Film-Tech Forum ARCHIVE: Tools in your cleaning kit?

This is topic Tools in your cleaning kit? in forum Film Handlers' Forum at Film-Tech Forum ARCHIVE.

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Posted by Dan Chilton (Member # 2288) on 01-02-2006, 05:14 PM:

I recently ran across a nice cleaning kit for power paint sprayers that happened to have a lot of useful tools for my projector. The kit included a firm bristle toothbrush, three sturdy metal pipe cleaners (small, medium, and large), a small metal pick, and a long handle brush with fine bristles (similar to the kind they use in movies - and real life, I suppose - to brush for fingerprints). Along with my cleaning rags, q-tips, and lense cleaner, I think they round out my projector cleaning kit quite well.

Out of curiosity, what do you guys have in your cleaning kit? Have you found a particular tool that works great to clean your machine? I'm not a fan of compressed air (too much airborne dust) or computer vacuums (too weak), but I find I can reach nearly every part with my new tool set. Is there something else you might recommed?

Posted by Dominic Espinosa (Member # 2122) on 01-02-2006, 05:42 PM:

Sounds like a pretty complete kit to me.

We keep a tooth brush and shop rag next to every projector.
Shop rag is good for cleaning gate and trap, latteral guides and anything else that needs wiping.
Tooth brush is for cleaning out the intermittent shoe and cleaning the sprockets. There's some people *cough*aaron*cough* whom don't encourage the use of tooth brushes but I've never had a problem so long as you turn the projector over by hand as opposed to running the motor.

We have a small shop vac, a small tool kit, some multifold towels, lens wipes, swabs, and various cleaning chemicals and some FilmGuard and projector oil.
That's our basic cleaning kit.

The weekly cleaning is the film path, the projector and soundhead castings, the platter decks, lamp house, etc.
We vacuum, wipe, or blow it clean.

Posted by John Hawkinson (Member # 1135) on 01-03-2006, 12:39 AM:

I'm a believer in using compressed air for blowing off sound optics (analog and digital), to avoid having to touch them physically as part of regular cleaning (it's no substitute for cleaning with a brush/rag, of course, and you should clean with air first before other methods since it blows dirt around). But there's considerable difference of opinion on this subject, and there are lots of old threads about it (and considerable debate on the merits of compressors vs. canned air, and requirements for filtration of air if it comes from a compressor, etc. Also debate about the pressure: we use 10psi air; OSHA limits blow guns to 30psi, and that's way too much for careful cleaning, IMO.).

I do have a question, though. We recently upgraded our Century R3 soundheads to CE STRD-30C red LED readers. These readers have some exposed circuit boards in the film compartment, and I wonder about the long term impact of dirt and dust (and oil!) on those PCBs. Any comments? (I expect that compressed air is the only practical way to clean such a PCB...)

--jhawk