Pull my Leader: Using a Film Puller

There are all kinds of clever methods to get a disappeared film leader sticking out of its canister again. The easiest is using a film puller. Here’s how it’s done.

It can be a real drag when you want to do double exposures or filmswaps and your filmleader has been pulled into the canister. I have read all the methods of pulling the film out of it’s canister. Licking a bit of used film and sticking it in, using double sided tape… Somehow I never could get it to work and always ended up opening the entire can. More than once I managed to cut myself on the bits and pieces of the opened can. In the end, I gave up and just got myself a film puller. This clever little thing is the fastest way to get your film out of its can. It did take me a while before I had figured out how exactly to use it (it was secondhand, so no manual), so I thought I’d make your life easier by telling you right away.

The film puller is a little device, with two sliders and three ‘tongues’ of plasticy stuff sticking out of it, one short one, and two longer ones that slide.

To start, make sure that both sliders are pulled short. Take your film and insert the three tongues into the canister.

Push in the tongue attached to slider A.

Now turn the film (the bit sticking out of the top of the canister) until you hear a click.

Push in slider B.

Now pull on both sliders at the same time. If all goes well, you will see the film axle turn as your film is being pulled out of its canister.

Tadaa! Your film leader is sticking out again.

It can take a bit of practicing before you get the hang of it, but once you recognise the proper click, it’s easy as pie.

Here’s the whole process on video:

Scritto da stratski il 2012-09-12 in #gear #tutorials #videos #film #tipster #select-type-of-tipster #select-what-this-tipster-is-about #film-puller-leader-howto-film-puller-tipster