Topic: Lines in scans from Canon 8800F

[02Pilot]

OK, I'm coming to the conclusion that my scanner may not be long for this world, but I figured I'd see if anyone had any ideas. Canon 8800F flatbed. I'm getting a dark line in the same spot across all my scans; the thinner the negative, the more apparent the line.

I've read all the internet sources that say this is likely caused by dirt in the calibration area, so I went in to see if that was it. I cleaned both sides of the glass, including the white strip that I can only figure is the calibration area. On the advice of one post, I even taped a piece of white paper over the calibration area. I opened up the scan head and blew clean the internals (mirrors and what is presumably the sensor). None of these altered the situation whatsoever - the line is still there in exactly the same place. Everything is as clean as it can be. Should I assume this is a sensor fault and start shopping, or have I missed something?

[Francois]

Have you tried turning it on the side and tapping on it?
If there's something loose, it should move.

Also, keep in mind that CCD and CMOS sensors generate a static charge when they work, so when dust gets stuck on them, it really gets stuck.

[02Pilot]

Nothing's loose. I inspected the mirrors and sensor as closely as possible (the sensor is shrouded and buried in the scan head) and I don't see anything. It looks exactly like the sort of line I've seen before when there was dirt in the exposed part of calibration area, but I can't see anything at all that could be responsible. Even the light in the lid looks even and clean (though I can't figure out how to get inside the lid to double check).

[Francois]

Getting inside the head usually means extensive dismantling.
I'd first try the side tap method or even burping it like a baby just to see if the line moves.
Then if it's still there, you have basically two choices. Take the whole thing apart or use a Photoshop plugin like wireworm to fix it in post.
If
Come to think about it, does the line appear on both film and opaque materials?
If it's crud on the sensor, it should also be visible if you scan a sheet of white paper.

[Doug Fisher]

It seems like you have done the most common fixes.  If you can't get the line to move position like Francois advised by putting the scanner on its side at about a bit less than vertical, then bumping the scanner gently while you run the scanner through a scanning motion, you may have an issue that won't be a simple fix.  I don't think the issue is due to something in the lid of the scanner.  That most likely would not produce a sharp line in a scan.

Doug

[Francois]

Thing is I really don't know how much depth of field there is on that scanner...
If there is gunk on the top of the film lamp, it might give a dark line. But it would have to be a huge chunk of stuff for it to do that!

[02Pilot]

I think I've solved it. I figured I had nothing to lose, so I actually physically cleaned the mirrors. I couldn't get to the sensor, so I left it alone; I doubted it was the source of the problem. The mirror cleaning didn't help, so I broke into the lid, which is a pain but in the end it's just a few screws and a lot of semi-fragile plastic clips. The diffusion glass wasn't bad, but the lamp had a ton of dust stuck to it. That cleaned off easily, and having done so, the lines seem to be gone.

[SLVR]

nice work. the 8800f was one of those higher end scanners when I got into scanning film some time ago. it's capable of good results. good you brought it back from the dead.

[02Pilot]

I have been quite satisfied with it for B&W. For color, especially 35mm, not so much. I recently got a PrimeFilm XA (Reflecta RPS 10 M), which does a much better job with color. For B&W, however, while the raw scans are better from the XA, I can get equally good results from post-processing scans from the 8800F. The XA is really finicky to use, and the manufacturer software is very limited and fussy (it comes with Silverfast too, which seems to have been designed by sadists).

In any case, I'm glad it's cooperating for the moment.