When we think of accessing microfilm, a reel comes to mind, or perhaps microfiche. But have you ever seen microfilm come inside of a cassette?
No, you can’t use the end of a pencil or your thumb to wind and unwind them; M-cartridges are sturdy, hard plastic cases with a metal hub and plastic spool that protect 16mm film from physical damage during handling or storing. If you’ve read our guide to diseased microfilm, you’ll know that a collection in storage is just as susceptible to physical damages and pollutants as it is to temperature and humidity. This unique solution, which requires a special adaptor to load, unload, and read, would reduce the chance of mishandling the film itself while keeping the spool tidy within the cassette.
Duplicating it represents a bit of a problem. The cartridge microfilm is attached to a sturdy leader within the case. If you have cartridge microfilm that you’re looking to duplicate for archival purposes, you’re in luck – Backstage is able to do so while preserving the utility of the original cartridge.
How does it work?
We use a specific attachment to open cartridges. Once we’ve done so, we take the end of the inner film and unwind it onto a 16mm storage reel. Then comes the tricky part: we’ll cut a portion of the leader and rewind the reel back onto another 16mm storage reel. This will put the film on in the correct direction for duplicating, and don’t worry: what is cut can easily be respliced at no risk to the actual content of the film.
After the reel is duplicated, we wind the film back onto the cartridge spool, merging the new leader we’ve generated with the old. Cleanly spliced, freshly wound, and once again resealed, we’re left with the original copy and a new, duplicated copy, both perfectly usable and preserved.
What types of cartridges can Backstage work with?
At present, Backstage has equipment to work with M-cartridge types. Our preservation studio has long worked with 16mm and 35mm microfilm and has experience with many varieties of formats and types. If you have ANSI, Tuscan SnapLock, or some other form of microfilm that you’d like help identifying, duplicating, or digitizing, don’t hesitate to reach out to us at 1.800.288.1265, visit us online at www.bslw.com, or send an email to info@bslw.com.
