Bolex Splicer Adjustment tips?

[souper8]

Hey Guys,
Does anyone have any experience adjusting Bolex splicers? Are there any guidelines when adjusting these units for perfect splices? I've heard so many great things about these unit so I picked one up. After proper adjustments, I'm going to be splicing away like mad.

Thanks

Cheers,
Souper8

[tom hardwick]

Isn't the Bolex splicer a cement splicer? Wince. I hate the fact that all cement splicers destroy at least one frame of your film, and many destroyed two. And I find the visual "line" formed by the overlapping frame to be disconcertingly obvious even at 24fps.

Go for a tape splicer good people, and never see your splices again. I use the Fuji which runs a roll of perforated tape and is therefore very economical. It's heavy, doesn't float around the workbench and makes invisible splices that can be undone at any time, with no lost frames.

tom.

[Mikko]

Tom, where can I get that Fuji's pre-perforated tape?
(I'm just ordering a new cement splicer, but for single-8 films I need some tape)

M

[tom hardwick]

That I can't say. Finding such things gets harder by the day and I stocked up when I found some in a photographic shop. The dealer thought he'd never get rid of it.

[souper8]

Tom,
Thanks for the reply. I thought that Bolex splices are really clean because of the beveled edges. The Bolex splice is supposed to be clean because they do not increase the thickness on splice compared to the film. Isn't it also a stronger bond comapared to tape?

Does anyone know how to adjust this Bolex Splicer? Please share your thoughts. Thanks

Regards,
souper8

[tom hardwick]

For tape splices email [email protected] and I'm sure he'll be able to offer help and advice.

You're right, the Bolex splicer bevels the film through the thickness of the film and application of the cement welds the two film ends togther. In theory this means the film is no thicker across the join but in practice it's very rarely so.

My tape splices have stood the test of time and have never come apart unintentionally. Cement splices have, and you can be sure it'll happen at the worst possible moment. Tape requires that the film ends that butt together are squeaky clean whereas (with the Bolex) when you're grinding through the film base this doesn't enter the equation.

So what adjustment is it that you feel is required? Remember the final test of the splice as regards perf pitch is to lay the spliced film across the location pins that was initially used for holding the uncut footage. If the splice neither shortens or lengthens the perf pitch, all should be OK.

Apart from the damaged frame, that is.

tom.