[tonyzoc]

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Regarding that pin... I've used a UV curing hard epoxy resin... Soming like this
https://www.ebay.com/itm/10g-25g-UV-Resin-Clear-Hard-Epoxy-Resins-Jewelry-Ma...-127632-2357-0

I've used it on Pentax PZ-1 cameras to fix the popup flash. A similar situation where there's a metal spring attached to a plastic post. I rebuild the plastic post with the resin, and it's worked well.

[ismaelg]

Thanks Tony! I'll keep that in mind!


VIEW MASTER MODEL G

Hello,

The View Master Model G viewer was introduced in 1959 1962 and was produced until 1977. Instead of bakelite, this new model was made out of lighter injection molded plastic. With such a long production run and made in different countries, many variations exist.
Sawyers was sold to GAF in 1966. So those with the Sawyers logo are from 1959 1962 to 1966.

I got a US made Model G that was in good shape but very dirty. Since it has the Sawyers logo, it is from between 1959 1962 and 1966.







By now, this picture shouldn't be a surprise...



I was pleasantly surprised how nice it turned out.
There are a few tiny scratches here and there. If I wanted to go further, those can be sanded and polished out. If I ever get bored and have nothing else to do I'll do that.
Of course it works perfectly.
The lenses had very little tiny surface scratches that can easily be polished out. Not bad for a 60 years old plastic toy!











Thanks,
Ismael

[ismaelg]

Hello,

This is interesting. I'm finding conflicting information as to when the Model G was released. Some sources say 1959, other 1962. If it replaced the Model E as the main viewer (Model F was a special lighted model that was more expensive), then the 1962 date makes more sense. The Model E was made until 1961. So, as part of my research, I looked thru SEARS Christmas catalogs at christmas.musetechnical.com

From this we can see the Model E was still available in late 1960 and the Model G is shown as new in the '61 Christmas book. So I think the 1962 date makes more sense. I'll edit the previous post.


Thanks,
Ismael

[jbinpg]

Cool! Ours was a white Model G.

[swanlefitte]

I had the model g with about 20 packs of cartridges. My favorites were the Flintstones and one of Uncle Scrooge and the chipmunks in a flying saucer.

I had 2 other film viewer toys. The GE Show N Tell. It played a record on top of a viewer. A slide strip would be placed in it and automaticaly move the slide to the next photo. My favorites were "When Dinosaurs Ruled the Earth" and Davy Crocket. I still know the song for the Davy Crocket one. "Davy Crocket was there Jimmie Bowie was there, they were know to fight for liberty. When the smoke had cleared, all was lost as feared, but they won a special place in history." Here it is. 1965 GE SHOW 'N' TELL Picturesound Program | Etsy

I also had a Fisher Price #460 Movie Viewer. I had Bambi and one other cartridge. The best part was you could stop the movie or reverse it. I really appreciated the drawing of the Disney studio. Each frame was incredible, and I would stare at the details. https://inchfree.top/index.php?main_page=product_info&products_id=15444

I have seen the actual material from disney. (My parents owned a cell.), I have seen the movies in the theater. Looking at a slide through a viewer with sunlight behind it is so much better.

edit: I can still watch the Show N Tell on Youtube.

You Tube

You Tube

[ismaelg]

UNBOXING A c1966 VIEW-MASTER 30 STANDARD PROJECTOR

Hello,

I've been meaning to document this for a while now but I didn't have the chance until now.

Background story:
By the late 1940's the View Master was very successful. Sawyers was tapping into its popularity by releasing tons of new reels, but also new products and accessories. Around 1949 the first projector was launched: The 30W Junior. These would project the reel image on a wall, just like the slide projectors. Actually, Sawyers also made regular slide projectors and by the mid 60's was second only to Kodak. A very lucrative market that attracted GAF to purchase Sawyers, but more on that in a bit. Sawyers eventually launched a whole series of View Master reel projectors, but these were 2D, meaning only one of the pictures was projected. They did release one 3D projector, the Stereomatic 500 which was to be used with special 3D glasses and screen. At almost $180 back in 1952 it was certainly not a toy!!
The Junior was marketed until the mid '60s as the lowest tier basic projector. By the late 50's a new series of brown desktop projectors were available in 30W, 100W and 300W power. Of course the higher the power the bigger it could project.
At some point between 1965 and 1966, the design of the projector changed to a more modern, less bulky and most likely lower cost plastic. In the 1965 Sears Christmas catalog the old style projectors are still offered but in the 1966 Christmas catalog, the new version is shown. So the change must have happened in very late '65 or early '66.
However, an important milestone happened in 1966: The company was sold to GAF. I don't know how quickly the tool dies were updated, but all the products were soon labeled as GAF, not Sawyers. These projectors were made for years to come and I think the base 30W model even survived other company mergers. Many of these projectors you see are GAF.

