As some of you know, I’m into 16mm cinematography. I have a 100’ daylight reel I use as a “dummy load” for camera loading practice on my Arri 16S, Krasnogorsk-3s and Bolexes; but for the Éclair NPR I only have these little core loads with about ten feet of film on them. It would be nice if I had 200’ or 400’ of bad film so that I can practice loading the magazines. (Or, more correctly, so that I can teach others how to load a full load into them.)
Where can I get a 400’ roll of fogged film, cheap? (I could always buy a 400’ roll of new film and sacrifice it, but I’m too cheap to do that. The 100’ daylight reel was given to me free, and was of unknown manufacture.)
Try calling the local film labs and ask if they have any junk film around. Usually they’ll have some messed up prints or something that are no good. If you’re lucky they’ll be willing to give you some or sell it to you cheap.
You can find unused out-of-date film on ebay, if you look hard enough (sometimes extremely so – I recall seeing a few boxes of sheet film from the 1940s once). A lot of times, it’s advertised as a semi-collectible box that happens have something in it, so it might not be in the usual category.
Johnny LA, if you live in LA I reccomend calling Clairmont Camera and explain what you want. The Clairmonts are always extremely helpful with anyone interested in more camera knowledge, and if you explain that you want the “dummy loads” for educational purposes they will be happy to oblige if they have an excess. In general they strive to help assistants and those who have made an effort at self- education, and you certainly seem to fit the bill. That being said, 16mm stock is a lot rarer these days than in the past. HD is leading to a noticeable shortage in 16mm waste and short ends. If they are unable to help, you can email me and I should be able to come up with a few 100 to 200’ loads for you.
