Kolchak: The Night Stalker - His Gear
- Thread starter klung1
- Start date
FANATICO
Sr Member
Where Kolchak and Vincenzo would have sat on the 3rd floor on location, or a sound stage….with the other cast members in between them.
…..”While the show was set in Chicago and some generic location/background filming was done there in summer and early fall, the show was filmed primarily in Los Angeles and at Universal Studios.”….
Peace
…..”While the show was set in Chicago and some generic location/background filming was done there in summer and early fall, the show was filmed primarily in Los Angeles and at Universal Studios.”….
Peace
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FANATICO
Sr Member
About that set of Keys Pocket Prop…
In some scenes Kolchak displays a set of Keys hanging off the bottom edge of his left pants pocket.
Are they suppose to be the keys for the 1966 Mustang? Perhaps, or perhaps not, and just a pocket prop for the scenes being shot when he is not in his car.
In a driving scene, I managed to capture, and zoomed in on the key in the ignition switch…see and expand vid at bottom.
Are these one and the same set of keys from his pocket? Or two separate sets?
It is more than likely that any prop keys used in filming are managed by the production Property Master.
Below are screenshots depicting the keys hanging off Kolchak’s pants pocket and in the ignition.
Based on the key, in the ignition…..I’m not seeing any keychain or key fob….what I believe I see, is what’s sometimes call a Serial Tag Tie….as the example seen below. These Tag Tie’s come in different styles and sizes from different manufacturers.
When it comes to the set of keys Kolchak has…look to the left of the keys and you can make out a loop in his pocket (I don’t think it’s pants creases), much like what the Serial Tag Tie loop of plastic would look like only larger than the ignition key Tie loop.
Perhaps the serial tag portion has production inventory control info.
I think there’s 2 separate sets of keys (with backups) dedicated to different scenes.
So…..would I want to be screen accurate using what I believe to be Serial Tag Tie’s…..I’ll take a pass on that.
But what I have chosen to do, so as to have keys hanging out my pocket like Kolchak, is to get a silver with yellow background, Mustang logo’d 1966 key fob (Etsy) and to go with it, a reproduction set of circa 1966 Ford Mustang ignition and trunk key blanks (eBay), shown front and back of each. Don’t know if I’ll try to get the keys arbitrarily cut, for purposes of realism.
I opted not to get the other version of the fob….which is the logo and leather style. I would think that if Kolchak would have used the leather style, then as the keys hang over the edge of the pocket opening, you would be able to see the portion of the dark leather in which the key ring itself passes through.
I like the idea of car keys versus house or any other possibilities for the purposes of a set of keys.
Peace
In some scenes Kolchak displays a set of Keys hanging off the bottom edge of his left pants pocket.
Are they suppose to be the keys for the 1966 Mustang? Perhaps, or perhaps not, and just a pocket prop for the scenes being shot when he is not in his car.
In a driving scene, I managed to capture, and zoomed in on the key in the ignition switch…see and expand vid at bottom.
Are these one and the same set of keys from his pocket? Or two separate sets?
It is more than likely that any prop keys used in filming are managed by the production Property Master.
Below are screenshots depicting the keys hanging off Kolchak’s pants pocket and in the ignition.
Based on the key, in the ignition…..I’m not seeing any keychain or key fob….what I believe I see, is what’s sometimes call a Serial Tag Tie….as the example seen below. These Tag Tie’s come in different styles and sizes from different manufacturers.
When it comes to the set of keys Kolchak has…look to the left of the keys and you can make out a loop in his pocket (I don’t think it’s pants creases), much like what the Serial Tag Tie loop of plastic would look like only larger than the ignition key Tie loop.
Perhaps the serial tag portion has production inventory control info.
I think there’s 2 separate sets of keys (with backups) dedicated to different scenes.
So…..would I want to be screen accurate using what I believe to be Serial Tag Tie’s…..I’ll take a pass on that.
But what I have chosen to do, so as to have keys hanging out my pocket like Kolchak, is to get a silver with yellow background, Mustang logo’d 1966 key fob (Etsy) and to go with it, a reproduction set of circa 1966 Ford Mustang ignition and trunk key blanks (eBay), shown front and back of each. Don’t know if I’ll try to get the keys arbitrarily cut, for purposes of realism.
I opted not to get the other version of the fob….which is the logo and leather style. I would think that if Kolchak would have used the leather style, then as the keys hang over the edge of the pocket opening, you would be able to see the portion of the dark leather in which the key ring itself passes through.
I like the idea of car keys versus house or any other possibilities for the purposes of a set of keys.