My specimen

So, a while ago I was able to score this standard 30W projector for a whopping undisclosed amount of less than $5 plus shipping.
To my surprise, the box looks great. Long story short, this looks as good as it did over 55 years ago.
Here is where it gets interesting: It is the latest modern styling, but it is branded Sawyers. So this will put it mostly around 1966.







(insert choir of angels singing Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh... here)


Unmolested documentation


According to this, the 30W is good for up to 18" x 16" projection at 10 1/2 feet


Only minor dust if any




Sawyer's


It works with 7 (regular) and 14 scene reels


The big thumbwheel adjust the front legs height


Blue top lamp. This could be most likely the original lamp.


But, does it work?


I was able to push it a little over 10 feet and got a nice 22" x 20" image projected on the wall.


I forced showed to my kids (ages 20 and 21) a whole reel of 7 images before they ran away!

Thanks,
Ismael

[womble]

Brilliant stuff Ismael, great fun and interesting. I'm glad I can vicariously enjoy the View Master without having to find room to put it!

Kris.

[ismaelg]

Model E viewer

Hello,

By far my most challenging View-Master restoration to date: View-Master Model E

The View-Master Model C of 1946 was a success and paved the basic design of viewers for decades to come. In 1955, the Model E replaced the Model C as the main viewer. In case you wonder what happened to Model D, it was also launched in 1955 but it was/is the best premium viewer in history with focusing ability and bigger magnification. It was built until the early 70's.
But back to Model E: It was produced from 1955 to 1961-62 when the Model G replaced it. It was the last main viewer made of phenolic plastic (bakelite). It was made not only in the USA, but also in plants around the world like Belguim, Australia, India, Spain, and France. Color variations exist but the dark brown seems to be the most common.

My specimen:

So a while ago I got this dirty, old and tired Model E:







I have seen quite a few Model E viewers online with a cracked upper right corner.
Bakelite is very hard, but also very brittle. I think that most likely if the advance lever is let go from the bottom, the powerful spring will slam it hard against the housing and eventually crack it.


However, a simple clean job was not going to be enough. The viewer was not working properly and rattled like crazy inside. HA! As if I needed an excuse to open it


Not surprisingly, bits and pieces fell off

After a deep clean that was far more challenging than expected, the structural broken pieces were rebuilt. Some rust was fought on internal metal parts inside.
These viewers don't use screws. They are held together by 4 corner barbed metal pieces that grab and should not let go ever. After all, these were not intended to be serviced. Two of these were broken. The good ones were cleaned and de-rusted. For the missing ones, I tried several ideas including super magnets. At the end, I ended up making one plastic pressure peg for the bottom and shaped a custom wooden dowel for the upper one.




Everything went back together. Bottom line, of course it works!
I may have got carried away with the polishing.... and I fear it could now shine a little bit better than when it left the factory... sorry













The crack was cleaned but left untouched as a proud badge of honor.




And a few chips here and there.


when I look into your eyes.....


Hope you approve!

Thanks,
Ismael

[BigMackCam]

Model E viewer

...

Everything went back together. Bottom line, of course it works!
I may have got carried away with the polishing.... and I fear it could now shine a little bit better than when it left the factory... sorry

The crack was cleaned but left untouched as a proud badge of honor.




And a few chips here and there.


when I look into your eyes.....


Hope you approve!

A masterful and sympathetic restoration, Ismael... fantastic job, my friend!

I have numerous Bakelite cases for my Soviet lenses, and several have cracks and/or pieces missing. Brittle doesn't even begin to describe it... So I'm sure you're correct on the reason for that crack. Still, I'm glad you held short of trying to fill or otherwise mask it... Your restoration is all the better for retaining a few honest signs of age and wear.

Very well done!

[womble]

Super job as always. I'm really enjoying this thread and am really trying to not buy a Viewmaster Personal Camera... but my they look cool. The fact they take photos with the film on the way out and the way in is pretty neat.

K.

