I can't vouch for the condition of 16mm film being sold by eBay sellers. For best results always purchase new Kodak or Fuji 16mm film, however if you get a good feeling from the person selling 16mm film on eBay, then you may get a good result.

Don't be shy about asking the seller questions about the age and condition of any 16mm film before you bid on it. It's also a good idea to verify that the film is current enough that it can be processed by a film lab using currently available film processing chemistry. Repurchased film from eBay can be a way to save some money while testing out a 16mm camera before an important film shoot. Repurchased film from eBay might also be an option on super low budget productions. If you were to run out of your new 16mm film stock supply having some recans (repurchased 16mm) might be better than nothing at all. If what you are shooting does not have to match anything already shot then your chances for coming up with useable results will increase.

There are many different kinds of repurchased 16mm film stocks you can buy off of eBay. There is excess film that was bought for a movie and the 16mm film can was never opened at all. This sealed film can may have been on the filming location for as long as the shoot was going on but never opened. It's just extra film. This would be called sealed film because the film seal was never broken and the film remained in the can, sealed at all times. As long as the sealed film was not put in warm temperatures or accidentally dropped into liquid, and is not too old, it is probably fine.

There are also situations where film is prepped and put into a film magazine but never actually shot.The sequence of events would be the film can is opened in a changing bag, loaded into a film magazine, then later on the film magazine is put back into a changing bag and the film is returned into it's original film can. This would be called a recan. Extra film magazines are kept pre-loaded with film so when the main camera film magazine runs out another film magazine can almost instantaneously replace it. It is pretty much inevitable that every film shoot will have extra film left at the end of the shoot.

If the 16mm film was partially shot, the remaining film that was not shot can be put back into the changing bag, taken out of the magazine and then reloaded into the film can and resealed. This would be called both a recan and a short end.

Theoretically, the more a film is put in and out of a film changing bag, the more likely it is that it will attract small pieces of dust. This is where the risk comes into the equation. If you are spending a lot of money on your film shoot, then saving a porportionally small amount on the film may not make sense. However, having some recans or short ends as back up just in case your production runs out of film is probably going to better than having no film at all. Short ends can also be useful if you just need to grab an insert or two and you don't want to open another large new film can. But once again, there is a slightly bigger risk something could have gone wrong somewhere in the film can's travels.

Some eBay sellers are the actual people who loaded and reloaded the film and they may take pride in keeping the film in as good of a shape as possible. So there is no one rule that can be applied to short ends and recans other than the smaller the format, the more chance there will be more dust particles. That is why short ends and recans that end up loaded into super-8 film cartridges are really not a good idea, but for 16mm and 35mm, the chances decrease because the ratio between dust to image size is significantly bigger than with Super-8.

IF, and I repeat IF you were to unknowingly purchase dusty recans or shortends you might first notice extra dust in the film gate after one of these recans or short ends has been used. IF that were to happen, it becomes an on set decision as to how to proceed. What one wants to avoid is using a short end, it contaminates the film gate, and then when you go to a nee scene with fresh film there is a hair in the gate from the previous short ends that went through the camera. That is why the film gate is supposed to be checked quite often. IF after the film is processed and either a print is made or a transfer to video is done one sees excessive black or white excessive specks of dust, there are computer software programs that can electronically remove these dust particles so all may not be lost. Always inspect a changing bag for dust particles and light leaks before use to make sure the changing bag is in clean pristine condition and has no light leaks.

It makes sense to have DO NOT X-RAY stickers on your shipping box. If someone wants to contact me and suggest which shipping method is the safest I will add it to this guide. Good luck, it's film, it's worth it!