Peace
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FANATICO
Sr Member
Kolchak Mini Me’s
Custom’s, One-Offs, Limited Release’s…throughout the years past.
Great for taking these, if you can ever find one, to a Con with you as a mini you conversation piece.
This custom one appears to be still available from durobo.bigcartel.com comes with wooden stake and camera. It’s a most current batch.
Peace
Custom’s, One-Offs, Limited Release’s…throughout the years past.
Great for taking these, if you can ever find one, to a Con with you as a mini you conversation piece.
This custom one appears to be still available from durobo.bigcartel.com comes with wooden stake and camera. It’s a most current batch.
Peace
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FANATICO
Sr Member
I mulled it over enough to buy one. It wasn’t cheap!
I’ve asked for a modification in the hopes that they are unpainted figures until one is ordered, and then they hand paint them and then seal them in its card packaging.
My request has to do with how Kolchak’s tie is painted with a “V” end and not a Square end like it should be. I sent the reference picture below in which I show (using Photoshop) what I’m requesting to be done.
I’m not asking to modify the sculpt of the figure, just repaint the tie with a square end. I realize that the sculpt might be moulded with the tie shape itself being slightly raised …. but that’s ok with me.
If they could make this paint change before sealing it on the packaging card…then that would be great.
Because of the cost, I’m not sure I want to rip it out it’s packaging just to re-paint the tie myself. There’s value in keeping collectible figures in its original packaging.
UPDATE: I just got the following email reply…..
Re: A Photoshop comparison of my request for clarification..Re: Asking for a favor….before sealing the sculpt on to the card packaging
Hey there! So glad you brought that up cause that’s definitely somethung I have overlooked in all the editions of this figure that Jose and I have released. This being our third round of offering this figure, I hate that I’ve let that detail go unchecked.
This is actually an easy fix and a convenient time for it too as I was hoping to make a new base mold for that figure soon anyway. I can totally get you the newest edition that will have that straight cut tie to it! Thanks so much for the support and especially that keen eye for detail dude!
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FANATICO
Sr Member
I guess the price ain’t so bad for a custom considering some Star Wars 3.75”….
I’ve put the bug in his ear with reference pics about the shirt color, black belt with silver buckle, white green Adidas, black socks, cuffed straight legged pants ending higher than the perceived ankle bone. Kolchak wore his pants, “high watered”
Also, his pics online do not show Kolchak’s hat in detail as far as paint scheme of the hatband, so, he now has pics of that as well.
He has not yet responded to those additional references yet, beyond the tie change, he already committed to me to do. So I’m appreciative of that in itself.
I suggest if anyone to order this sculpt figure…. to also request the tie paint change and perhaps the others I mentioned additionally…. and see what happens.
He did mention he may do a new mould soon, so if he does, now would be the time for changes.
I’ve put the bug in his ear with reference pics about the shirt color, black belt with silver buckle, white green Adidas, black socks, cuffed straight legged pants ending higher than the perceived ankle bone. Kolchak wore his pants, “high watered”
Also, his pics online do not show Kolchak’s hat in detail as far as paint scheme of the hatband, so, he now has pics of that as well.
He has not yet responded to those additional references yet, beyond the tie change, he already committed to me to do. So I’m appreciative of that in itself.
I suggest if anyone to order this sculpt figure…. to also request the tie paint change and perhaps the others I mentioned additionally…. and see what happens.
He did mention he may do a new mould soon, so if he does, now would be the time for changes.
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FANATICO
Sr Member
About that Belt
I’ve been able to come up with a close match, imo, to Kolchak’s black leather belt with 2 loops (one is adjustable for belt end excess) …. Also from my point of view, the belt has a square silver/chrome buckle that is no wider than the flap of his zipper or as wide as his shirt button holes center flap. Buckle measures 1 6/8” H x 1 1/2” W.
Picked it up on eBay….”Banana Republic Mens Black Leather Dress Belt”
SKU 5 00078 69217 1
Peace
I’ve been able to come up with a close match, imo, to Kolchak’s black leather belt with 2 loops (one is adjustable for belt end excess) …. Also from my point of view, the belt has a square silver/chrome buckle that is no wider than the flap of his zipper or as wide as his shirt button holes center flap. Buckle measures 1 6/8” H x 1 1/2” W.
Picked it up on eBay….”Banana Republic Mens Black Leather Dress Belt”
SKU 5 00078 69217 1
Peace
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FANATICO
Sr Member
That’s so cooool.
The comic is $40 on eBay.
