett thats out of adjustment or work out.
Mark

Posted by System Notices (Member # 2357) on 02-04-2009, 03:53 PM:

It has been 2031 days since the last post.

Posted by Eric Robinson (Member # 2966) on 02-04-2009, 03:53 PM:

quote: Paul Salley
One of my Strong Millennium projectors here has a slight vibration which is causing some horizontal movement on screen.

I have exactly the same problem.

quote: Darryl Spicer
I have seen situations were the start celenoid on the motor, I think it's called that, stays on applying continuous start power to the motor. When this happens the motor vibrates everythin on that machine. Does the motor feel very hot to the touch after the projector stops.

The motor is running slightly hotter that the other Millenniums

Any way to troubleshoot the possible motor start solenoid? It sounds odd to me that there would be a solenoid, is it perhaps a motor start capacitor?

All parts are tight. Motor mounting block, motor mounts, motor plate, turret, lens. New belts installed, oil changed. Trap bands perfect set to tension "4". Gate and trap are perfect. Lateral guide rollers inner and outer are perfect.

Posted by Ron Funderburg (Member # 4561) on 02-04-2009, 04:07 PM:

quote: Mark Gulbrandsen
All of the above is a very good example of why there are OTHER projectors of superior build which your employer SHOULD ahve selected....that don't have any of these prolewms.

But Mark all projectors have some kind of problem associated with them. If they didn't you would have been out of work a long time ago!

It is just so easy to blame a projector you don't like as having these kinds of problems! It is also easy to blame the owner for being the equipment but what is the point in that? We work with the equipment we have!

I personally like the old XL Simplex projector over all other brands, and don't really mind the ticks, quirks and flaws as I keep them well maintained and this seems to lessen problems at least for me.

Posted by Monte L Fullmer (Member # 2797) on 02-04-2009, 08:42 PM:

Woo..let's dig up a 4 year old dead end thread, breathe life into it and kick it around some more... [Roll Eyes]

................................................................

FYI - I got 8 Mil units that runs pretty steady - no problems with them outside of main seal replacements on a couple of them.

..but TONS better than those POS PR-1060's.

Don't know anything about the Apogee, yet don't want to know about them either..

-Monte

Posted by Mark Gulbrandsen (Member # 72) on 02-04-2009, 10:29 PM:

quote:
Don't know anything about the Apogee,

You mean the Crapogee!

Ron, I have far less trouble with Christie P-35GP's then I do any other machine. The DP-70 is the next most reliable for me.

Anyway Paul... make sure that your lateral guide roller in the trap is not frozen open....

Mark

Posted by James Westbrook (Member # 3690) on 02-05-2009, 02:11 AM:

Paul or Eric?

Posted by Mark Gulbrandsen (Member # 72) on 02-05-2009, 08:51 AM:

Ha! You're right... Eric! LOL

Posted by Monte L Fullmer (Member # 2797) on 02-05-2009, 01:06 PM:

Come to think of it - there is a couple of occurance with the Mils that I was aware of: is the adjustment for the sliding Century gate - how far does it need to be forward when it locks into place.

Two machines had their band tension setting all the way to "5" and the picture was still not fully steady.

I had to loosen the two bevel allen screws that locks this assembly in place and slide the assembly forward about 1/16" to get more tension on the bands.

With this, it cured my image problem and allowed me to get my tension settings down to "1" - where it really supposed to be for miminal band wear.

Only thing that really bugs me about the Mil is the discontuning of the larger pad roller grab knobs that are on the earlier "XL" units.

Why did STRONG put shorter grab knobs on the pad roller arms (course, why does STRONG do what they do anywhos when taking a good thing and 'trying to make it better when it was good in the first place') ???

-Monte

Posted by Tony Bandiera Jr (Member # 2365) on 02-05-2009, 02:29 PM:

quote: Monte L Fullmer
Why did STRONG put shorter grab knobs on the pad roller arms (course, why does STRONG do what they do anywhos when taking a good thing and 'trying to make it better when it was good in the first place') ???

Because regrettably it seems to be their standard mode of operation, let's save a few cents on each unit by cutting corners on anything possible.

