by There are many people who are searching for how to clean and lubricate 8mm? 8mm is a type of film that you can use to create old-school home movies. You are reading this post because you have an 8mm film camera and it needs lubrication. If your camera is the older version where the cartridge needs to be pulled back manually, then all you need to do is apply a small amount of light machine oil.
Table of Contents
Why need to clean lubricate 8mm?
This article should explain why you need to clean and lubricate your film camera. Let’s start with the basics.
All cameras have a certain amount of dirt and oil inside them. This can get very bad on older, more worn cameras. Over time and exposure to the atmosphere, will cause problems in your camera’s performance. If you film in bright light conditions, or in low light where your camera is pretty much always operating at full power, this can be a huge problem for you when it comes to how it performs.
The best way to fix this problem is to clean the exposed film cartridge. This can be done in a few different ways, but today we will show you how to do it with just an ordinary household cleaner.
What is needed to clean and lubricate 8mm?
Cleaning your film camera’s cartridge is pretty simple to do. All you need is the following:
- Household cleaning solution
- Cotton ball or Q-tip
- A small straw
- A soft cloth or paper towel
How to clean lubricate 8mm in 6 steps?
If your camera has an old film cartridge that you need to manually pull back each time you take a picture, then all you have to do is take a cotton ball and put a few drops of the cleaning solution on it.
- Remove the film cartridge from the camera and slowly move it back and forth for about one minute or so. The goal is to get all of the dirt exposed by moving it back and forth.
- Use the cotton ball that you have dipped into the cleaning solution to rub on the exposed film inside of the cartridge where you were just moving it back and forth. The goal here is to clean off all of the dirt that was exposed in step 1. Repeat this step until your cotton ball comes out clean after rubbing on the film inside.
- Take your cloth and wet it with a small amount of water. Throw the cotton ball you have used to clean off the film cartridge into the cloth and rub it around over the entire film cartridge.
- Put a small amount of water on your Q-tip or other soft toothpick-type material and rub it around the inside of the film cartridge until all of that dirt is gone from the inside.
- The final step is to use a paper towel and a soft cloth to wipe the film inside the cartridge.
- Put your film back into your camera and shoot some pics!
Most of this time will be spent in steps 1, 2, and 3.
How to properly clean and lubricate an 8mm lens?
The main way to keep your 8mm film camera in good working order is to clean the lens. This is an easy process that you can do yourself at home. Below we will explain how to properly clean your 8mm film camera lens.
- If you own an 8mm camera such as a brown Nikon F3 or a Kodak master 8mm camera, then the first thing you need to do is pull the film cartridge out of the camera and clean off the exposed film inside of it. The lens is almost always dirty when you first open your camera back up, so this is something that should be done every single time you use your film camera.
- Once you have removed the exposed film from the cartridge, wipe off all of the dirt with a soft cotton cloth or a dry, soft paper towel. The lens should be clean right now.
- Take your cleaning solution and put a few drops on the soft cotton cloth and wipe down all of the exposed films inside of the camera’s lens barrel.
- Once this has been done, use your paper towel to clean off any small particles from around your lens barrel where you just cleaned up the inside with your cleaning solution.
- Your lens should now be clean and ready to go.
This cleaning process is a very easy one to do and it will help your 8mm film camera function better and stay in better condition for longer as well.
How to properly clean and lubricate an 8mm socket?
The first thing you need to know about cleaning your 8mm film camera socket is that this process is not as simple as cleaning a lens. This is mainly because most 8mm film cameras have a bulb lock that screws into the back of the camera’s housing where the special lens used to be placed.
This type of dirty can be hard to clean for several reasons.
- First of all, it is really difficult to reach behind your 8mm film camera’s back and remove that plastic cover from the inside of the camera.
- Second, it is a very small opening, which makes cleaning difficult for larger tools.
- Third, this is a very small area to clean and it is hard to get the right kind of solutions in the film camera’s socket.
Therefore you should not try to use an ordinary household cleaner inside of your 8mm film camera’s socket. Any cleaner that you use should be something that can handle a bit more pressure than normal, so only use something like Windex if you have it available.
