DaleWoodrow

Steadicam Arm for Sale CPIIIA Gold spring arm, fully rebuilt and completely re-anodised with all new bearings throughout, new cables & trunnions, etc,. The arm is almost like new and has not been flown since the rebuild. Will carry 35-55lbs. I also have a CPIII EFP Blue spring arm, also completely serviced & re-conditioned with all new bearings, pulleys, re-anodised etc., and with a reversible socket block. This arm is also in excellent condition and has not been flown since the rebuild. Will carry 23-38 lbs. I am putting both arms up for sale as I am seriously considering buying a new Steadyrig Silver Spring arm (which will fly 13 to 63lbs). I don't mind which arm I part with as long as I have an arm whilst I wait for delivery on the new arm, then I'll trade-in the other arm against the new one. No down time. Any serious offers considered.

Hi Leigh, You should contact Jim Bartell at BarTech Engineering: www.bartechengineering.com ,he'll be able to give you accurate technical power input info about your BFD unit, as with your gold topstage 12v power output you should contact Glidecam directly to check what the amperage is and if its regulated( ie if it is a constant unfluctuating current). As you know it is important when connecting any device be it a Focus/Iris reciever, monitor, frame line generator etc that the power source it is recieving/sending will not short term or long term damage any of the sensitive circuitry that could effect warranty and equally important may render you unable to use your equipment that day. Although some of us are not technicians, electricians, engineers or mechanics we all strive to learn and understand the afformentioned as best as we can to aid us in our work and to better understand our rigs components. Also it helps with quick problem solving when a component goes down and you don't have a backup. However, when it comes to powering any unit, your expensive investment that you want to remain reliable, obtaining advice from the manufactures specifications can avoid us unintentionally damaging our equipment. Not trying to be to direct I hope, all the best.. Dale Woodrow

Hi Charles, Contact Hugo from RigEngineering at admin@steadyrig.com, he can provide you with accurate specs on all components of the 3a arm, he is very knowledgable, offers great service and is highly regarded on this forum. Take a look at www.steadyrig.com. Dale Woodrow

Hi Jim and Ari, From that link (thanks to Jim) RF-Link are mentioning a transmitter unit model #M806 suggesting it is ideal for steadicam operators, hmmm lets check the specs first. I tried opening/downloading the PDF for the M806 although it appears the page from their server is unavailable. Ari is this the one that you have? Let us know how further tests of your backup unit goes, can't pass up a semi-reliable backup system those interim moments. cheers :D Dale Woodrow

Hi folks, Here is a link to a US based supplier/retailer of the Archos recorders, their prices are cheap and they offer free shipping worldwide. There are models offering 20G/40G and 80gigabyte hard disc storage all with the same features and functions, just larger storage : ie Archos AV320 (20 gigabytes). AV340 (40G) and AV380 (80gigabytes). http://www.buy.com/retail/computers/store....oc=15876&sptk=1 Mpeg 4 compression is generally not designed for full screen high image quality, it is a compressed image of each interlaced field(or non-interlaced field depending on the media) where information (being many pixels of the same color and/or sharp edges as the compression codec sees as being unnessesary information) and some of the audio frequencies are removed from the data to reduce file size per frame. Mpeg4 is generally used for small windows on various media players for PC/Mac playback and average playback size being 320 x 240, the larger you go the less information there is to fill the pixels per line for clarity. Compared to VHS quality, SVHS or DVD which is Mpeg 2 (less compression meaning less information is removed from the image & audio) it would be difficult to take any Mpeg 4 image, even as a still, and want to be able to see focus changes, depth of focus clearly distinguishable. However as a protable recorder, being substantially lighter and taking up less room than a conventional Sony/JVC/Panasonic portable DV or Digital 8 recorder which offer less compression and almost DVD image quality, these Mpeg4 hard disc recorders offer a choice that is suitable and convenient for what we need when played back on their 3.8"screen, not ideal to transmit this Mpeg 4 highly compressed image to a larger monitor (ie the director) for accurate reference as clarity and sharpness is not going to be as good as transmitting from your video tap or portable tape recorder. A fellow operator has been using his AV320 for a year now and he loves it. I guess it comes down to deciding between the conventional portable DV tape recorder having the ability to record quality video reference but you having to carry the weight and the space it takes up on your sled, plus changing/storing your tapes and the extra battery. Where as compared to the slim line Digital compressed video with a poorer quality image but with up to 80 hours of video (and audio if you want) a tenth of the weight and no tape changes may work for some. I think that when the technology is able to provide a lower compression in a similar sized housing offering better image quality than what is available in the Mpeg4 Archos units, say Mpeg2 compression and their codecs which is far superior in image quality than Mpeg4 yet requires more hardrive space per field. You would have little, if any, unnoticed visual discrepancies and the Director etc being very happy with your transmitted image for in the field playback if a Video assist is not available, just like in those low budget jobs.. I would like to believe that companies like Archos would take their AV380 80gigabyte storage Video recorder and have the option to use Mpeg2 compression which uses more drive space than Mpeg4 but offers far better image quality, just like the options that are available on current Digital still cameras where you have the choice of 4 picture resolutions from highest to lowest resolution and amount of storage required per image, when that happens I think we will be almost completely satisfied and so will our crew when viewing our transmitted or playback video. Fly Safe, Dale Woodrow