With the price of this equipment, such stupid decisions are annoying. I realize if they had production runs in the hundred thousand units, such a cost savings could be substantial. But with the limited runs it would seem more costly to re-tool or modify than any possible savings.

Prime example: late-model switchers.

The early runs had comprehensive LED indicators on the outer case to show full status of internal boards, fuses, etc. They were (Green: 20vdc, Vin, Fuse, GO) and (Red: Temp, Vin, Module, Strike, Ripple) Very handy to help diagnose any problems.

Now we're down to just 4 LEDs (Green: Vin and GO) and (Red: Temp and Module)....and yet, if you open the unit up the PCB still has the spaces for ALL of the LEDs and the related support parts.

I bet it cost MORE to re-tool the sheet metal top than it would have to keep the LEDs.

And the hideous cast framing handle on the PR-1014's, etc...that was brought about as they had changed the sealing on the framing knob shaft (which, except for drive-ins with an upward tilt, was NEVER a leak issue) making it very hard to turn. I would bet the cast knob cost a LOT more in R&D (or maybe not since it looks like it was made in some hack's garage) than the phenolic knobs (which they still use on the non-op side.)

All the machines I have installed, I replace that cast knob with the phenolic one, and I cut the spring on the shaft seal to reduce the tension, and I still have no leak or other issues.

Posted by Steve Guttag (Member # 268) on 02-05-2009, 02:43 PM:

quote: Monte L Fullmer
Why did STRONG put shorter grab knobs on the pad roller arms

Because the longer ones would catch some lenses when the turret rotated (I think the pad roller had to be open to catch the lens.

While it is easy to jump on Strong...they DID do positive things for the equipment too.

Steve

Posted by Eric Robinson (Member # 2966) on 02-05-2009, 03:54 PM:

quote: Eric Robinson
Lateral guide rollers inner and outer are perfect.

ie. not frozen open. Inner lateral guide roller springs back and forth.

I might check into Montes idea of moving the entire gate closer to the trap. I wonder if there is some mechanical spec for this? One tricky part about this type of adjustment is making sure the gate and trap are perfectly aligned horizontally so that the foucus is even from top to bottom.

Posted by Mark Gulbrandsen (Member # 72) on 02-05-2009, 07:03 PM:

Might the curved runner be worn or the gate bands be too loose??? Have you tried another set of gate bands or the runner off another machine?

Mark

Posted by Ken Lackner (Member # 1002) on 02-05-2009, 07:15 PM:

Off topic:

quote: Tony Bandiera Jr
And the hideous cast framing handle on the PR-1014's, etc...that was brought about as they had changed the sealing on the framing knob shaft (which, except for drive-ins with an upward tilt, was NEVER a leak issue) making it very hard to turn. I would bet the cast knob cost a LOT more in R&D (or maybe not since it looks like it was made in some hack's garage) than the phenolic knobs (which they still use on the non-op side.)

HUH??? Are you talking about the gray handle that was was introduced on the Millenium (or very late 1060's that are almost Melleniums except for the gate and electronics in the turret)? How is that hideous? It makes it much much easier to rotate the shaft. Anywho, I thought it was just a direct replacement for the black knob and either can still be ordered.

Posted by Richard Hamilton (Member # 321) on 02-05-2009, 08:13 PM:

quote: Ken Lackner
It makes it much much easier to rotate the shaft.

Why do you need to?

Posted by Ken Lackner (Member # 1002) on 02-05-2009, 08:38 PM:

When I do PM, I frame the intermittent all the way down so I can see the oil flow coming out of the funnel drip tube.

[Big Grin]

As for hideous, well, I guess it's a matter of personal preference, but I think the new handle looks much better than the old knob.

Posted by Tony Bandiera Jr (Member # 2365) on 02-05-2009, 09:18 PM:

Off-off topic: [Big Grin]

quote: Ken Lackner
HUH??? Are you talking about the gray handle that was was introduced on the Millenium (or very late 1060's that are almost Melleniums except for the gate and electronics in the turret)? How is that hideous? It makes it much much easier to rotate the shaft. Anywho, I thought it was just a direct replacement for the black knob and either can still be ordered.

