Vintage camera reviews, repairs and photography blog
Reviews of vintage film projectors
This post features probably the most classically vintage looking 8mm projector in my collection, the Bell & Howell model 606 H. It is a simple machine with manual threading, a 500W mains voltage lamp and a 15 – 20mm zoom lens, which was made in the early 1950s. Bell & Howell 606 H Pictures My Bell & Howell 606 H Projector I paid £19.99 to buy this projector in an auction on eBay. It was sold as working, although when […]
Read more
This post describes a new addition to my worryingly growing 8mm projector collection – the Bolex 18-5 Super 8 movie projector. My Bolex 18-5 Super Projector As with most of my vintage photo gear collection I bought this projector from eBay. It was advertised as being in good condition, but untested because it didn’t have a power lead and since the photos which accompanied the sale seemed to confirm that the unit looked in good condition, I bought it with […]
Read more
This article looks at the Eumig P8 automatic 8mm cine projector, which was one of the later models in the P8 range that Eumig produced in great quantities in the 1950s and 60s. My Eumig P8 automatic Projector I bought this projector for a few pounds from eBay primarily because it came with a collection of 8mm films rather than for the actual projector itself. When when I received the package however, I found the unit is actually both a […]
Read more
The Chinon Universal 8 cine projector was introduced in 1967 as a machine capable of showing both the standard 8mm home movie films which had been around for for many years, and the new Super 8 format film which was introduced a few years earlier in 1965. My Chinon Universal 8 projector I found this Chinon Universal 8 projector on eBay with a starting price of £1.99 and no bids against it. Because of the weight of projectors, the price […]
Read more
This post looks at the Elmo E-80 projector which is a standard 8 model made by Elmo, a very reputable manufacturer, in Japan in the early 1950s. Elmo E-80 Images My Elmo E-80 projector I bought this Elmo E-80 projector from eBay as an addition to my small (but worryingly growing) collection of movie projectors. It was sold as a working unit and it does power up and seems ok, but the two core mains lead supplied with it looks […]
Read more
This post is the first in a short series which looks at the Specto 500, a standard 8 cine projector which was made in the UK in the early 1950s. This part is an introduction to the projector with some pictures. Specto 500 Images My Specto 500 Projector I bought my Specto 500 projector from eBay because I want a vintage projector to show my collection of 8mm films with. Although I have various more modern projectors, mostly Eumig machines, […]
Read more
The Chinon C-300 is a budget, 8mm projector, capable of showing both standard 8 and super 8 films which was made in about 1976 and retailed in the UK by the Dixon’s high street store. Chinon C-300 Images My Chinon C-300 8mm Projector I acquired my Chinon C-300 from eBay when I first became interested in collecting 8mm cine films. I bought it because I wanted a projector which could play both Standard 8 and Super 8 films and which […]
Read more
The Eumig company produced many high quality, reliable cine projectors but probably their most famous model was the classic P8 unit. The model featured in this article, the Eumig P8m, was an upgrade to the original unit, and was probably made in the mid to late 1950s. Eumig P8m Images My Eumig P8m 8mm Silent projector I purchased my copy of the Eumig P8m, 8mm silent projector as an impulse buy from eBay. Although I have a Chinon C-300 projector […]
Read more
I’ve always been interested in photography, and over the last few years I’ve also become more interested in vintage photography, which was one of the reasons I started to collect vintage cameras and write this blog. When I was a child my Father was also a photographer and as well as pictures he used to take 8mm home movies of us all. Showing the movies was a family event even more keenly looked forward to than the evenings viewing the […]
Read more