McFarlane of Spawn fame, collaborated on that….to bad there’s no action figure for the Renegade to pair up with the Kolchak figure….
UPDATE: Thanks for mentioning the comic…..I was able to score it at half the asking price from $40 down to $20 including the free shipping ( free shipping is never Free, it’s built in to whatever price is still being paid by the buyer. In essence, the buyer always pays for the “Free” Shipping).
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FANATICO
Sr Member
About that Weak Link Between the Rollei 16 Tripod Adapter and Flash Unit
Warning! This may be a little winded…..
I’m thinking the Property Master had much frustration with whatever was being used (hodgepodgef) for joining hardware between the Rollei 16 tripod adapter and the flash…. imo, there were different hardware setups. Notice the screenshot below….it appears like a tripod tightening thumb wheel and screw was used for this particular setup from the Zombie scene at the junkyard after hanging the Zombie and Kolchak falling to the ground breaking his flash unit off the camera.
In other episodes, there looks like some pieces of hardware that are squared. These are my guesses of course, since all the camera setups look obscured, in some way on screen where the flash unit is connected to the camera. I realize some setups having the cable wrapped around the connecting hardware.
Below are Fan versions from this website thread and the one I found (left side in pic) on the www. All are well done, in creativity and for what it needs to do, when, as mentioned above, there is no clear exact and verifiable joining hardware setup of the one(s) used on screen that I have seen.
It’s obvious to me that there were times, that the joining hardware setup had issues in keeping the flash aligned and parallel with the camera body causing the flash unit to lean somewhat as seen below. Also, there is a scene from Firefall when Kolchak rushes to the scene where a car with its occupants are on fire….in the scene there is actually an equipment failure blooper in which the flash unit was dangling and swinging about from the camera…see the vid snippet below. How funny they didn’t edit that out.
For sure the camera, flash unit, tripod adapter and presumably the joining hardware (which includes hot shoes / cold shoes, etc.) between the two have taken a beating throughout the episodes. They had to have had backups of course.
The blooper vid snippet….
Below, is my present, but not yet final solution to my joining hardware between the tripod adapter and the flash unit. At first, I too suffered from the camera flash unit lean shown in the bottom right picture. The cause of this? The tolerance between the mating of the cold shoe slot to the flash unit. It was not a snug fit while joined together. There was a small gap between the two which caused the lean to propagate along the body. The solution? A small square shim of paper (perhaps a thin square piece of plastic in the future) between the mating surfaces to fill in the gap. This gap tolerance problem may have also been plaguing the Property Master as well as Kolchak while shooting scenes. The mating between the flash unit and the cold shoe /hot shoe, just wasn’t a tight fit!
A previous member mentioned something to the effect ( I’ll paraphrase), that this Kolchak setup type of Rollei flash unit just was not design to be used directly with adapter hardware to the Rollei 16 tripod adapter….and I agree, that a hodgepodge of components to make the Kolchak camera setup was not well thought out. When you also consider that no matter how tight the hardware is screwed onto the tripod adapter, the flash unit has a tendency to loosen up and start to spin. One probable solution to prevent the flash unit from spinning off the tripod adapter is to use locktite or a lock washer or (and not recommended) some sort of adhesive on where the joining hardware is screwed into the tripod adapter.
Another problem when screwing into the tripod adapter…is tightening into the tripod adapter screw hole itself. It’s hit and miss at times to start screwing into the tripod adapter and hope that after tightening the joining hardware and putting the flash unit on, that it all lines up between the flash unit body and the camera body in terms of alignment parallel, perpendicular, etc. so that the body of the flash unit is not ****** past the rectangle body of the camera, off angle.
My solution with hardware from eBay, was to screw in the 1/4” male thread / female thread adapter (spacer) hardware FIRST and snug tight…then place the cold shoe adapter on top and align it straight, angular with the camera body…then screw in the attaching cold shoe hex head 1/4” thread male screw snug tight.
This cures the camera and flash unit aligning correctly, but still the unloosening factor of the entire flash unit still remains. I may have a possible alternative solution in mind. But for now, what you see is what my setup looks like now.
Peace
Warning! This may be a little winded…..
I’m thinking the Property Master had much frustration with whatever was being used (hodgepodgef) for joining hardware between the Rollei 16 tripod adapter and the flash…. imo, there were different hardware setups. Notice the screenshot below….it appears like a tripod tightening thumb wheel and screw was used for this particular setup from the Zombie scene at the junkyard after hanging the Zombie and Kolchak falling to the ground breaking his flash unit off the camera.