Yes, I am talking about the gray handle, it looks like a cheap piece of shit that was molded by a 2 year-old, if Strong hadn't fucked with the framing shaft design in the first place you wouldn't need the leverage of that piece of crap casting, and yes you can still order the original knob, which is what I do for all the new installs.

Oh, and it has another drawback: in certain positions it interferes with the opening/closing of the door.

quote: Ken Lackner
As for hideous, well, I guess it's a matter of personal preference, but I think the new handle looks much better than the old knob.

Then the last dozen installs I've done the clients all noticed it before I changed it out and they ALL agreed it was hideous and very cheap looking, which is too bad, since as I have admitted in a few other posts, Strong DID make the XL castings much nicer than the older ones.

I was gonna make a wise-ass comment to Richard's post but I'm gonna be nice. [evil]

Posted by Jeremy Weigel (Member # 4208) on 02-06-2009, 01:16 AM:

I had Millenniums attached to Super Highlight 2 (1999) consoles and found that vibration from the front blower would cause shaking of the image. As a quick fix I jammed a cardboard poster tube between the wall the blower to lessen the amount of vibration until I had a chance to dismount and clean the blower fins.

Posted by Monte L Fullmer (Member # 2797) on 02-06-2009, 02:55 AM:

My other bug about the Mils, yet this is a small bug: Being that they extended the main case to handle the new turret, you can tell that the upper sprocket assembly boss, having being raised, was trimmed down to fit within this new case.

That's okey, but with this sprocket being higher than a standard "XL" unit, the upper loop, if being slightly made too big, the film - when entering the trap, rubs hard against the top corner of the trap bands and can wear that part of the band down in no time.

I know they couldn't do drastic redesigning of the case to keep the classic vertical shaft transmission intact, but wish, since they moved the sprocket upwards, is to move it forwards as well so the upper loop can be made correctly and allow the film to enter into the trap area underneath that contact point mention above....like how the P35GPS units are designed. Now that's some space between sprocket and trap that is present there.

Yea, the "T" handle framer is something else...yet on the backside is the classic black "FRAME" knob....

-Monte

Posted by Steve Guttag (Member # 268) on 02-06-2009, 06:29 AM:

Tony...the extra friction on the framing came from when they sealed up the INTERMITTENT CAM to the frame...that red O-ring...not the framing shaft itself.

Steve

Posted by John Walsh (Member # 168) on 02-06-2009, 06:55 AM:

I tend to agree with Tony generally; the money spent on reducing the cost to manufacture seems misplaced, and for some items (not all I admit) I think customers would be willing to pay the few extra dollars.

For example, you would think 'automatic' safety features would be desired with today's unattended projectors. Yet they removed the feed sprocket film stripper (I notice with amusement that the CNC machine still runs a tap through the holes- one of which is cut in half.) On both the Centurys and Millenums, the fire safety shutter has been removed.

Posted by Mark Gulbrandsen (Member # 72) on 02-06-2009, 08:18 AM:

quote: Steve Guttag
the extra friction on the framing came from when they sealed up the INTERMITTENT CAM to the frame...that red O-ring...not the framing shaft itself.

I agree for the most part too. I don't have a problem with the T framing knob though. Strong has done way too many stupid things to even begin to offset the few good things they have done. Probably the best good thing they have done is to improve the main casting... beyond that there simply isn't much improvement to mention. The intermittents are way inferior to older Simplex manufactured movements anad thats the critical basis of any projector. The extra friction on the framing shaft is simply not needed to seal in static oil and is way too high, so much so that I have seen countless "O" rings extruded right out from under the back washer thats supposed to keep it in place... in fact an "O" ring is to be in a groove to function properly... so where's the groove... smart techs will continue to use the flat rubber washers from Wolk and install a lighter tension spring or cut off a couple of turns as Tony does. The flat washers seal just fine and I also agree on spending much on engineering/tooling to save basically nothing... something they've repeatedly done over the years.

Another good example.. take a look at the fine balance and dynamics and reliability of an old "Strong Toledo" manufactured Super Trooper and compare it to the pile of crap they been calling a Super Trooper for the last 15 years. What a piece of junk it is.

