my profile | my password | search | faq & rules | forum home

» Film-Tech Forum ARCHIVE   » Operations   » Film Handlers' Forum   » Ward Leonard dimmer parts

Author Topic: Ward Leonard dimmer parts Ken Layton Phenomenal Film Handler Posts: 1452 From: Olympia, Wash. USA Registered: Sep 1999 posted 05-21-2004 05:20 PM                     For those with older theaters using these classic dimmers, I found a source of parts. It's this company: Vara-Light / Dimatronics, Inc. 6207 Commercial Road Crystal Lake, ILL. 60014 Phone: (815) 455-4400 They mention they are THE source for all Ward-Leonard, Hub, and Vara-Light dimmers and stock thousands of parts for other makes as well.  |  IP: Logged Scott Norwood Film God Posts: 8146 From: Boston, MA. USA (1774.21 miles northeast of Dallas) Registered: Jun 99 posted 05-21-2004 08:50 PM                        Thanks, Ken! Good to know that someone sells those parts. I spent quite a bit of time turning up dead ends for W-L parts about five years ago.  |  IP: Logged Gordon McLeod Film God Posts: 9532 From: Toronto Ontario Canada Registered: Jun 99 posted 05-21-2004 09:18 PM                     I have parts for most of the WL autoransformer systems and all there electronics ones in stock  |  IP: Logged John Walsh Film God Posts: 2490 From: Connecticut, USA, Earth, Milky Way Registered: Oct 1999 posted 05-22-2004 08:31 AM                     Funny, I just found out the same thing... I need to interface an older WL 76-37 "Motorlite" motorized dimmer to a new pulse-only automation, and found Dimatronics who supplied a schematic. It seems that many of the companies that made autotransformer or reostat dimmers have either closed or sold off that division. While searching, I found this story about Radio City MH: http://articles.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0HEM/is_2000_Oct/ai_68323877  |  IP: Logged Gordon McLeod Film God Posts: 9532 From: Toronto Ontario Canada Registered: Jun 99 posted 05-22-2004 08:58 AM                     WL was the source to Kleigl, Century and Ariel Davis for autotransformers and resistance plates and those companies had issues with WL competeing with them with there line of Electronic Dimmers Skirpan was an engineer at WL who invented the first stable SCR type dimmer back in the early 60's that used a Magnetic Amplifier to control a pair of SCR's By the early 70's Solitrol dimmers were becoming very common in large installations and in the US the loss of the component business to others caused WL to shut down the dimming division It stayed in operation in Canada eventually being sold to Richmond Hill Labs that was an early video switcher company that was doing most of the canadian broadcast facilities and offering the dimming completed the package They were liquidaded in the late 70's with Bruce Whitehead (who had been the canadian engineer with WL) buying the parts and drawings Currently I have most of it now all uncatalogued and piled up in boxes in the barn but I know there is at least 20 of the solitrol corntrol cards  |  IP: Logged

All times are Central (GMT -6:00)

Printer-friendly view of this topic

Hop To: Select a Forum: Category: Operations -------------------- Digital Cinema Forum Film Handlers' Forum Large Format Forum Ground Level Feature Info, Trailer Attachments & REAL Credit Offsets Category: Community -------------------- Film-Yak Film Handlers' Movie Reviews The Afterlife Bob Maar's Joke-A-Thon Category: Classified -------------------- Equipment and Supplies Wanted/For Sale Help Wanted/Seeking Employment Category: System -------------------- Software Beta Testing Forum

The Film-Tech Forums are designed for various members related to the cinema industry to express their opinions, viewpoints and testimonials on various products, services and events based upon speculation, personal knowledge and factual information through use, therefore all views represented here allow no liability upon the publishers of this web site and the owners of said views assume no liability for any ill will resulting from these postings. The posts made here are for educational as well as entertainment purposes and as such anyone viewing this portion of the website must accept these views as statements of the author of that opinion and agrees to release the authors from any and all liability.