Minox 8x11 - film

introduction | Minox/Acmel Slitter | Zipslit

Acmel introduced in 1991, a slitter for 8x11 film, made by Asanuma in Tokyo, which was then marketed for a limited period by Minox and MicroTech in the USA. The Acmel/Minox slitter is made from metal, with rubberised film path with no burrs or rough edges. The slitter is rugged and a precisely made as the camera themselves. The slitter is an essential accessory for the Minox hobbyist!

"With the lights on, the user inserts a standard 35mm cassette of film into the slitter's supply slot, pulls the film tongue emulsion-side up through the slitter guides, under the blades and onto a take-up spool. The film end is then taped onto the spool. Once the film is taped and the user makes sure it runs straight, the lights are turned out and the blade assembly pushed down until all three cutters pierce the film. The crank is turned counter-clockwise while holding the cutter down firmly until the entire roll is cut. The blades do not contact the metal base of the slitter but rather are held softly in a rubber covering. Because of this, the cutters neither break nor wiggle. Once the entire film has been slit, the cassette is detached with one snip of a scissors to cut off the end still attached to the 35 mm cassette, and the user has 2 long rolls of perfectly sized and cut Minox film -- and two strips of perforations to throw away. The strips are straight because the film cannot wobble while you cut, and the edges are clean because the blades are very sharp. A single 36 exposure roll of 35 mm film yields four 36 exposure Minox loads plus two short strips, each about the length of a 15 exposure load. The cutter assembly is so well designed that there is virtually no chance of cutting yourself, even in the dark.

The tricky part begins after the slitting is done. You have to cut off the film in the dark between the frame and the take-up spool, rip off (uncurl) and chuck the perforated strips, and then carefully unwind the 2 Minox-sized strips.

The most important accessory you MUST have is a dark can into which you can put the film while you fish for a cartridge or a scissors, or whatever. A standard 35mm film developing tank is idea for this." Peter Zimmerman November 1996

The Minox price of the slitter was 399DEM (about 203EURO) in 2000, or the same as 30 factory loaded Minox films. MPL quoted 365USD in December 1996. The price in October 2005 rose to 229EUR.

Last Updated on 10th July 2008