Mark

Posted by Tony Bandiera Jr (Member # 2365) on 02-06-2009, 02:23 PM:

quote: Steve Guttag
Tony...the extra friction on the framing came from when they sealed up the INTERMITTENT CAM to the frame...that red O-ring...not the framing shaft itself.

Steve

True, but that added friction from the intermittent cam seal actually makes the framing mechanism have a better feel, and the friction from the cam seal is slight compared to that from the framing shaft. So they score one point for the cam seal, but lose two for the shaft seal and the shit handle. [thumbsdown]

quote:
<snip>The intermittents are way inferior to older Simplex manufactured movements anad thats the critical basis of any projector. The extra friction on the framing shaft is simply not needed to seal in static oil and is way too high, so much so that I have seen countless "O" rings extruded right out from under the back washer thats supposed to keep it in place... in fact an "O" ring is to be in a groove to function properly... so where's the groove... smart techs will continue to use the flat rubber washers from Wolk and install a lighter tension spring or cut off a couple of turns as Tony does. The flat washers seal just fine and I also agree on spending much on engineering/tooling to save basically nothing... something they've repeatedly done over the years.

Oh yeah, I had forgotten how crappy the intermittents are..and the factory rebuild service is worse. I sent one in for rebuild, it came back with a lot of slop in the flywheel shaft, a NON-VKF sprocket, and a paint job that looked like it was done with a steel broom. That insult cost over $1,100.00 and it was shit. I'll try to take a pic of it. I now rebuild them myself for a lot less money and get far better results.

Exactly on the o-ring issues..again, I wonder who the hell makes these stupid decisions there, trying to solve a problem that doesn't exist in the first place.

quote: Mark Gulbrandsen
Another good example.. take a look at the fine balance and dynamics and reliability of an old "Strong Toledo" manufactured Super Trooper and compare it to the pile of crap they been calling a Super Trooper for the last 15 years. What a piece of junk it is.

Thanks for the reminder..I had worked with both styles at Knott's Berry Farm and for sure the new ones sucked big time. I almost threw one of the new ones off the roof by Reflection Lake during a fireworks show.

Posted by Louis Bornwasser (Member # 3063) on 02-06-2009, 07:54 PM:

Sounds like some form of ballast weight is in order?? Louis

Posted by Tony Bandiera Jr (Member # 2365) on 02-06-2009, 07:57 PM:

Louis, I wish, but the poor balance of that unit would make for a few precisely weighted and placed weights, and it still would have been crap. [Smile]

Posted by Mark Gulbrandsen (Member # 72) on 02-06-2009, 08:44 PM:

quote: Louis Bornwasser
Sounds like some form of ballast weight is in order?? Louis

Exactly Louis! I have done just that.

quote: Tony Bandiera Jr
I almost threw one of the new ones off the roof by Reflection Lake during a fireworks show.

I gave them the name Stupid Trooper and I think its very fitting. Sometime I'll have to tell you the Stupid Trooper DC ignitor story... another un-needed solution that also didn't fix the problem it was supposed to.

Mark

Posted by Eric Robinson (Member # 2966) on 02-07-2009, 12:17 AM:

quote: Tony Bandiera Jr
Yes, I am talking about the gray handle, it looks like a cheap piece of shit that was molded by a 2 year-old

That's pretty f*(&%in funny.

This is what happens to me. I start a movie, I think it may need a slight adjustment. I attempt to move the framing T handle slowly, I gradually apply more and more pressure until all the sudden the whole damn picture jumps when I finally get it to turn. So much for trying to be subtle.

Thanks for the tip Mark, I'll try swapping the gate and trap from another machine. Honestly though I can feel the whole turret vibrating from the vibration of the motor. Is there some simple way to determine if the film is shaking or if the lens is shaking?

Posted by Tony Bandiera Jr (Member # 2365) on 02-07-2009, 12:31 AM:

quote: Mark Gulbrandsen
I gave them the name Stupid Trooper and I think its very fitting. Sometime I'll have to tell you the Stupid Trooper DC ignitor story... another un-needed solution that also didn't fix the problem it was supposed to.

Is that by chance the same ignitor they use in the new consoles and lamphouses? What a piece of crap..I got bit by one once...

quote: Eric Robinson
I attempt to move the framing T handle slowly, I gradually apply more and more pressure until all the sudden the whole damn picture jumps when I finally get it to turn. So much for trying to be subtle.

