Richard W. Davis

I never have owned anything for a CP16...perhaps you were thinking of Tony Foresta and the infamous shoulder mag for an ARRI 16BL???? Re: Whitehouse...Derrick is only doing steadicam /accesories etc.... trying to semi retire while still staying in the game. A very valuable resource he still is. (did that sound like YODA?) All the best, Rich

Has anybody ever had to get a CIT DX 400 diversity tuner repaired? I know about the problems getting things repaired via CIT, they are not officially supporting them I believe. Is there anyone else who does these repairs...David Hable perhaps... any ideas welcomed. This thing is too expensive to give up on. Thanks, Rich Davis

<<I've gotten myself some carbonfibre ones! Perfect and cheap! Just walk into a kitestore...! I've payed about $ 40 for a 2 meter piece! Way to go...>> How do you cut them down without splitting and fraying???? Rich Davis LA

<<Were you coming home from Las Vegas, or the show Vegas?>> No just a last weekend away before TV season in the real Las Vegas(Real??? LOL) Had a perfect weekend... giant Suite upgrade at The Venetian, great food, drinks...(i don't gamble much( I keep thinking about pricetags on gear that I could buy. ) But had a great time....I paid the price for it. Heat (from what I read) seems to be a contributing factor in tire /tread seperation. It was 120 degrees that day. (Which added to the "Joys of laying in the Hulking beer can in the dirt that was my Eddie Bauer Explorer.) Gotta say a lot of nice"Good Samaritans" looked after us until Paramedics got there. The other interesting part was I was alert and remember everything.... In the Grand Scheme we are very lucky to be alive...Thinking about a Hummer though Ron. (Not really...replacing with an Acura MDX (lot of airbags , 5 star safety rating)) Everybody be safe though, Rich Thanks for the good wishes guys!

Sounds a little too heavy on a blue spring arm ESPECIALLY for ATV work. Not to mention flying 200 ft mags. I have never flown such small mags you will be constantly driving back to get mag changes. I would recommend looking for another rental arm from a brother op or rental house. Do you have custom 24 volt out for the Millenium XL out of your EFP? Best of luck, Be Safe, Rich Davis

Michael, It is possible that it is me who they are referrring to....You know how the rumour mill works. I was coming home from Vegas and when the tire tread on my right rear seperated from the tire the explorer I was in lost control and rolled 4 times...I however escaped major injury(it still hurts like hell though) My wife who was driving broke her arm in 3 places and broke a rib. I was supposed to work on a feature at Sony the next day and had to go through several people to get word to the DP that I was in the accident so perhaps that fueled the miscommunication. "...the rumours of my demise are greatly exagerated." I dearly hope that that it is me they are referring to and not another brother operator. Hope all are well, Rich Davis LA

<<Ps. Rich, I ordered the Cine IIIA Ultrabright the other day for my rig. It should be in this week in time for me to take it to Las Vegas next weekend for UFC.>> Terrrific Dave I think you will enjoy flying that a lot!!! If you have to do exposure with it though check bars often especially under changing lighting conditions. I think you are going to love that Transvideo Cinemonitor IIIA Ultrabrite. 1200 NITS is delightful. As always great working with you amigo. See ya, Rich Davis

Ben, CRIBS is a particulary unique shoot. It is hard as hell on the body it is less than optimal for lighting etc...you have to overshoot a lot. ( because of the speeded up stuff in post)blah blah blah I have shot very many of them over the years, not so many anymore as I am on SCRUBS 8 mos. a year. That being said I always use a focus/ iris puller (we have had custom brackets made for mini TV's attached to the Preston FIZ. ) I tell any assistant that it is more of an iris pulling job than focus as you generally shoot wide) Yes in the US we generally have a lot larger places to shoot , but we still shoot plenty of tiny places too. Just did Rob Schneiders 1923 Storybook Tudor house where upstairs I had to duck through every doorway...I am 6 2" it was probably good I shot it not Dave Chameides or Gavin Aames who are even taller. Oh and we don't shoot any PD 150's we use two either Sony D50's D 35's or 600's and or The occasional Ikegami. And yesa there is a lot of color temp mixing. On the plus side of CRIBS the people I work with are delightful and I have traveled the world with them including London twice(I experienced the smallness and stairs) Barcelona, British Virgin Islands , Jamaica etc. So all in all it's tough but I think it's pretty fun. As for Lighting, we run a chimera on a Frezzi dimmable sun gun and adjust accordingly. Yes it is not the prettiest on TV(it will never win a cinematography award) it is what it is...Once you accept it you can enjoy the ride. But you are going to be tired. Remember you can always say no if someone calls...I promise you there will be a half dozen guys who would kill for the job. All the Best, Rich Davis LA

