The Moving picture world (January 1926-February 1926)

January 16, 1926 MOVING PICTURE WORLD 277 is to first remove the insulation from the ends of the wires to be joined tor a distance from two to four inches, depending on the size of the wire. The insulation should be whittled away as if you were to sharoen your lead pencil. Never run the knife blade around, as you may cut in the wire and thus weaken it so that in time it would be likely to break at that point. After the insulation has been removed, the next step is to clean the ends of the two wires thoroughly — till they shine. This may be done with emery cloth or sandpaper, or scraping with a knife blade. The metal must be clean in order to secure good electrical contact. The wire ends may now be twisted together tightly. The next step will be the soldering. Wet the joint thoroughly with soldering fluid, smear with soldering paste. Care must be taken in selecting soldering fluid, as some of them contain acids which will eat the metal, and thus cause trouble. After wetting the joint with the fluid, or paste, hold the wire over the blaze of a gasoline torch until it is warm. Also hold in the blaze a piece of stick solder or solder wire, until it melts and runs all through the joint. Care must be taken not to get the wire too hot, as that will injure the wire and reduce its carrying capacity; also if too hot the solder will run through — and out of the joint. If the soldering be properly done the splice will have greater mechanical strength, and as high carrying capacity as the wire itself. I might add that brazing the wires together with German silver makes a neat splice, but the above method is the one ordinarily used. All joints should be soldered, except for temporary use — say for one day only. After the soldering is properly done, the splice must be wrapped with rubber insulation tape, to about the depth of the original rubber insulation, over which adhesive cloth tape (friction tape) must be wound. After this is all done white shellac could be used over this outer tape, if it be a white wire, and black shellac on the black wire. This shellac will hold firm the piece of tape over the splice and make a very neat job. Birminghamf Ala* Local Union Elects Officers DOWN in the Southland they do everything we do but skate — even to getting a bunch of men to work for them for nothing for a year. Local Union 236, Motion Picture Projectionists, I. A. T. S. E. & M. P. M. O., down in Birmingham, Alabama, where they make railroad rails, big I beams and a lot of li'l things like that by the thousands of tons, has elected officers for the coming year. L. Nation will wield the gavel at meetings, and boss things generally. He will be addressed as President and will be assisted by Brother J. Chambless, who will sit at the opposite end of the meeting room and be addressed as Mr. Vice-President when some one wants to take an appeal from the "chair" — if ever they do. R. A. Root will be close to the root of things, because he is the new Business Representative— more power to him. The official pen will be wielded by Secretary J. F. Mankin, while W. B. Herring will keep the money the boys pay in — until it is wanted, of course. He will be Treasurer. A. B. Jackson's duty will be to stand 'em outside if they don't behave themselves in meetings. He is Sergeant-at-Arms, though what kind of "arms" I don't quite know. The Trustees, whom we hope are trusty, and who certainly better not let themselves get rusty, are J. N. Cason, J. C. Harper and H. A. Rensford. The Examining Board (ah, ha! they'd better be GOOD ! !) is composed of R. A. Root, F. J. Emmerson and C. L. Gaston. J. T. Amberson will take a joy ride to the International Convention, where he will put up a stiff fight to eliminate the IDIOTIC "Operator" from the name of the organization, and substitute Projectionist. Ouch! Throwing brick is not fair, Brother Amberson. Y' didn't hit me, anyhow! R. A. Root will be delegate to the Alabama State Federation and F. E. Walker Chairman of the Banquet Committee. Banquet! Gosh, I'd like to be with you all on that night, but I guess it's too costly a trip to even think about. And, anyhow, I'm probably not invited, though that wouldn't stop me if I were closer. Well, men of Birmingham, I wish you all sorts of good luck — which you may have if you — work for it. Some Language A PROJECTIONIST in St. Charles, Missouri, hands me a sample of film punching which consists of the amputation of the right half of one picture, the left half of another twelve frames away, and the right half of one again twelve frames away. He says : I thought 1 had seen all the varieties of film outrages it was possible for even the most expert inventor of cussedness to evolve, but the attached is, to me at least, a new variety. It is rather hard to believe that any human being exists with an order of intelligence so