Yep, that's another reason I hate that design. As I'd mentioned (and Mark elaborated on) you can cut a few coils off the spring on the framing shaft to get rid of the excess tension, then put the flat rubber washers on (you can find ones that fit at a good hardware store actually) and chuck that cast junk in the trash. Then either take the good phenolic knob off the non-op side or order one from Strong.

It's not hard to do but is a bit time consuming, but you'll feel better and your projector won't look like a toy anymore. [Smile]

Posted by Steve Guttag (Member # 268) on 02-07-2009, 08:07 AM:

John,

As for the missing stripper...yup...ever since they accommodated the Century turret on the PR-1060, they raised the upper feed and stripped the stripper! However, the reason for the milled place and tapped holes is that the upper-feed assemby is the same as the one used on the PR-1014, PR-1020 and PR-1030. As such, the make it as they always have, and then add an additional process for a turret machine by cutting the top off.

As for fire shutters...they are not available on the Simplex turret machines but have been available for Centurys, and Simplex single lens machines. In fact, they are standard on the PR-1020/1030 studio machines. Most exhibitors though would rip them out if they came standard on cinema machines...all it takes is one moron to pinch the fire shutter putting the trap back in and they'd start losing shows. To this day, we have some customers with them and some with out and they are maintained if they are in (and the customer is aware of them, their purpose and has people that know how to not damage them).

Steve

Posted by Tony Bandiera Jr (Member # 2365) on 02-07-2009, 02:15 PM:

quote: Eric Robinson
Honestly though I can feel the whole turret vibrating from the vibration of the motor.

Just picked up on this note...

You need to check the motor pulley for loose setscrews, the belt for any tooth damage or crud build up. Also check the flywheel to see if it has worked loose.

Most likely you'll find one of the pulley setscrews has backed out. Happened to me on one machine.

Posted by Steve Guttag (Member # 268) on 02-07-2009, 02:35 PM:

Wanna see if it is the motor...disconnect it from the projector/soundhead and just run it with its flywheel...any vibration?

The shutter is fastest spinning thing in the projector...if it is out of balance, it will cause a projector to shake. Take the shutter blade off and see if the shake goes away.

Steve

Posted by Tony Bandiera Jr (Member # 2365) on 02-07-2009, 02:43 PM:

Good one, Steve, yeah the shutter blade is another possibility, especially of the hand dowser and Zipper were left open with the lamp on and the machine stopped..that'll warp a blade big time.

Posted by Eric Robinson (Member # 2966) on 02-08-2009, 01:00 AM:

I did run the motor without belts and it seemed fine. I ran the motor with one belt driving the 5 Star lower feed sprocket, seemed fine. This projector did have a notable oil leak at the bottom center of the gear cover which caused a huge greasy mess in the belt compartment. I replaced the belts, and wiped everything down. It is possible; however, that some of the pulley teeth are still jammed with grease and grime. I'll check the pulley teeth and the flywheel screws. The shutter blade could be a culprit as well, the employees were white screening it a while back by manually turning the lamp switch on a minute before the show, (repeatedly), because they had trouble striking the bulb at the beginning of a show, because the bulb was nearly dead and they were too dumb to put a new one in.

Thanks for all the tips!

Posted by Monte L Fullmer (Member # 2797) on 02-08-2009, 02:25 AM:

wobbly shutter bearings?

Posted by Tony Bandiera Jr (Member # 2365) on 02-08-2009, 04:05 PM:

quote: Monte L Fullmer
wobbly shutter bearings?

Not likely. They don't wear that badly, never seen any go bad really, except for the small one in the gear compartment end, it would freeze or get sticky and wear the end of the shutter shaft so the shaft spins in the bearing. When replacing it, I would use a file and put a few fine scores lengthwise on the shaft end so it would bite into the new bearing without slipping.

