Reveni Labs Film Cutting Guide

[madNbad]

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With the ever rising prices for an original ABLON trimming guide, Reveni Labs offers a version made of 3D printed nylon. If you are looking for something that works, don't want to free hand cut your leader and don't want to spend a lot: https://www.reveni-labs.com/shop/p/leica-leader-cutting-guide

[qqphot]

when i cut leaders, I usually use an Xacto knife blade to cut the film following the guide. I worry that the blade would just dig into the nylon and catch, or damage it. Have you used this one much? If workable it's a great alternative.

I have a metal ABLON copy from ebay which would be great except it's inexplicably three sprocket holes too short, so cutting leaders becomes a multi-step process.

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[madNbad]

I sold my IIIc ages ago but I did have a genuine ABLON. I used a OFLA Touch knife from a fabric store and it worked great. I posted this because I'm a fan of the inovative work being done by Reveni. The nylon is a lot stronger than many other materials and just the fact they are offering it shows they are dedicated to producing useful items at a fair price,

[Pyrogallol]

I have a home made cutting guide that I made and have used since the 1970’s but it was only recently when I went to try out a Photax copy of an ABLON that I realised the ABLON, like most other manufactured goods, is designed to be used by right handed people. If you cut with the knife in your left hand the rounded part of the ABLON hinge sits unevenly on the table you are cutting on. Yet another example of right handed discrimination.

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Edited May 25, 2023 by Pyrogallol

[Anbaric]

Somebody should sell a reasonably priced metal template. Even the vintage third party guides are pricey nowadays. The only modern one I know is the Meister UNX-8624 from UN in Japan:

https://www.un-ltd.co.jp/unx-8624-en/

The list price in Japan is OK, but everyone selling it internationally seems to be adding a big markup.

[Pyrogallol]

Just make one, mine has worked fine for 40 years, see above.

[250swb]

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For loading Leica cassettes in the dark they are essential, but I've never ever used one and always cut the leader by eye with a pair of scissors. It doesn't have to be perfect.

[LocalHero1953]

I've never used one, and always cut by eye (count 22 sprocket holes and cut). The only error I've made, once, is cutting from the wrong side. I don't think a guide would have stopped me doing that.

[Anbaric]

I use scissors too and have had no problems, but there's clearly a demand for the templates. You'd think that one of the companies on ebay that sells things as obscure as a replica SNHOO for the Summitar would be up for filling this gap in the market. I suspect if I tried to fashion one from sheet metal with my Swiss Army Knife it wouldn't end well!

Edited May 26, 2023 by Anbaric

[Aryel]

I have one from "Photonbox". It helped to build confidence initially but I cut by eye now... Mine is number '1000' and I received an email confirming that he made 1000 pieces along with a small gift to celebrate. So clearly, there is a demand, not so large but still significant.

Edited May 26, 2023 by Aryel

[wlaidlaw]

If anyone needs one, I have (somewhere) a 3D print file for the ANZOO film trimming template for the 250 reporter. My son was going to print one in titanium for me but then that company (Renishaw) shut down the 3D metal printing research division in the UK, where he worked as a development engineer, so no more 3D metal printing and he went off to work on nuclear submarines. I do have the plastic prototype, which will have to do me for my 250FF. I do have a rather nice Rolls Royce half size Spirit of Ecstasy in titanium, which he printed for me. I keep meaning to put it on my Three Wheeler Morgan 😀. 

Wilson

PS The metal Prinz trimming templates are usually about half the price of an ABLON on eBay, although to make you all jealous, I paid £5 each for an ABLON and ABCOO knife, both still in their correct Morocco leather cases at a Brighton Racecourse Camera fair a few years ago. W

Edited June 1, 2023 by wlaidlaw

[nitroplait]

13 hours ago, wlaidlaw said:

although to make you all jealous, I paid £5 each for an ABLON and ABCOO knife, both still in their correct Morocco leather cases at a Brighton Racecourse Camera fair a few years ago. W

I was just about to say that ABLON's are not that difficult to find for next to nothing if one is patient. I got mine in a box of misc darkroom equipment. The box also included the knife and a Leitz film winder.