Hi Guys, here is a link to a reliable DVD +/_R recordable media supplier http://americal.com/cgi-bin/smart_cart2.cg...rs.html&src=FWT for very cost effective generic blank and branded DVD recordable media, there is a great range to choose from. I have been using a brand called Shintaro that offers a white face enabling direct printing onto it, compatable with printers that have the ability to feed DVD and cradle through. There are many bulk packages of recordable DVD and CD media where there is a 10% reading/writing error rate, say every 10 discs 1 is possibly faulty, this is usually due to poor quality control in the manufacturing stage and or/packaging handling stage and it can become expensive and time consuming for end users who can't return once you've burned.. So some say buy individually packaged recordable media for reliability, although far more expensive in the long run, i had good runs with the Shintaro product, but people are always scepticle of new brand names. I tried them in 2002 and still OK. Dale Woodrow

Thanks Rob and Irwin for your input. After researching into structural tolerances and forces applied to steadicam arms with a mechanical engineer he agreed that the likelyhood of hair line fractures in the arm bones and more so around the allen bolts of the XO Arm would be more evident in this design than compared to others such as Pro and CP 3a etc, mainly because the bones and pivoting sections on any arm must be able to withstand inner torque and torsion from the springs under load held in a static postion, which most arms on the market can provide, until the load and boom range increases the forces on all components, especially the bones and connecting bolts which receive an array of twisting and tensile stresses that ultimately stress the structure as a whole. So to put it simply, arm bones and pivoting joints, including bolts and rods, should be of a design that can handle more than the maximum tolerances that will be subjected to the arm. Although it is difficult to know exactly the many variances of tolerances in all axis including torsion stresses that any arm will be subjected to in a year of flying various rigs inunder wet and dry conditions, it is safe to say that 3a's and the like have had for many many years great reliability with minimal service and repairs from normal use, not accidental damage. So in choosing another arm, whether it be for standard flying and the occasional flat out running, a Pro or refurbished 3a would be a good choice, that is of course not to imply that any other arm including the XO arm is not lower in quality or poor in design, but we all choose our equipment with the advice, recommendation from our peers and also purchasing what is appropriate for our needs. So thanks guys for your thoughts and comments. Dale Woodrow

Hi Everyone, What a great Forum, glad to see so many Ops from all locations offering advice and seeking helpfull pointers. I'm in the process of building a new rig, and are looking possibly at the MK-V XO modular arm as one of my choices. Are there any operators who own one of these or have used one on a long day shoot with heavy and light loads? If you have, please provide your thoughts and opinions.. Ideally I like the Pro arm but my money tree hasn't bloomed enough.. Cheers.... :D Dale