[ismaelg]

1950's Tru-Vue Viewer

Hello,

As previously mentioned, 3D pictures are as old as photography itself. View-Master came into the scene in 1939, but there were other players in the market as well.
Tru-Vue was launched in 1931-32 and became popular after the 1933 "Century of Progress" expo in Chicago. This company from Rock Island Illinois produced a stereo viewer that used 35mm stereo filmstrips. Forum member Riggson (Robert) posted his viewer earlier in this thread. Check it out!
View-Master made a big splash into the scene because of using brilliant color film and having a strong marketing and sales force among other things. While there were some smaller players, Tru-Vue was the main competitor to View-Master. By the late 1940's they were selling over a million each of film strips and reels. View-Master was growing very fast and Tru-Vue launched its own color films to counter. However, in 1951, Sawyer's (maker of View-Master) purchased the Tru-Vue company. Not only it would neutralize a major competitor, but Tru-Vue had the license agreement with Disney. This proved to be very lucrative.
With the purchase, Sawyer's moved all the Tru-Vue assets from Illinois to Beaverton Oregon and ran it as a separate division. I haven't found concrete evidence that the viewers were continued to be produced in Oregon. Only filmstrips seems to have been produced for about a year after the move. Sawyers wanted to redesign the Tru-Vue to leverage View-Master's capabilities. Clarence Romrell, who ran the Tue-Vue's lab and color processes in Illinois, helped redesign the Tru-Vue into the second generation that used vertical cards instead of filmstrips. This viewer was also made out of bakelite (phenolic plastic) like the original. The patent was granted in 1953. See below.
Sawyer's aligned Tru-Vue with children's content and sold in toy stores, while View-Master was sold at Photography and souvenir shops.
I'm not clear as to when this viewer was stopped to be made. Around 1958 a smaller, less expensive and more toy like viewer was launched and both coexisted for a while. The latest ad I have found for the original bakelite vertical card viewer is a 1959 catalog. The smaller one was made until the late '60s.
In 1966 GAF bought Sawyers and the Tru-Vue line was discontinued shortly after when they aligned View-Master with children's content as well.

My specimen:

A while ago I got this Tru-Vue viewer. Seems complete but quite dirty.






These were not really meant to be serviced. So I was able to remove the back diffusers and access the lenses to be cleaned without opening the unit.


In my best Yosemite Sam voice: "CHARGE!!!!!"


OK, I got carried away. I'll stop now.










Now, this was done weeks ago, but I was waiting to get this:
I was able to score a card from ebay. Not surprisingly, the colors have faded to a magenta cast.






My friend and role model Goofy is there!


The advance may not be as smooth as a View-Master. Not sure if it is just worn copy variation or by design.

*BONUS*
"Bakelite Contemporaries" from the mid 50's


Image from the public US Patent Office Website


I hope you enjoy this.

Thanks,
Ismael

[que es tu]

I had a beige/light grey one in the late 60's and loved it. I was really into science, the space race and all things military (my father was an ex Royal Marine Commando (WWII era)) and my favourite discs included subjects like the NASA space programs, The Royal Navy and one covering ICBMs (this was at the height of the 'Cold War').

I also had a great tour of the luxurious Queen Mary cruise liner and a scenic tour of The Alps. I also had many multi-disc sets including several covering Disney movies/cartoons.

My mother bought herself one of the talking View Masters when they were first released but didn't use it much and it just gathered dust in a closet!

Wow! I didn’t know there was a talking view master!! Sounds a little creepy. I had a regular red one in the late seventies, mostly dinosaur slides!

[Tako Kichi]

Wow! I didn’t know there was a talking view master!! Sounds a little creepy. I had a regular red one in the late seventies, mostly dinosaur slides!

Everything you need to know and more!
talking viewmaster - Google Search
View-Master Talking Model - ViewMaster has something to say!

You Tube

You Tube

[ismaelg]

Hello,

Very excited to present a grail in this collection: My new Model B viewer!

The Model B was launched in 1944 during WWII. The Model A was made of Tenite, a plastic that was/is very prone to warping. Since the US military was a major customer for training purposes, production during WWII continued. The clamshell hinge was redesigned, but the Model B is similar to the Model A as it was mainly a material upgrade to Bakelite. It was made until 1946-47, when the all new Model C was launched.

My specimen:
I was able to score this tired sample for a fraction of the current prices. I'm very cheap and the description was not clear what it was. The fuzzy pics gave me a hint.

As received:








At first it only seemed slightly dirty. However, close inspection revealed it was tampered with. One of the diffuser lenses was flipped incorrectly and both lenses had a white residue as if some adhesive was used. The white specs you see turned out to be a hassle to remove. At the end, everything was properly cleaned but it required disassembly.
Again, it is possible I may have been carried away with the cleaning. Now it needs to be handled with gloves or fingerprints will show... and I'll slap whoever touches it without gloves and leaves a fingerprint....

So here it is after some TLC:








All metal parts were cleaned and polished.


You can see chips of missing material here and there as bakelite is extremely brittle.




But; Does it work? OF COURSE IT DOES!

Frozen Niagara Falls




Not bad for a ~75 to 78* years old consumer device!
(*at the moment of this writeup, Feb. 2022)

I hope you approve.

Thanks,
Ismael

[womble]

Yet again, a great job. I wish I had your patience and dexterity. I have neither...