common problems and defects I found in buying a used beaulieu 4008.
is it dead? needs new battery, still dead? try a lube job, I bought a few dead beaulieus and after installing a new battery and it still dident work, a lube job would did the trick!
is it still dead? the trigger switch wears out and has to be rebuilt but not replaced, the springs dont make contact, a tiny bend will make it reach the point of contact, try a cable release on the stop release insert, if it works from there and not the trigger its the trigger switch.
Ha! this one is for Justin lovell
is the framing off? inside the camera theres two screws to adjust the framing, one on top and one on the left, if it dosent hold framing after adjusting take a close look at the bracket that holds the screw on the left, theres two brass rivots that hold a pressure plate in place (backside) thus holds the viewer in exact position, these brass rivots wear out and break off and cause the off set viewing, remove the brass rivoits and replace with two tiny screws with nuts, the screws should be inserted from the inside out so it dosent hit anything, if the screws are a bit long file it down and adjust viewer! there should not be any black over lapping in the viewer. this should solve the problem!
Seeing milky through the viewer? well this is another problem, all the elements need to be cleaned, start with the reflex glass, remove clean and replace if its still milky you have to clean the elements inside the viewer, the viewer tube has to be removed, once out theres two screws on the side of the tube mark position then remove the screws one at a time inside the barrel theres a couple of elements remove the first one clean it and set it down in the same order in whice it was removed, move on to the next one, clean and reinstall! you should have a very clean & clear viewer! 100% I did it and its like new!
Reflex glass problems, reflex glass are glued together and sometimes over age it comes apart of the black paint flakes off, no you cant glue it or paint it, needs to be replaced! buy another camera for parts like I do!
Is your internal light meter not working correct? well again the sensor is glued to the reflex glass and in many cases I seen it fall off due to age, a little crazy glue will do the trick but beware! dont put more then what you need or you will crazy glue the internals of the camera! you can live with out this featuer anyways!
Did you spend money on film and processing plus transfers to get back a film that is distorted? well guess what? your internal gels caused the problem! time to remove them! remove the two screws on the gate, remove the gate and pull out the brass frame holding the gels, at this point you can cut out new ones and replace or just toss the gels and the brass frame in the trash and go with external filters, five minute job!
does your beaulieu sounds like its winding very loud? lube it and it will be smooth and quite, but not 100% you will notice the diffrence
missing the eye cup on your viewer? well I bought one for $5.00 at the camera store, it was for a nikon, fits perfect!
Crystal sync:
yes the beaulieu 4008 has a rotory encoder installed from factory, if you remove the cover you will see the wheel, this is used for a flash, all you need now is a closed loop pic chip, it cost $99.00 the flash contact is two wires and its connected to the a & b encoder input of the pic chip, all you have to do now is connect the two motor wires into the chip and out to the camera, program the chip to run at 1440 rpms and you have crystal sync! Why pay $550.00? if you dont think you can program a pic chip buy a tobin sync for a bolex 1:1, remove the beaulieu internal motor and couple the tobin sync box to the slot on the side of the camera where the pilotone generator would go and you have crystal sync! to buy a crystal sync pic chip go to http://www.gamatronics.com they have a forum loaded with help encluding people that work for NASA, yes NASA is using this pic chip too! http://www.gamatronics.com
please note that the beaulieu stays in sync for the first 60 seconds and you might not need a crystal sync, test your speed with a digital laser tachometer, rent or buy one on ebay
Beaulieu 5008
I wouldent buy this camera because the motor spins a rubber belt that turns the film cartridge, if the belt slips or needs to be replaced you have a big problem! this is very very very very hard to replace!
Need service on your super 8? go to http://www.super16inc.com ernie does work for pro8mm.com so what is this telling you? prices are very fair!
all this information is 100% true and not misleading in any way or fashion! I speak for the Beaulieu only! It took me alot of reseach to bring this crystal sync information to this forum, all I ask is that whoever takes on this project please post it here so others can do it to!
buying a beaulieu off ebay? common problems
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aj
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Isn't this the belt for the capstan of the soundsystem? As far as I remember the camera has about the same trigger and drive system as the 4008Beaulieu 5008
I wouldent buy this camera because the motor spins a rubber belt that turns the film cartridge, if the belt slips or needs to be replaced you have a big problem! this is very very very very hard to replace!
Most people like the camera because it is quiet as it used to be a sound camera.
Kind regards,
André
André
5008
I took one apart, the belt drives the film cartridge, I couldent get to it, to many screws and electronics in the way, I kept the lens and a few other parts and tossed the rest in the trash!
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