low and a bump of destructiveness so enlarged that he would do so idiotic a thing as this. Which leads me to remark that the field of operatin' a pitcher machine would be in some danger of encroachment by clever anthropoid apes, who might be trained to thread, strike an arc, etc., and who might be expected to do such things as this, were theatre managers who employ the curiosities who perpetrate such crimes aware that they might be had a bit cheaper than even the present variety of film butcher. Phew 1 That is some roast — but pretty thoroughly deserved all around. The theatre manager who tolerates men who do such things in his projection room is equally guilty with the man himself; also he has little if any more sense than the film destroyer he employs. However, I think the good St. Charles brother has covered the matter fairly well, so that's that. Next! CLASSIFIED ADVERTISEMENTS Help and Situations Wanted Only 3c per word per insertion Minimum charge 60c Terms, Strictly Cash with Order Cony must reach us by Tuesday noon to Insure pubUcation In that week's Issue. PROJECTIONIST— At liberty on sliort notice; 5 years experience. Powers, Simplex, Motiograpn, repair own niaeliines; steady, reliable; salary reasonable; stale equipment, salary, etc. Robert K. Malone, Excelsior Springs, Mo. AT LIBERTY— Projectionist-electrician; 17 years' experience; union, married, clean habits, steady; references; will go anywhere. Claude McAaams, 1404 Ellsworth, Muskogee, Okla. Protect the Print Lo a Voice from the West MURL. STANSBURY, Woodburn, Oregon, radios the following via U. S. mail : "Dear Mr. Richardson: An lo a voice from the far, far west! A confession! I am only an "operator," but believe you me, Mr. Richardson. I'm going to do my best to get out of the "motley crowd." To convince you of this I am herewith ordering a Bluebook. Ever since I started work here, in the Bungaiow theatre, I have followed the projection department, and I am telling you straight that it has helped me. A lot of the Bluebook questions are 'o\er my head,' but just the same I do manage to answer some of them. Have all the departments cut out, and each subject filed under its own heading. Makes it mighty handy for me. Have a cozy little projection room, eight feet by feet in size, in which are two Motiograph DeLuxe projectors and a homemade stereopticon, all Mazda G. E. equipped. I would like to ask this: Does it hurt the the constant current regulator to get hot? Mine certainly do; also the ammeters. Have an eiglity-flve foot projeotionistance, and a Minusa screen. The net result is, with careful work on the part of the gink in charge, a darned good picture, if I do say it myself. Sounds good, as to room and equipment, though you did not say which way the eight feet were measured. Presumably front to back. As to the "constant regulators," if you will turn to page 460 of your new Bluebook, you will find your question answered. Roughly speaking, if you can hold your hand on the device without discomfort it is not outside the range of safety in the matter of heating. However, that is not at all the right way, to determine such a serious matter. Get a thermometer — Centigrade if you can, if not then a Fahrenheit. Bed its bulb in rather stiff putty, place the putty in firm contact with the thing you desire to measure the temperature of, and leave it there long enough for the putty to get as hot as the part is. If the centigrade thermometer registers more than 90, or the Fahrenheit more than 194 degrees, then the device is operating outside the limits of safety, and will eventually probably "burn out." The probable reason for overheating is that your line voltage is high. This is the more likely, because of the fact that, as I understand you, all regulators heat the same. If the regulators are found to heat beyond safety limits, then you may do either one of two things. First, you can take the matter up with the General Electric, through the company you purchased the equipment from, telling them exactly what the voltage reading is across the supply lines at the PRIMARY terminals of the regulator. Second, you may get hold of some old rheostat coils, or make some resistance coils from ordinary iron wire of sufficient size to carry tlie current, inserting sufficient resistance in one of the supply wires, near where it connects to the regulator, to reduce the voltage to 110, or whatever the supply voltage is supposed to be. This will be effective, but will waste power. Better consult the General Electric and get the job done right by them. Bye the way, tell them exactly how hot the regulators get if you write them. I am, of course, glad to know you have found the department of value to you in your work. Your "filing under proper heading" of the articles is a corking good stunt. Such a reference file, plus the Bluebook, ought to tide you over many a rough spot.