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RogerF
21st February 2010, 05:49 PM
I've been blessed with good eyesight all of my life but over the last two years it has started to deteriorate rapidly :(

Even with glasses, I'm now starting to find it very difficult to cut the film into strips of six - the gap between the 35mm frames is perilously narrow for cutting with a sharp pair of scissors.
This afternoon I managed to actually cut into the edge of one frame by accident. :slap:

Does anyone else have this problem and how do you get around it ?
I've seen (but never owned or used) the machines used for cutting and mounting slide film - would one of those help ?

I've tried cutting them over the light-box but it helped little.

All advice gratefully received.

Roger

Argentum
21st February 2010, 06:01 PM
sounds like your glasses are not very good. I'd have your eyes retested and make sure you get glasses for reading/close work if that is what you need.

alexmuir
21st February 2010, 06:10 PM
Hi.I recently picked up a secondhand slide cutter which works very well.It is made by Kaiser.It has a magnifier and is illuminated( battery operated).You run the strip of film through and cut at the appropriate point.It may still be available new.I hope this helps
Alex

RogerF
21st February 2010, 06:31 PM
Percepts: you may be right - my eye test is due next month. Lets see.

Alex: Many thanks for this information - I'll keep an eye open on eBay.

Cheers
Roger

B&W Neil
21st February 2010, 06:45 PM
One of those magnifying lenses that are a stalk and clip to a table or bench, as used by model makers to go hands free, may help. You would still need to work on your light box of course.

Neil.

Argentum
21st February 2010, 07:29 PM
I'll keep an eye open on eBay.


I hope its your good one;)

Richard Gould
21st February 2010, 07:35 PM
Try a one of these anglepoise lamps to angle the light coupled with a magnifier that you can wear around you neck, giving you a directed light with a magnifier that leaves your hands free to cut,Richard

Mike O'Pray
21st February 2010, 07:49 PM
The Kaiser or Rowi illuminated slide cutters do work. Occasionally I find that the gap is so narrow that sometimes the cutter is cutting through one of the sprockets. Better if you can cut through a continuous piece of film. If you get secondhand it might pay to get someone who knows how to sharpen the edge of the cutter to do so. Like anything else that cuts the edges must go blunt. The film at the very edge occasionally needs a slight trim with a scissors but as this is beyond the actual neg area then its not usually a problem but even then I'd second the use of a magnifier round the neck or an extra magnifying attachment to glasses.

Inability to perform delicate close up work such as cutting negs into strips is a consequence of age unfortunately and "aids" are the only answer.

Mike

RogerF
21st February 2010, 10:55 PM
All
Thanks for all the helpful advice.

One thing I've realised from further negative cutting (and reflection) this evening, is that the thickness of my scissors (not the cutting edge!)
is a shade greater than the gap between the images, and the width of each scissor blade is at least 6mm.
Thus is it virtually impossible to have an unobscured view of the cutting area with this combination, and the target spot for the end of the cut line
is more an ambition than a certainty !

I'm going to try the slide film cutter and see how I get on from there.
Meanwhile, the frames that were trimmed a little too keenly will just have to be enlarged and cropped a tad !

Thanks again.
Roger

Argentum
21st February 2010, 10:59 PM
A decent pair of scissors might be a good investment;)

Carl V
21st February 2010, 11:06 PM
This afternoon I managed to actually cut into the edge of one frame by accident. :slap:


Back in the days when I used to shoot in colour, I'd send my films to a high street lab for processing and even though they were using film cutters as opposed to scissors, on numerous occasions they would cut right on the very edge of the frame, or even onto the frame itself. :(

No doubt the old saying is true - if you want a job doing right, you have to do it yourself.