In other episodes, there looks like some pieces of hardware that are squared. These are my guesses of course, since all the camera setups look obscured, in some way on screen where the flash unit is connected to the camera. I realize some setups having the cable wrapped around the connecting hardware.
Below are Fan versions from this website thread and the one I found (left side in pic) on the www. All are well done, in creativity and for what it needs to do, when, as mentioned above, there is no clear exact and verifiable joining hardware setup of the one(s) used on screen that I have seen.
It’s obvious to me that there were times, that the joining hardware setup had issues in keeping the flash aligned and parallel with the camera body causing the flash unit to lean somewhat as seen below. Also, there is a scene from Firefall when Kolchak rushes to the scene where a car with its occupants are on fire….in the scene there is actually an equipment failure blooper in which the flash unit was dangling and swinging about from the camera…see the vid snippet below. How funny they didn’t edit that out.
For sure the camera, flash unit, tripod adapter and presumably the joining hardware (which includes hot shoes / cold shoes, etc.) between the two have taken a beating throughout the episodes. They had to have had backups of course.
The blooper vid snippet….
Below, is my present, but not yet final solution to my joining hardware between the tripod adapter and the flash unit. At first, I too suffered from the camera flash unit lean shown in the bottom right picture. The cause of this? The tolerance between the mating of the cold shoe slot to the flash unit. It was not a snug fit while joined together. There was a small gap between the two which caused the lean to propagate along the body. The solution? A small square shim of paper (perhaps a thin square piece of plastic in the future) between the mating surfaces to fill in the gap. This gap tolerance problem may have also been plaguing the Property Master as well as Kolchak while shooting scenes. The mating between the flash unit and the cold shoe /hot shoe, just wasn’t a tight fit!
A previous member mentioned something to the effect ( I’ll paraphrase), that this Kolchak setup type of Rollei flash unit just was not design to be used directly with adapter hardware to the Rollei 16 tripod adapter….and I agree, that a hodgepodge of components to make the Kolchak camera setup was not well thought out. When you also consider that no matter how tight the hardware is screwed onto the tripod adapter, the flash unit has a tendency to loosen up and start to spin. One probable solution to prevent the flash unit from spinning off the tripod adapter is to use locktite or a lock washer or (and not recommended) some sort of adhesive on where the joining hardware is screwed into the tripod adapter.
Another problem when screwing into the tripod adapter…is tightening into the tripod adapter screw hole itself. It’s hit and miss at times to start screwing into the tripod adapter and hope that after tightening the joining hardware and putting the flash unit on, that it all lines up between the flash unit body and the camera body in terms of alignment parallel, perpendicular, etc. so that the body of the flash unit is not ****** past the rectangle body of the camera, off angle.
My solution with hardware from eBay, was to screw in the 1/4” male thread / female thread adapter (spacer) hardware FIRST and snug tight…then place the cold shoe adapter on top and align it straight, angular with the camera body…then screw in the attaching cold shoe hex head 1/4” thread male screw snug tight.
This cures the camera and flash unit aligning correctly, but still the unloosening factor of the entire flash unit still remains. I may have a possible alternative solution in mind. But for now, what you see is what my setup looks like now.
Peace
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FANATICO
Sr Member
FANATICO
Sr Member
About that Rollei 16 Camera
Produced in Germany, there seems to have been two model Rollei 16 Cameras produced back in the day. One was for distribution to the U.S. under contract branding for Honeywell and one for the rest of the world.
Below shows the ad and branding logo for the Honeywell model. Notice the price for the camera itself….$179.00.
Notice the Honeywell branding logo on the side of the camera in the Kolchak screenshot on his desk. If you have the Honeywell branded camera that’s great. If you don’t have the Honeywell branded camera, it doesn’t mean it was not an alternative to be used on other episodes. As mentioned, I’m sure there were backups. I have not yet had the time to see if the non-Honeywell branded camera was used.
If you’ve bought your camera below the original $179.50, then you’ve done good per se.
When I was on the hunt for the camera, this thread impressed upon me that getting the tripod adapter was a PITA. So I set out to find the camera and tripod adapter, together in one sale. I accomplished this goal in a creative way.
