Bell & Howell Filmo Editor Rangefinder camera (No reserve price)
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Description from the seller
A magnificent vintage manual viewing device (in English known as a Film Editor or Viewer) produced by Bell & Howell within the historic Filmo line.
This specific model was designed for amateur 8mm film (Regular 8 or Standard 8 format) and was the essential tool used by amateur directors or families in the 1950s and 1960s to watch, cut, and splice their home movies.
Main ComponentsThe Electric Viewer (Viewer): It is the rectangular gray screen in the center. Inside there is a small light bulb that projects the film image onto the frosted clear glass. This allowed viewing the film frame by frame without needing to mount a cinema projector. The two black circles at the top right and left are for mounting the film reels. On the left is usually positioned the original reel to be viewed, while on the right is the taking-up reel (Take-Up). [1]The Manual Crank (Hand Crank): Located at the bottom right, it is used to advance or rewind the film. By turning the crank, the user sets the playback time and speed.
The Shutter Block ("Filmo"): The central silver button with the word Filmo protects the shutter head and the small toothed wheels (the sprockets). The teeth must snap perfectly into the film’s side holes to pull it through smoothly without damaging it.
Functions and Controls on the ChassisThe Graded Scale (Ruler at the bottom): The millimeters and the small segments marked with 0 sec., 1 sec., 2 sec. were used by the editor to physically measure the film length according to time. In 8mm format at standard speed (usually 16 frames per second), a certain length in centimeters corresponds exactly to one real-second interval. It helped to understand where to cut to obtain scenes of perfect duration.The Labels "TAKE-UP" and "REWIND": Indicate the direction in which to turn the crank. Turning it downward (Take-Up) advances the film for viewing; turning it upward (Rewind) rewinds the film quickly onto the original reel.Power Button and Cable: At the bottom you can see the original electrical cord and a gray plastic switch with a green dot, used solely to turn the internal lamp of the viewer on or off.
A magnificent vintage manual viewing device (in English known as a Film Editor or Viewer) produced by Bell & Howell within the historic Filmo line.
This specific model was designed for amateur 8mm film (Regular 8 or Standard 8 format) and was the essential tool used by amateur directors or families in the 1950s and 1960s to watch, cut, and splice their home movies.
Main ComponentsThe Electric Viewer (Viewer): It is the rectangular gray screen in the center. Inside there is a small light bulb that projects the film image onto the frosted clear glass. This allowed viewing the film frame by frame without needing to mount a cinema projector. The two black circles at the top right and left are for mounting the film reels. On the left is usually positioned the original reel to be viewed, while on the right is the taking-up reel (Take-Up). [1]The Manual Crank (Hand Crank): Located at the bottom right, it is used to advance or rewind the film. By turning the crank, the user sets the playback time and speed.
The Shutter Block ("Filmo"): The central silver button with the word Filmo protects the shutter head and the small toothed wheels (the sprockets). The teeth must snap perfectly into the film’s side holes to pull it through smoothly without damaging it.
Functions and Controls on the ChassisThe Graded Scale (Ruler at the bottom): The millimeters and the small segments marked with 0 sec., 1 sec., 2 sec. were used by the editor to physically measure the film length according to time. In 8mm format at standard speed (usually 16 frames per second), a certain length in centimeters corresponds exactly to one real-second interval. It helped to understand where to cut to obtain scenes of perfect duration.The Labels "TAKE-UP" and "REWIND": Indicate the direction in which to turn the crank. Turning it downward (Take-Up) advances the film for viewing; turning it upward (Rewind) rewinds the film quickly onto the original reel.Power Button and Cable: At the bottom you can see the original electrical cord and a gray plastic switch with a green dot, used solely to turn the internal lamp of the viewer on or off.
Details
Era
1900-2000
Brand
Bell & Howell
Model/type nr
Filmo Editor
Physical condition
Very good
Functional condition
Tested and working
Designer/artist/maker
J. Bell & S. Howell
Film type
8mm
Estimated period
1950-1960
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