It does require that you don't look the usual places and instead spot them visually among lots of junk, which may take some dedication. Anyone knowing that the device is called ABLON and puts it on the internet by name will also know the going eBay rate.

In the past 2 years I have spotted 3 of such lots with ABLONs. I don't have a car and this stuff is usually sold or given away with the requirement that you relieve the owner of the entire junkpile, so I only picked up the above mentioned lot which was of manageable size  - and one ABLON is enough for me of course 🙂

Edited June 2, 2023 by nitroplait

[romualdo]

I picked up this new original Italian (San Giorgio) template (plus cutter) in Milan whilst on a european holiday in 2016

It's virtually identical to the ABLON in its function

Wasn't a bargain basement price but still acceptable IMHO @ 65 euros

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Edited June 2, 2023 by romualdo

[madNbad]

If you watch the video in the analog M section, all you need to do is bite a chunk out of the film!

[Erato]

I noticed the same offering from Reveni Labs as well. It looks great, but my friends stopped me before the F2F reunion party recently. 

For the side record, a good pair of nostalgic gifts finally unified together perfectly--ABLON and ABCOO, ($priceless, hand carried from the States).

As a token of appreciation, I bought something great as a thanksgiving gifts for them as well.

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[wlaidlaw]

Many people don't realise that the ABCOO is not intended for trimming the film with the ABLON template. It was intended for cutting off a 35mm film at the cassette after loading it into a developing spool or for cutting off a part exposed film in a 250 Reporter camera. A regular sharp penknife or a sharp pair of scissors makes a much better job of film trimming with the ABLON template. I keep a Victorinox Mini-Champ especially for this job as it has a scimitar shaped blade which is perfect for the purpose. 

Wilson

[romualdo]

7 hours ago, wlaidlaw said:

Many people don't realise that the ABCOO is not intended for trimming the film with the ABLON template. It was intended for cutting off a 35mm film at the cassette after loading it into a developing spool or for cutting off a part exposed film in a 250 Reporter camera. A regular sharp penknife or a sharp pair of scissors makes a much better job of film trimming with the ABLON template. I keep a Victorinox Mini-Champ especially for this job as it has a scimitar shaped blade which is perfect for the purpose. 

Wilson

how true, Wilson

Trying to use the ABCOO for trimming is pretty hopeless (I did try) - Stanley knife is much more effective for me

[wlaidlaw]

Interestingly, my Combat Graflex, which takes 4.5 or 5 metres of 70mm film (50 images), unlike the earlier 250 Reporter cameras, has a built in knife for cutting off a part exposed film. This would have been used by a military photographer to cut off the exposed film for processing at the end of each day. I believe that unlike commercial war photographers, they did not usually process the film themselves. The film was often flown back to a non-combat back area for processing. The knife leaves a short tongue of film protruding from the unexposed cassette to pull over to another empty 70mm cassette. Like the 250 Reporter cameras, the Combat Graflex feeds from one cassette to an identical cassette, so there is no requirement to rewind like on a standard 35mm camera. 

Wilson

[nitroplait]

I have noticed that when an ABLON shows up from an original owner, it is often accompanied by an ABCOO. I am suspecting that the camera shops at the time pushed both items as a set.

I don't have my old Leica price list at hand, but seem to remember they were listed next to each other - at least in the Danish version.

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[TomB_tx]

6 hours ago, wlaidlaw said:

Interestingly, my Combat Graflex, which takes 4.5 or 5 metres of 70mm film (50 images), unlike the earlier 250 Reporter cameras, has a built in knife for cutting off a part exposed film. This would have been used by a military photographer to cut off the exposed film for processing at the end of each day. I believe that unlike commercial war photographers, they did not usually process the film themselves. The film was often flown back to a non-combat back area for processing. The knife leaves a short tongue of film protruding from the unexposed cassette to pull over to another empty 70mm cassette. Like the 250 Reporter cameras, the Combat Graflex feeds from one cassette to an identical cassette, so there is no requirement to rewind like on a standard 35mm camera. 

Wilson

The 35mm Exakta also had a built in film knife that could pull down to cut the film outside the supply cassette:

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But I would have thought the COMBAT Graflex would have used a US Marine KA-BAR utility knife!