How to properly clean and lubricate an 8mm auto mirror?
Of all of the pieces that you can clean and lubricate on an 8mm film camera, the auto mirror is one of the most important. It is an area that is not very big in comparison to other parts of your movie camera, so it tends to get dirty very easily and this can lead to a few issues when you are trying to take pictures or shoot movies with your 8mm film camera.
- First things first, you need to grab a soft cotton cloth or small paper towel and wet it with water.
- Put a small dab of the cleaning solution on the cotton cloth and use that to clean any dirt off of the inside of your 8mm film camera’s auto mirror.
- Use your soft cloth or paper towel to wipe off any dust or particles that you have just cleaned off of the auto mirror with your cleaning solution.
- Put a dab of cleaner solution on a cotton ball and rub it all around the inside of your 8mm film camera’s auto mirror until you no longer see any dust or dirt from the cleaning process.
- Once you have gotten rid of all of the dirt, put a dab of solution on your cotton ball and rub that around the inside of your auto mirror until it is clean again.
- If you want to add a little extra lubrication to your 8mm film camera, then place some nice beads of the cleaning solution on a cotton ball and rub it all over the inside of the mirror.
- Put a dab of cleaner solution on that ball and rub it all over the inside of your auto mirror again until you get no dirt or particles left on the mirror.
- If you are still seeing some dirt, then you can repeat steps 2 – 7 until there is no more dirt left in your auto mirror after cleaning it with your cloth or paper towel. Once you finish this process, then your auto mirror should be clean and ready to go.
How to properly clean and lubricate 8mm auto glass?
The auto glass on your 8mm film camera is also very important when it comes to keeping your camera in good condition. This part of your film camera’s housing is mostly used for protection, but you will find that it will get dirty over time and you have to clean it often if you want to keep taking pictures or shooting movies with your movie camera.
- The first thing you need to do is take a clean, soft cloth and use it to wipe off all of the visible dirt on your auto glass.
- If you still see any dirt or particles on the inside of your 8mm film camera’s auto glass then you need to clean it some more with either water or a cleaning solution. The water and cleaning solution can be in the form of a spray bottle or it can be cotton balls with drops of cleaner on them.
- Once it has been cleaned, use your soft cotton cloth or paper towel to wipe the glass clean again.
- Take another soft cloth and wipe off any remaining dirt that is on the inside of the 8mm film camera’s auto glass.
- Now it is time to put a dab of cleaner onto your soft cotton cloth or paper towel and rub it all over the inside of the auto glass until you get no dirt left on this part of your film camera’s body after cleaning with your solution.
Frequently asked some questions about how to clean lubricate 8mm
How do you clean and lubricate 8mm film?
The first thing that you need to know about cleaning your 8mm film camera is that this is a very easy process, but it will take some time and patience. You will find that this basic cleaning process will get you a much cleaner lens and a much better functioning film camera.
What happens if you don’t clean 8mm film?
If you do not clean off the oil, grease, and dust inside of your 8mm film camera then it will get much dirtier and the light sensor will start to show a lot more white light in the dark. This can cause your movie camera to jam and not respond properly, so cleaning is a very important part of keeping your equipment in good working order.
How do I lubricate my Shadow systems after cleaning?
Some people have asked if it is necessary to lubricate their 8mm movie cameras after cleaning. The fact is, that it does not really matter if you lubricate your movie camera after cleaning or not. We always recommend putting jelly or some sort of extra lubrication into your 8mm film camera because we do not like it when our equipment gets really dry and is hard to use because of the lack of moisture in the air.
video credit: The Media Nerd
Conclusion of how to clean and lubricate 8mm:
Cleaning and lubricating an 8mm film camera is a very important part of the process. Without it, you will find that your movie camera does not work as well and does not perform the way that you want it to for taking pictures or shooting movies. Cleaning your 8mm film camera is also a more cost-effective way to keep your movie camera in good condition because if you don’t clean it, then you will have to buy a new one from time to time.
