Want to Buy 135 Film Splicers

G'day folk,

Bit of an odd one but I've had luck here before - after a good 135 splicer(s) for a research project. Looking to splice both polyester and acetate bases so both ultrasonic and cement types are required, I am not wanting to do tape splices.

I am based in Australia and will be reaching out a few sources locally however I imagine this equipment is far more prevalent in the states. Something like the Metric Model 3001 would be ideal, if you have any other tips or sources please let me know.

TYA
C

I bet someone in California has a shed full of these

mshchem said:

I bet someone in California has a shed full of these

Click to expand...

I really hope so!

Sorry, I don't know of a single splicer ever made that will do both ultrasonic and cement film splicing.

Ultrasonic, as the name implies, required the use of a wave guide platen to direct the energy to fuse the polyester base and it cannot tolerate any contamination that film cement would leave after a splice.

In the USA, the Metric splicer was the main brand of ultrasonic splicer and working examples of these can still be found on Ebay for roughly $1K to $2K each. Be aware that if you have specific pitch requirements (i.e., negative @ .1886 inch or positive @ .1870 inch), then be sure you purchase the proper platen. Most typical splicers are set-up for positive pitch, as they were used to splice release prints for theatrical projection.

Other manufacturers of sonic splicers, such as HFC (Hollywood Film Company) DID make a mult-pitch platen that can be changed on the fly, but they are very rare to find these days, as most were just thrown out with the other motion picture lab equipment when the photochemical labs were scrapped in the late 1990's.

Cement film splicers are much easier to find, but again, were often set up for positive perforation splicing. Negative splicers are easier to find in the cement variety, as nitrate/acetate base motion picture lab work was active for over 100 years, whereas Polyester film was not widely in use (at least in non-release printing circumstances) for as long a period.

I would suggest a Meier/Hancock hot splicer with registration pins on BOTH sides of the platens, unless you are working with shrunken film or need to do both pos/neg assembly. The ones with pins only on one side can be used with either pitch, but it takes some knowledge and practice to use effectively.

Kino, I know that is why I am after multiple splicers (one for each type) sorry if that was not obvious. I am aware of the units on the Bay but those are far too expensive for this experimental project and I am not even sure it may work.

Thanks for the information on the hot splicer I shall look into them.

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