Hacking the Kodak Reels 8mm Film Digitizer (New Thread)

[thilosde]

Hello!
I'm here in Germany in Berlin, and for a long time I've wanted to digitize my Super-8 films, which I shot in the 70s with my Bauer Royal 8E makro. Recently, I came across the "Kodak Reels" online and managed to win one in an auction on eBay. The original invoice is dated September 7, 2026 (it is still under warranty), so it is relatively new.
My first attempt with a small reel disappointed me, and in the end I came across the video of Mac84 and this page.
After spending hours in front of my PC, I find myself even more confused.
Which version can I install on my device?
And if it fails, is there a way back?
The serial number is A3026148BK01199.
I would be very grateful for any help.

 

[JohnCT]

New here so excuse me if my post is different for other versions (I have an A version per 0Dan0's list).

Popped the back off and removed the motor assy.
Removed the snap ring and the second large gear.
Removed the 4 screws and black retaining cap (I guess you could call it ) and the 3 washers (2 spring washers and a flat sandwiched between them).
Four tiny screws remove the metal plate and the whole take up reel arm comes out.

The 3 washers mentioned above have nothing to do with acting like a clutch or slippage mechanism !
With the arm completely removed, I still have the same amount of force required to make this slip.
I took apart the take up reel arm and inside there are 2 notched gears off the 2 shafts that are connected by a notched drive belt.
If you apply enough force the belt will slip and jump over a notch or two.
This is the ONLY slip mechanism in the entire take up reel arm/motor assy.

Also, the motor itself is very stiff and does not move.
After seeing this I would not recommend anyone manually move the take up reel as this will eventually damage the drive belt !

Other units may vary, but from pictures I have seen I don't think so ?

My fist scan had lots of frame jumping similar to the above video but since most my reels are 400 feet, there is no way I'm using the "let it collect in a bin" method.

Next I'll try removing the left spring from the hold down door.
I wish I had measured the voltage to the take up reel motor during a scan before putting the back cover back on.
Perhaps I can lower the voltage to the motor a bit and slow down the take up reel ?

Have not put in any modified firmware yet...

I removed one of the two washers the heavy wound coil spring pushes against inside the hub (there is one on top of the coil spring and one below). Since the spring doesn't rotate on the washer, there's no issue with the spring sitting on the plastic as the washer isn't a slip bearing. The wavy/bent washer spring won't help with tension. I should have take some pics.

I will say that just once since I removed the washer the takeup reel stalled during a scan. A gentle push and it started again. That was the only time, and I would rather have a bit too weak than a bit too strong.

I modded many film projectors the same way when they used to snap film. It's a delicate balance between enough tension and too much tension.

John

 

[todd95008]

I removed one of the two washers the heavy wound coil spring pushes against inside the hub (there is one on top of the coil spring and one below).

There was no "coil spring" in my unit (where was this on yours) and the only slip mechanism is the drive belt sipping over the cogs on the 2 gears.

I have not had a chance to play with my unit again but I'm thinking my motor speed mod is the way to go.
This would be putting the correct size resistor in series with the motor.
Maybe slow it down 2-3% under no tension and when it tries to pull under more tension, the motor will slow even more with the increased current demand.

 

[JohnCT]

There was no "coil spring" in my unit (where was this on yours) and the only slip mechanism is the drive belt sipping over the cogs on the 2 gears.

I have not had a chance to play with my unit again but I'm thinking my motor speed mod is the way to go.
This would be putting the correct size resistor in series with the motor.
Maybe slow it down 2-3% under no tension and when it tries to pull under more tension, the motor will slow even more with the increased current demand.

It was in the takeup hub. Mine is a late 2025 build - maybe they changed them.

If the motor is just a DC motor, adding a resistor will indeed drop the speed and the torque. Alternatively, you can always build an adjustable current supply that will allow normal speed but reduced torque.

John

 

[melw]

I've completed both mods—Deano's lens mod and melw 's FW—on my Type D unit. I'm so grateful to melw for the Type-D FW work, and to 0dan0, Deano, and everyone who's contributed.

I have a couple of issues, and report.

#1. The farthest zoom-out settings give colored bars. (I'm calling the furthest-out setting Zoom 1.) Attached are the three furthest-out zoom settings for FW p695 and FW 272 (with film loaded). The next setting (Zoom 4) is normal, for both FW.

#2. I tried flashing 0dan0's D-Type stock FW to see if this still happened, but it wouldn't flash. It powered on with whatever custom FW I had last flashed.

I want to achieve full zoom-out if possible, because there are images between the sprocket holes I want to capture, and the 12mm lens is excluding some of it already.

Thanks for the detailed report and the screenshots, they made this easy to track down!

I could reproduce it on my unit, and it also happens on the stock Kodak firmware, so it's a bug in Kodak's own firmware, not in the custom builds. It happens when the frame position has been moved towards an edge and you then zoom out to the widest settings: the capture area grows past the edge of the sensor, and the part outside it shows as coloured noise. The firmware doesn't pull the frame position back in when you zoom out. Zooming out alone, with the frame centred, works fine.

Workaround:

• Move the frame position back towards the centre first, then zoom out.
• You can probably find a combination of position and zoom just before the noise starts that still gets most of the picture between the sprocket holes.