slide projector recommendations?

ericdan · May 20, 2020

With some extra time on my hand recently, I mounted all my un-mounted slide film.
I would now like to project them and have a few questions:

any recommendations for a good slide projector?
how long can I view images? do they get hot or fade?
do I need a special canvas to project onto?

Thanks!

Lee Rust · May 20, 2020

I don't know what's generally available in Japan, but Kodak Carousels are plentiful, durable, work very nicely, can still be repaired and the trays are easy to find. I got my pair from a thrift shop and an estate sale, but there's always eBay. I don't know if there's a limit to how long you can leave an image up, but there's an air-cooling system blowing on the slide, so it's several minutes at least. Look for machine from the late 70's onward because these will have the modern halogen bulbs.

The professional-grade models are called Ektagraphics and they are supposedly more durable than the consumer-grade Carousels, but the differences seem slight. Ektagraphics might tend to have suffered more from rugged institutional use while Carousels have probably spent most of the last 20-40 years in a closet. I have one of each type and an important difference is that the Ektagraphic lens can be taken apart for cleaning while the Carousel lens is permanently glued together. As far as I know, the lenses are all interchangeable and for details there's plenty of info online from Kodak.

For viewing, any flat matte-white wall surface will do, but if you want to look for a portable projection screen, I like the glass-bead type better than the lenticular ones.

JensH · May 20, 2020

Hi,

two years ago, when they were very cheap here in Germany, I found two Zeiss-Ikon Royal AF selektiv.
One with the high end Carl Zeiss P-Sonnar 2.5/90mm, the other one with a Super Talon 2.8/60mm.
While the 60mm is a good lens, the P-Sonnar is stunning!
The only downside is that they are not as quiet as a Leica Pradovit RT...

Best
Jens

bdial · May 20, 2020

Most modern projectors have fans and a heat-absorbing glass to protect the slide from heat, but it will still get hot. If you keep viewing times less than a minute or so, you should be fine.
A white wall or cloth will work fine for projecting onto. A projection screen will make it look brighter, if you can find one.

guangong · May 20, 2020

As for myself, while I have a Leitz Pradovit, I have several Leitz manual projectors. Also a Leitz Prado 500 and Linhof for 66 and 67. While not as convenient as all automatic, I am assured that they will be working as long as I am.
If easily repairable as claimed, today I would most likely go with Kodak for automatic projector.
When I was in college, automatic slide presentation meant that lecturer held a little cricket in hand. When he pressed cricket, click alerted projectionist to advance slide.

Alan Edward Klein · May 20, 2020

Kodak comes in 80 and I think 120 slide trays that will operate in the carousels. But I believe the larger trays jam more often. I always used the 80 slide trays.

runswithsizzers · May 20, 2020

I have an old Kodak Carousel 750H which is pretty easy to use with either trays (80 and 140) or an optional stack loader which will accept about 40 slides without needing trays. There is a good selection of lenses available, should your projection distance require something out of the ordinary.

But be advised, some of the plastic gears and parts in these old Kodak Carousels have decomposed over time, and may need replacement. So far, I have been able to find the parts I needed (focus pinion gear, motor worm gear, and spur gear). In the case of the focus pinion gear, someone is manufacturing that part new from improved material, compared to the Kodak OEM part. Also be advised that installing the parts requires a fair amount of time and patience. In the US there are several people who will work on slide projectors, but due to the weight of them, shipping is costly.

Good luck in your search!

Chan Tran · May 20, 2020

Alan Edward Klein said:
Kodak comes in 80 and I think 120 slide trays that will operate in the carousels. But I believe the larger trays jam more often. I always used the 80 slide trays.

They have 140 slide tray and 80 slide tray. I always used the 140 but I found it's much better to use the 80. There is really no need for the high capacity.

Chan Tran · May 20, 2020

The Carousel and Ektagraphic are good projectors and can be bought cheap. The EktaPro is really good but even used price is quite high.

MattKing · May 20, 2020

Screens designed for video projection are also good, but sometimes come with awkward aspect ratios.
I don't know what the market in Japan is/was like, but the Kodak options are an excellent choice here.
A really good accessory is a Kodak stack loader - makes it easy to project slides that have not been placed into the trays yet.

Sirius Glass · May 20, 2020

When I sold cameras, I found that the Kodak Carousel buyers never came back with complaints. Because the Kodak Carousels use gravity to lower the slides, slide do not get jammed in the mechanism. If there is a problem, press and hold the advance button, rotate and lift the carousel. Card board slides just do not get damaged while other brand slide projector can damage both the cardboard and the slide.

gordrob · May 20, 2020

A Kodak Carousel Projector and a stack loader are your best bet for viewing and culling slides. There is no need to spend time loading carousels or any other type of trays. All you need to do is to make sure the slides are orientated properly and then you can view up to about 40 slides at a time in the stack loader. If you want to pull a slide after viewing all you have to do is to grab it as the loader ejects its. No fighting with the slide trying to grab it in the carousel. I just went through this process of culling old slides and it took hours to go through them rather than days having to load them into carousels first before viewing.

AndyH · May 20, 2020

Alan Edward Klein said:
Kodak comes in 80 and I think 120 slide trays that will operate in the carousels. But I believe the larger trays jam more often. I always used the 80 slide trays.

I used to use these in training workshops and presentations. The larger trays held 140 slides, which I needed for some presentations to avoid the need to change trays mid-presentation. And yes, they REALLY jammed frequently, especially when you left the slides up for too long.

