A few days ago I got a call from someone interested in buying one of the Auricon CM-72A cameras I have listed on cinemagear.com. In my excitement to get it ready for its new home, I forgot that all of the vintage power cords I had were included with the other Auricons I sold recently. The Auricon CM-72A has a 1960’s vintage round, 2-prong, Edison power receptacle on the back of the camera, and this style plug hasn’t been made in a long time. After a few hours of research to see if I could find any as new old stock, it was obvious that this wasn’t to be. A short trip to the hardware store yielded a modern, single end extension cord that could be re-sculpted to work with the Auricon. That sorted, I set out to test the camera with film, and noticed that it was missing one of the guide rollers that keeps film on the sprocket. My parts bin came up empty, so I sat down, drew up what it needed to look like, and machined a new roller assembly. And lastly, I put new clutch pads in the magazine take-up assembly. While this camera isn’t going to win any beauty contests, it now runs like a charm.
I also wanted to take a moment to acknowledge the passing of one of the most wonderful spirits in the film making and VFX business. Tragically, Glen Campbell passed away over the weekend. His talent and spirit will be greatly missed.