Instead of searching eBay the English version, I went to the eBay German version. Mind you, I don’t speak or read German. But Google Translate does . In the search block, I simply searched Rollei 16. Lucky for me (and perhaps now for someone reading this)… I was able to score the camera and tripod adapter, plus other accessories in a kit form for less than $130 USD total, including the shipping. The auction read (after translation) may not ship to the U.S.. Not giving up, I contacted the Seller. The Seller agreed to ship me the kit! after some back and forth translating communication. It was one of my better eBay wheel and deals I’ve ever done. The shipping cost by DHL was approximate and she had never shipped to the U.S., so I sent an approximate total. Once she paid for the pre-shipping, she informed me that she will be sending “change back” from the shipping. Wow! I was blown away to be getting change back in coinage. Euro’s to be exact…that’s ok, I can convert. Below is what I received….(the red squeeze bulb is not a Rollei product, I assume it was just thrown in by the previous user for blowing dust off the lens and other camera parts.)
As of writing the post…on eBay de (Germany) there are two auctions in which the Rollei 16 has the tripod adapter to go with it. Bare in mind….like mine, coming from Germany, these do not have the Honeywell branding logo on the side. A dismissible detail when you consider how hard it is to track down or wait for a tripod adapter to show up.
The English user manual could be found here….. Rollei 16 User Manual PDF
Finally, the Rollei 16 Camera model is the prevalent model used on screen. I have yet to identify the the Rollei 16S model. One of the most noticeable elements between the two, is where the text of the model is positioned and placed on to the front of the camera as shown below.
Good luck to those who are seeking to still get the Camera and Tripod Adapter. A tip, when buying on EBay, always contact the Seller and try to negotiate low costs for the item and or shipping costs….you’d be surprised. I’ve managed to save $$$. Always ask….all they could do is say No…but if you don’t ask, you’ll never know that you might have been able to get lower costs …. Really, a good approach on anything in life when making purchases or just wanting something.
Produced in Germany, there seems to have been two model Rollei 16 Cameras produced back in the day. One was for distribution to the U.S. under contract branding for Honeywell and one for the rest of the world.
Below shows the ad and branding logo for the Honeywell model. Notice the price for the camera itself….$179.00.
Notice the Honeywell branding logo on the side of the camera in the Kolchak screenshot on his desk. If you have the Honeywell branded camera that’s great. If you don’t have the Honeywell branded camera, it doesn’t mean it was not an alternative to be used on other episodes. As mentioned, I’m sure there were backups. I have not yet had the time to see if the non-Honeywell branded camera was used.
If you’ve bought your camera below the original $179.50, then you’ve done good per se.
When I was on the hunt for the camera, this thread impressed upon me that getting the tripod adapter was a PITA. So I set out to find the camera and tripod adapter, together in one sale. I accomplished this goal in a creative way.
Instead of searching eBay the English version, I went to the eBay German version. Mind you, I don’t speak or read German. But Google Translate does . In the search block, I simply searched Rollei 16. Lucky for me (and perhaps now for someone reading this)… I was able to score the camera and tripod adapter, plus other accessories in a kit form for less than $130 USD total, including the shipping. The auction read (after translation) may not ship to the U.S.. Not giving up, I contacted the Seller. The Seller agreed to ship me the kit! after some back and forth translating communication. It was one of my better eBay wheel and deals I’ve ever done. The shipping cost by DHL was approximate and she had never shipped to the U.S., so I sent an approximate total. Once she paid for the pre-shipping, she informed me that she will be sending “change back” from the shipping. Wow! I was blown away to be getting change back in coinage. Euro’s to be exact…that’s ok, I can convert. Below is what I received….(the red squeeze bulb is not a Rollei product, I assume it was just thrown in by the previous user for blowing dust off the lens and other camera parts.)
As of writing the post…on eBay de (Germany) there are two auctions in which the Rollei 16 has the tripod adapter to go with it. Bare in mind….like mine, coming from Germany, these do not have the Honeywell branding logo on the side. A dismissible detail when you consider how hard it is to track down or wait for a tripod adapter to show up.
The English user manual could be found here….. Rollei 16 User Manual PDF
Finally, the Rollei 16 Camera model is the prevalent model used on screen. I have yet to identify the the Rollei 16S model. One of the most noticeable elements between the two, is where the text of the model is positioned and placed on to the front of the camera as shown below.
Good luck to those who are seeking to still get the Camera and Tripod Adapter. A tip, when buying on EBay, always contact the Seller and try to negotiate low costs for the item and or shipping costs….you’d be surprised. I’ve managed to save $$$. Always ask….all they could do is say No…but if you don’t ask, you’ll never know that you might have been able to get lower costs …. Really, a good approach on anything in life when making purchases or just wanting something.
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FANATICO
Sr Member
Badge is much better word than “text”, as you would know, was what I was referring to …Thx for the correct nomenclature and the factoid about the lever.
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Your screen name is well-named. You are finding all the details that others have missed. Good job.
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