Alec Jarnagin SOC

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Ari, I purchased an additional TB-6 mounting plate and drilled a small hole (for 1/4-20 screw). I also have a system of weights too - I think I have pictures on the hard drive... Yes, a picture is worth a thousand words...

Only way the motor noise would be a problem is if you racked from close to infinity at full speed in a closet - umm, not likely.

Erwin, I was saying that switching back to the set-up as originally conceived (as on traditional Garfield mounts/front vest) may be the trick. You might view this as a bandage (and I'm aware it takes a bit longer with a PRO arm, but I can't imagine anyone ever waiting on you when one considers all the rest of the BS that goes on switching to a hard mount). Losing 25+ years of compatibility on an industry standard item is not something one does lightly, in my opinion. As for all these other problems people seem to have had with the more traditional Garfield mounts, I'm a little shocked. I've been bounced around on ATVs flying over cobble stone bricks, on and off New York side walks to proceeding running horses in the woods hard mounted to pickup trucks. Come to think of it, the vast majority of vehicle mount work I've done (at least the hard core stuff), I was still using a 3a arm with an aircraft aluminum male socket block. My Garfield mount has the steel receiver. Maybe this is a very good thing. Wait a sec... Yes, I just found this on the PRO web site under accessories: "Hardened Steel Arm Socket Block (Vehicle Mount or Suit/Vest)" "Titanium Arm Socket Block (Suit/Vest only)" "Hardened Aluminium Socket Block (Suit/Vest only)" Titanium is strong, yet brittle. Maybe the original aircraft aluminum male socket blocks should still be used on the arm as well as the hardened steel female for hard mounts? It would take no longer to change out than flipping it over and you'd have a back up to (since I've seen the i-bolts snap on these pieces anyway, putting your arm out of order regardless of what kind of arm you fly).

Love the bright red. Looks great when reflected in glass!

Erwin, I suspect the easiest solution for the time being is to use the more traditional style garfield mounts (Jerry Hill, CP, etc) for vehicle mount situations. This just means that if you use a DSD/Klassen vest, that you have to swap your male (arm) socket block around between soft mounts and hard mounts. I can't imagine that there is enough pressure on the arm to deform it while wearing it on your body (these vests have been in the field for a number of years now). Very interesting find though - thank you for sharing.

Mitch, Foiled again. You must be a faster typer.

Jake, The Sony 900 natively outputs an analog HD component signal (three BNC cables). As of now this is the only form of HD the Ultrabrite accepts. The Panasonic Varicam outputs a SDI signal (serial digital interface - not to be confused with standard definition, in this case). This is an elegant single BNC solution, but the Ultrabrite can not read it. In addition to small onboard downconverters (what I require to shoot HD, as I'm using a TB-6 monitor), I believe you can get a small onboard SDI to analog converter (I know you can get analog to SDI converters for the Sony). Anyway, you will need this if you wish to read the Panasonic HD signal on the Ultrabrite. Good luck.

Congrats Jim. You deserve it. Now let me see, 500 units at $1850 each..... Hum, yeah you can buy that first round of drinks... I'm still using serial #22 (and #65). They work great. The only reason that I don't have an even earlier unit, was Paul Burns needed one right away because his Seitz died. Oh yeah, and I took some time off to get married!

I'm not sure Patrick is saying that he wants to buy a rig, and become a $2000/day operator on "A" list movies overnight. Getting a cheap rig, practicing, using it on small projects, while pursuing a "day job" in the business is indeed another option. Charles Papert got me into this very mess right out of college (granted I'd been playing with cameras since I was six). While doing this, I got a job at a lighting rental house and simultaneously worked as an electrician. On the side, I practiced with Charles' rig at home and on student films (THANK YOU again, Charles). I'd also accompany him on set and quietly observe set-etiquette, etc - a VERY important part of our job. As for Charles, after meeting Ted Churchill, he dropped out of NYU to get into the biz. While he did his time in the lower ranks, he pieced together a model 1 and got into Steadicam. Guy Bee began work at CP at 18 (?). Jimmy Murrow got his model 2 around the college years. Don't discount one's ambitions in their 20's. It is a time when the physical part of it is a snap; train the body so it is second nature to have on a rig. The important thing is to learn proper set-etiquette, composition, etc. from people in the business. Never be too proud in the beginning (or even later); learn, learn, learn. It all depends on what market you are in, what opportunities you can capitalize on, and your own personality. If you can be Vittorio Storaro's loader, then YES, you should (I am good friend's with his "A" op and that is how he started twelve plus years ago). There are many ways to do this; one needs to find their own way. The advantage of coming up through the Union ranks is that you will meet a lot on insiders on the way (DPs, Directors), which can be very difficult when you rise through the ranks in the non-Union world and then join the Union as an Op. Good luck.

