I love tungsten
lighting. As a gaffer, there is no
better light source for great color rendition and skin tones.
There are downsides
to tungsten lighting: the large power draw, the heat output, and the
impracticality of using them as daylight sources. I foresee in the not-to-distant-future where
tungsten lights will be obsolete, but that day isn’t here yet. Tungsten is still the best way to go in the
studio every time.
I have a small
package of Mole Richardson and Arri tungsten lights. I love the Mole heads. Nothing conjures up Hollywood lighting more
than the classic Mole Richardson lights.
I
have been refurbishing all my old Mole lights this year.
I believe it is important to bring equipment to the job that works well, and looks
good. It is professionalism.
I bought my
Mole lights years ago, but have never worked on them. They still had the names of long gone
production houses stenciled on them.
Some needed repairs.
I have a couple
classic Mole Juniors, Type 412. These
are one of my favorite lights with the large 10-inch fresnels. They are great
for portraiture.
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| Repainted Mole 412, You can tell this is an old head by the tubular yoke. Later heads have a cast yoke. |
I repainted the
heads. I have been concerned about the
asbestos leads from the power switch to the socket. To reduce the possibility of any dust coming
off of these, I carefully wrapped the leads with white silicone tape. I believe this will hold up well with the high temperatures.
I removed the
asbestos gasket around the lens and replaced it with a couple layers of
fiberglass tape.
I’m not sure
what the purpose of the gasket is. I’m
guessing it is to protect the lens from thermal shock from the metal retaining
ring.
I cleaned the reflector
and the fresnel. The lights are noticeable
brighter, and they look great, too.
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| Finished refurbished Mole 412. Just like new! |
Other Mole
lights I have been working on recently are my Mole 2K zips, Type 2591. The 2K zip is a great light. Unfortunately, the switches often fail.
Worse, servicing the switches is a nightmare that has befallen many a set
electrician.
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| This is typical of what you find in a failed head with heat damaged wiring. Note the bare hot lead. |
My first
experience with this was on a shoot many years ago working as a set
electrician. We had a zip with broken
switches that we needed to use. Young
and eager, I told the gaffer I would replaces the switches.
It seems like
it would be a simple thing, but it was not.
The switch housing is unnecessarily very small making wiring and
assembling the housing difficult.
The zip I
thought I would quickly repair, took me something like an hour to get back
together and working.
The other
design problem with the 2K zips is heat.
The switches are just too close to the lamps and get very hot. If the heads are tilted down, as they often
are, the heat rises directly to the switches.
Little wonder the switches often fail.
I had 4 heads
needing switches; 8 total switches if I replaced them all. Shopping around I found a typical price of
$35! Anyone who works on electronics
would know that is an absurd price for what should be a $5 part.
(This is a
common problem with repairing equipment in our business. Companies charge extravagant prices for
parts. One of my Creamsource Doppios lost a knob on a movie. I called about a replacement and was quoted
around $45 dollars! Shopping around, I
found the manufacture of the the knob. I
purchase the identical replacements for $6 each direct from the manufacturer.)
I bought
Carling switches (PN EK204-73XG) for around $5 each. They have a higher rating of 20 amps at 125
volts. They are slightly larger, but fit
in the enclosures.
Some of the original
switches were curiously rated at 8.33 at 125 volts. This is right at the max load for a 1k
lamp. I don’t know any electrician that
would use equipment at its max load rating.
It would be like me putting a 1400-amp load on a 1400-amp generator. (That
would end badly.) It would be like a
rigger hanging 1-ton of lights on a 1-ton motor. You just don’t do that. You leave some room for error and safety.
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| Finished wiring ready for assembly. Note extra vent holes. Ceramic wirenuts and fiberglass tape to handle the high heat. |
I’m hoping the
Carling switches with the 20-amp rating will tolerate the high heat better than
the original switches. I also drilled additional vent holes in the housing to hopefully lower the heat in the housing.
I don't know if it is a factory thing, but the switch housings are often separated from the light with washer spacers. I was sure to do the same when I re-assembled the housings. I wonder if it is just a thing set technicians have done to reduce heat convection and allow a little more air circulation.
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| Repainting before and after. |
I repainted the
heads and now they look and work good as new.
Next on my repair list is this cool old Mole Baby Type 406 from the 1940s.
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| Mole Richardson Baby Fresnel Type 406 from the 1940s. |
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| Cool plaque on the side of the light. |
Danny at Ample Power and Light gave it to me. I plan to restore it and put it in my office.