On a related note, if a Simplex ever gets travel ghost on both the top AND bottom of light text, that means the spring washer under the drive gear in the shutter assembly is shot. If you watch closely with the machine running you can see the shutter shaft bouncing in and out. The reason the double ghosting appears is because the bouncing makes the shutter timing jump from early to late. I rebuild those drives and have a few available on a repair-exchange basis.

quote: Eric Robinson
The shutter blade could be a culprit as well, the employees were white screening it a while back by manually turning the lamp switch on a minute before the show, (repeatedly), because they had trouble striking the bulb at the beginning of a show, because the bulb was nearly dead and they were too dumb to put a new one in.

I think that's the problem then..bet one or more of the shutter blades is warped. Take off the shutter cover and turn the machine over by hand and see if any of the blades are bent, warped or burned. If so, get a new shutter.

Posted by Monte L Fullmer (Member # 2797) on 02-08-2009, 04:57 PM:

On the shutters: Knowing that they are made of cast potmetal and with Tony's discussion on warped or bent blades, even on a new shutter, the assembly doesn't rotate in a smooth cone: it looks like the tips of the blades are outside of this cone when the assembly rotates.

Thus, don't even try to bend those blade tips back into this cone for you'll bust them quite easily - an unfortunate learning experience for me thinking of the same in a single screen changeover house and had no spare shutter. Thus, I had ghosting on that one machine until I got a new shutter.

-Monte

Posted by Tony Bandiera Jr (Member # 2365) on 02-09-2009, 01:34 AM:

Monte

You're right about how easy it is to bust those shutter blades..but I was able to very carefully bend one back into place by heating it up (again carefully) with a propane torch. (Hank Hill would've been proud.)

But it is always better to replace them..but beware that in short throw applications that the cutouts in the blades may not be cut deep enough,,there should be no more that about 2-3mm of a "lip" at the hub. So far all the new blades from our friends at Strong haven't been cut deep enough.

Posted by Eric Robinson (Member # 2966) on 02-11-2009, 03:07 PM:

I just got a chance to look at this again. I ran the motor with no film and noted significant turret vibration. After I turned the motor off I noticed the turret still had vibration. I then proceeded to shut off each fan. The exhaust fan mounted on the top for this Highlight II was the culprit. I tried running some test film with and without the exhaust fan running and the horizontal shake disappeared when the fan was off. Time to order new parts [Roll Eyes]

Posted by Monte L Fullmer (Member # 2797) on 02-11-2009, 08:29 PM:

.or clean the blower wheel. You can also take it apart, take the wheel off the motor and see if you can rebalance it.

Been there a few times....

BUT, if the motor - being a shaded pole with tired OILITE bearings(gag! ..have you been oiling these bearings, or is the motor completely sealed?) and an out of balance blower wheel can be the effect of the vibration. Then it's definitely time to replace .. the motor..

Bit easier than ordering parts... - Monte

Posted by Ken Lackner (Member # 1002) on 03-09-2009, 10:31 AM:

quote:
And the hideous cast framing handle on the PR-1014's, etc...that was brought about as they had changed the sealing on the framing knob shaft...making it very hard to turn.

quote: Steve Guttag
The extra friction on the framing came from when they sealed up the INTERMITTENT CAM to the frame...that red O-ring...not the framing shaft itself.

What makes it much harder to adjust the framing on some projectors compared to others of the same vintage? I'm talking ridiculously hard, even with the t-handle.

[ 03-09-2009, 12:25 PM: Message edited by: Ken Lackner ]

Posted by Monte L Fullmer (Member # 2797) on 03-09-2009, 02:32 PM:

Prob why they went to the "T" handle - to give you better leverage to rotate that shaft instead of just the knob.

-Monte

Posted by Ken Lackner (Member # 1002) on 03-09-2009, 05:16 PM:

I realize that. What I'm asking is why some projectors are harder to turn than others. All the projectors in question are of the same model (Millennium), same vintage, all with t-handles. If they have the t-handle, they should be pretty easy to rotate the framing shaft, but I have a couple that are a bit harder, and I'm trying to figure out why.

Posted by Monte L Fullmer (Member # 2797) on 03-09-2009, 09:44 PM:

Wonder if you could adjust (or shim) those two springs that holds the framing cam assembly in place so the assembly can rotate a bit easier ... but not too easier to where the film tension wants to roll the assembly on its own and you'll be fighting framing all the time.

-Monte