A tad late, but congratulations to Mitch Gross and his wife, Barbara, for the birth of their daughter on April 5, 2004. (I won't mention her name out of a respect for privacy.) May she bring you great joy. Respectfully, Alec

Mitch, Where did you find this? Odd, a friend of mine - not in the film biz - just emailed this link today.

Making a camera power extension cable with an inline meter is another option to think about. Your monitor (if a TB-6, etc.) already has a low battery warning. Having a meter in the camera power line allows one meter to effectively give you data on what the camera is getting voltage wise without having to deal with multiple meters on the battery cage (or moving one around).

Brad, How are you? Contact Anton Bauer directly. Specifically, Paul Dudeck or John Limauro at 800-422-3473. Tell them you are a part of the Steadicam community and that Brant Fagan and myself gave you their names because we thought they could help you. They more than likely will. Good luck.

Scott, Got to run out the door in a moment, but quickly: Contact Peter Abraham. I don't like listing phone numbers of non-dealers/vendors, but his email is visualist@frontiernet.net. He also checks in here a lot. Anyway, he does plastic vest pieces that are great. Black, flexible yet strong. Far lighter than leather and you don't have to worry about noise, smell, etc. I've had them on my model 1 vest since 1995 and they have been great. As for foam, he can recommend that too. I use a thin, but firm foam that I bought at a Canal Street foam/rubber place here in NYC. Hope this helps.

I've been using a BFD since 1999 when they first came out. I, too, have never encountered interference from wireless mics. On a movie, awhile back, Jamie Silverstein and I were doing dueling Steadicams with two motors running each (focus and iris) as well as our transmitters in Time Square (can you say RF?) with both the talent on wireless mics - no problems anywhere. As for the Modulus channels, I stick to the 20s and 30s. I have found that at 50 or above, you can get problems - this also depends on what channel your Bartech is set to. Since your iris unit was obviously set to a different channel than your focus, it is possible your Modulus was causing a problem with that unit. For extra safety, try keeping below channel 40 on your Modulus. Otherwise, I'd have your unit checked out.

Michael, I' assume you bought the SK on ebay for a little over $4000 last week. Yes, this one was listed as a Steadicam SK, but from the little bit of research I did (consisting of calling Robert Luna, who was the arm guy at CP for years - now freelance) it seems that this is a SK2. I believe the only difference is in the arm, but what has already been said about the sled may be true as well. The early arms (SK) had the dummy section of the arm (no springs) towards the vest; the later ones (after '95 I think he said, presumably the SK2) had the dummy section on the outside, by the sled. This is what the picture showed on ebay, so I think you are good to go. I was shocked when I saw this system at $2200 with 24 hours to go - I was thinking "that is what accessories cost; not Steadicams." Anyway, I was considering a bid on it to use it as a running rig, but alas the price went up (still a good deal). If you ever want to put titanium springs in it or add a second arm section, I suggest you contact Robert Luna. 323-938-5659 Enjoy

Anthony, Yes, I'm aware of Greg's testing (the reason I stayed away from non Nicads for so long). Again, AB claims that the Hytron 100/120 is a much heavier duty battery than the Hytron 50 (D-cell versus C-cell). Still being skeptical, I waited till a few colleagues here in NYC had been using them (Hytron 100, since the Hytron 120 was just introduced) for a couple of years in the field. The Dioncs sound nice, but I will wait until someone else has been using them for sometime. As for mixing chemistry? They tell you not to mix hard liquor and beer too! Seriously, again, I've watched guys doing this in the field for sometime with no ill reports. It may be having them in parallel which is a problem (something I never do) because then you create a situation where your stronger battery is sending juice to your weaker one. In your case, with an Ultimate sled, with regulated power supplies, I would imagine you could do whatever you wanted and it would be fine. Obviously, check with Greg.