In making a quick run through eBay, I was not surprised to see that these are very cheap now, even the higher end models. Buying four or five trays may cost more than it would cost to get a functioning projector.

Andy

John Koehrer · May 20, 2020

140 & 80's were the more common there was also the Ektagraphic 80 tray.
The stack loader was pretty slick as was said above, the clips were available in storage boxes with
16 clips if you didn't want to deal with trays.

ericdan · May 20, 2020

Thanks for all the info guys!
On Japanese auctions I see a lot of Minolta Mini35 projectors. On German eBay I see a lot of Leitz Prados. The prados are 240volt and I’m not sure if I can convert that to use in Japan.
Kodak Carousel Looks nice. I just need to figure out what lens I need with it. There are so ma y different models of it it seems.
I’m planning to view from about 5-6 feet distance.

BAC1967 · May 20, 2020

I have a Minolta Mini 35, it’s nice if you’re limited for space but not the brightest image. Not having a carousel or tray it’s tedious if you want to look at more than a few slides.

I recently picked up a Rollei P350 A at an estate sale for really cheap. It’s a nicely built projector, they have a few better models in the same line that have more features. I think one model even has auto focus.

Minolta Mini 35 Projector by Bryan Chernick, on Flickr

ericdan · May 21, 2020

Found a Leica P150 here. Are those similar to the Kodak ones?
https://page.auctions.yahoo.co.jp/jp/auction/h444997765

And a Kodak Carousel S-AV 2050
https://page.auctions.yahoo.co.jp/jp/auction/476121235

ruilourosa · May 21, 2020

ektapro are really the best... i have 5, models that come with built in timer are more interesting to use as they can make autonomous presentations...

for MF hasselblads are very good but i just have money for a rollei av,

for lenses i have pc for all ektapros

AgX · May 21, 2020

ericdan said:
Thanks for all the info guys!
On German eBay I see a lot of Leitz Prados. The Prados are 240volt and I’m not sure if I can convert that to use in Japan.

In Germany there never was 240V.
The Prados in Germany ran on 220V.

ericdan · May 21, 2020

AgX said:
In Germany there never was 240V.
The Prados in Germany ran on 220V.

Yes. Sorry it’s been 20 years for me.
Anyhow, can I convert that somehow?

AgX · May 21, 2020

It depends.
With a projector that has no further electrics but just the lamp, running on the mains voltage, the most simple thing to do would be to exchange the lamp for one apt for the new mains voltage. If such lamp is available. Only thing to consider would be the new current might being an overload on the wiring. As in turning a 230V device into a 120V one.

Another approach is to use a variac, (variable transformer), to adjust the mains voltage to the need of the projector.

Or just to keep everything as is. As with a 10% difference in mains voltage. But as projector lamps typically are already overrated, a heightening of the feed voltage that low already can drastically reduce lamp life. But with cheap projectors availabe just for a spare lamp, that might be bearable.

runswithsizzers · May 21, 2020

ericdan said:
Thanks for all the info guys!
On Japanese auctions I see a lot of Minolta Mini35 projectors. On German eBay I see a lot of Leitz Prados. The prados are 240volt and I’m not sure if I can convert that to use in Japan.
Kodak Carousel Looks nice. I just need to figure out what lens I need with it. There are so ma y different models of it it seems.
I’m planning to view from about 5-6 feet distance.

This Kodak chart gives some recommended lens length vs. screen size vs. viewing distance numbers: https://resources.kodak.com/support/pdf/en/manuals/slideProj/ChoosingALensChart.pdf

Chan Tran · May 21, 2020

John Koehrer said:
140 & 80's were the more common there was also the Ektagraphic 80 tray.
The stack loader was pretty slick as was said above, the clips were available in storage boxes with
16 clips if you didn't want to deal with trays.

I had this box with 16 clips and when I moved from the house I never found it. The box is full of my best slides. All the slides I have left are the ones not as good that I kept them in cardboard boxes.

Alan Edward Klein · May 21, 2020

ericdan said:
Thanks for all the info guys!
On Japanese auctions I see a lot of Minolta Mini35 projectors. On German eBay I see a lot of Leitz Prados. The prados are 240volt and I’m not sure if I can convert that to use in Japan.
Kodak Carousel Looks nice. I just need to figure out what lens I need with it. There are so ma y different models of it it seems.
I’m planning to view from about 5-6 feet distance.

There are zoom lenses that control the size and can be adjusted from different distances from the screen. That might be a better bet than buying a fixed lense where the size of the display is dependent on the distance from the screen. There's also quality differences among lenses. Check the web for charts to calculate which lens give different sizes and quality comparisons.

Tom Taylor · May 21, 2020

For 35mm I have the Kodak Ektagraphic III AMT with Kodak Ektapro Select Zoom lens;
For 645/6x6 a Rollei 66 AV with Heidosmat lens;
For 6x7 a Cabin Procabin 67-Z with Cabin lens.
They still make projection screens and they are relatively inexpensive new. I bought a Picture King new for $125 I think and they are priced at $200 now.

The Kodak and Rollei are automatic with auto-focus and remote control. The Cabin is manual. Before buying the Rollei I looked for years for the 645 insert for the Cabin but never found one either new or used and bit the bullet for the Rollei. I'm now glad I did because the auto and remote control allows you to sit anywhere or even lay down without having to insert the slide or focus the lens.

Thomas

slide projector recommendations?

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