Have a fellow booth projectionist who is working a second theater along with the one I work at.

He said they have all Centry projectors and that they are harder to keep clean. He was needing info on how to best clean these projectors.

I have never seen these types of projectors and all that I know is that they are different than the Christies we have at my theater.

Can anyone help out with this problem.

Pictures would be very helpful also.

Remove the trap and gate and wipe the tension straps and gate pressure pads with 99% alcohol to remove the emulsion and dirt. Then brush all the film bearing areas with the toothbrush to get off the stubborn dirt. Use the toothbrush to get into all the nooks and crannies like behind the lens turret, under the pad roller arms and behind the upper idler roller on the soundhead. Fold the rag over the toothbrush to wipe up tight areas; wipe the rest of the surfaces with the rag especially under the feeding and holdback sprockets and under the intermittent assembly since they are prone to leaking. Replace the gate then the trap and use the paint brush to sweep away any remaing dirt from the sprockets, pad rollers or painted surfaces. Make sure to wipe the area in front of the projector where the projector and sound head meet because used grease tends to seep out there.

Once in a while it would be beneficial to remove the heat shield from behind the trap and use a CO2 bottle and gun to really clean that area, but don't use the CO2 for everday cleaning beacuse it can break your seals and drive dirt into your bearings.

This picture was taken from the picture page of "Williamsburg Theater" here on the site. Go there for other angles.

Century SA Manual

Page 9 outlines maintenance. As noted, a stiff toothbrush works fine for cleaning sprockets, pad rollers, gate, trap, and intermittent shoe. The gate and trap are easily removed for cleaning, as is the lens. Wipe-down interior with a clean shop cloth. Don't use harsh solvents, and don't get solvents into bearings. Use a vacuum cleaner and brush to pick up loose dirt. Compressed air will just blow dirt into inaccessable areas. NEVER try to clean a running projector.

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John P. Pytlak, Senior Technical Specialist
Worldwide Technical Services, Entertainment Imaging
Research Labs, Building 69, Room 7525A
Rochester, New York, 14650-1922 USA
Tel: +1 585 477 5325 Cell: +1 585 781 4036 Fax: +1 585 722 7243
e-mail: john.pytlak@kodak.com
Web site: http://www.kodak.com/go/motion

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Here is a picture of how that machine currently looks (unfortunetly, the door is closed so you can't see it's brand spankin' new gate/trap.)

Steve

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"Old projectionists never die, they just changeover!"

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Since no one else has mentioned this, I will: be sure to leave the gate closed at night to avoid wearing out the spring. This is an annoyingly difficult part to replace if you haven't done it before.

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I do like Gordon's idea though. I may start doing that.

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