Brant. Paul Dudeck is no longer handling sales (at least the B stock), as he has been promoted. John Limauro is now handling them. He is doing a great job and is every bit as attentive. Regardless, everything else you say is true - they will hook you up. As for using other batteries and chargers, I've finally moved into the digital age with Hytron 120s (Jerry Hill battery base; was using Propacs) and it is nice to have the interactive data on the batteries (tells you number of chargers, etc). These new chargers and batteries will not work with other people's stuff though as they have "safe guards" (aka "use our stuff or else"). Anyway, the Hytron 120/Performer combo is a good amount of weight for counterbalance and a lot of watt hours, too. Eric, the Hytron 100s you were using must have been on the older side because they should power HD cameras for a long time. AB claims that the Hytron 100 (now 120, a nice added touch) is their most durable battery (along with the Propacs), capable of high amperage loads and repeated charge/discharge cycles. In short, they call the Hytron 120 their workhorse battery. If I were flying a Pro II battery base, I think I would be looking at the Dionics though because they work better for that configuration. Ultimate owners, has anyone tried powering a 435 from a Dionic? If it worked, this would be very cool. The Performers are a little light in the capacity department and the Trimpacs a little wide; it would be a great weight/profile for this sled (if it works).

Ron, I rather like the old PRO. It is solid and there is something to be said for being able to put it on a table without it falling over! Sure, its nice to be able to get some of your battery weight under the center post at times, but look at how many great shots have been done with that system (not to mention Model 1,2,3,etc). Here in New York, where the first generation PRO never caught on as well as in LA, I've had people ask me what I'm talking about when I refer to a PRO 1. And while I usually think it is great to be able to use ready available Anton Bauer batteries, there are times (like when they discontinue batteries that we love) that I think it would be better to have another system. I imagine doing HD is a bit of a chore with the PRO 1 batteries though, no?

Michael, You should like the Varicam (as much as you can like a video camera). It is much shorter and lighter than the Sony and has SDI built into it. As for a downconverter, I've used both the AJA and the Evertz. Both get the job done, but you'll have to find a place to mount it. One of the Evertz I've used was like the Sony version, mounted between camera and battery, but another was a box I velcroed. The Evertz is a bit beefier both in weight and in construction, which is good because the AJA is a bit delicate in the connector department. Both have a delay, but are workable - I find it is a matter of getting used to it, like a flicker-free tap (although you don't have the option to turn it off!). I mentioned awhile ago, a suggested cable to power these downconverters. Most come from the rental house with a Anton Bauer power tap connector. This requires using a battery on the camera to power it. I got sick of requesting a downconverter to four pin XLR cable to find it missing when I show up, so I made a VID/AKS (small four pin Lemo on PRO) to female AB power tap cable. Now I can plug the male AB cable from the downconverter into my junction box (without adapting to a 4-Pin XLR as I did before). Very useful when Hytron 100/120s are provided with camera. Even if the smaller Lithium ones are provided, it is nice to divvy up the power drain to your various batteries (i.e. you'll get more from the camera battery by powering the downconverter elsewhere). Have fun.

Peter, You said it; not me, but yes, I was thinking this too. It was no accident this was the case I chose for carry on! I still carry a brochure to the airport as well. Missed you at Show Biz on Friday - didn't realize you'd only be there Thursday.

Last time I flew, I had eight cases and a cart. Six were allowed (three each for myself and an assistant). When they were going to bill for the extra items, I grabbed my battery case (Pelican 1550) and put it in the "carry-on items must fit in here" bin. The airline people looked horrified and asked me what was in it, so I showed them. They then offered to check it at no cost (which is what I was hoping they'd say since the case weighs a ton).

Michael, I just bought one of these - great charger. B&H should have them - hell, that is where I first saw it SO they did have it! I actually bought mine directly from AB, as they let me trade in an ancient single charger I had sitting in my closet in exchange for a better price. All said and done I think I saved $100 over B&H pricing (the charger I traded in was only selling for about $50 on ebay). I think B&H was around $1150, if I recall. Contact B&H again.