Congrats Daniel! Nice to see your hard work has paid off for you. Rich Davis

I think there is confusion as there is an X and also a "flying X" which was definately a bit lighter than the original( no fixed side viewfinder) Don't know if the "Flying X" still exists or if you are getting one. I haven't flown one for about ten years now, when a lightweight wasn't available. Still heavy though, but not quite as heavy as a Gold conversion(damn close though)...Never had to do Low mode but I think it did have low mode brackets available. Good Luck, Rich Davis

<< but how do I come up with the $66,000 it takes to buy a rig? -Meg>> Well, as un-sexy as it is...You don't buy a top of the line rig fresh out of the gate. You buy used, old or not as high end...and as you get work and earn it, you upgrade. I started with a Model 1 steadicam(ser. # 26) and now fly a PRO II, with the best parts IMHO from almost every manufacturer, XCS, TIffen, Transvideo, MK-V etc... It's been a long but very satisfying road. Best of Luck, Rich Davis LA

Michael, "I don't have to worry about them!" They last as long if not longer than the AB originals and as I said they are slightly larger amp hour. They definately outlast new trimpaks head to head. My .02 cents. Rich Davis "tired from a long day shooting."Goodnight

Benjamin, The recelled batts still work (digital displays etc) and still work with my interactive charger that runs tests, tells how many cycles, how many amp hours etc. So I will never buy another new trimpak again. Victory battery # is 818 840-2766 address 1508 W. Burbank Blvd. Burbank, CA. Rich Davis(not affiliated just a satisfied customer)

Victory Battery in Burbank has done many of my Trimpaks. Trimpaks are the one AB battery that is a great recell...that is the case splits open easily with no damaging marks etc. Victory will put in cells that will give it a slightly larger Amp Hour rating than new AB trimpaks...cost about $150 per...Call them though. Regards, Rich Davis

Jason, As with so many things it is personal preference and what you are used to. On a ProVid as your signature states you fly, it might be a bit of overkill. Like all things give it a shot see what you think. Rich Davis

Thanks everybody I got it now...Thanks Dave Grove and Jim Bartell...again, for so many things. Rich

Does anyone have an e mail or phone # (or both) for Bob Wise in the Virgin Islands(I think)? I'm headed his way and wanted to check in and say hello possibly. E mail me direct for privacy if you think that may be an issue. Thanks, Rich Davis chardrwd@aol.com

Howard and Kelly, Congratulations!!! Enjoy this time....it goes by very very fast. All the Best, Rich Davis

Lawrence, Thanks for remembering the exact procedure, I had forgotten that it was hidden. I was pretty sure that it had that adjustment but I think I only had to do it once. Chip, I switched to a Preston Micro Force for Steadicam which I find is a little more ergonomic . Downside I cannot eaily change zoom speeds on the fly(but I rarely would). I always thought that the big handle of the Stanton got in the way of my monitor. But, I can't talk to the truck by hitting return, and it doesn't have built in focus....But I prefer to ALWAYS have my trusted assistant there pulling focus so I can do longer lens stuff with impunity. When backed into a corner, I can use my BFD with it's little gimble mountable roller knob for presettting focus marks...definately not the best way (one man band)but in a bind can work if you can think ahead. Thanks Jim for that little gem. Regards, Rich Davis

Ramon, I think there was a small pot to adjust as I recall(I could be wrong) or if you have the handle set to the canon on fuji or vice versa it can do that as well. Good luck, Rich Davis (ex Stanton Handle owner)

Dear Rob, Having seen it yesterday at cinegear I will dispute some of your comments....Size length etc is nearly identical to Millenium XL. Nothing like the length of the normal 900 cine alta. Weight is also nearly identical. I think it is a great step forward for steadicam. Still some hurdles but the engineers listened as many steadicam ops gave them an earload. Cheers, Rich Davis

Toby, According to http://www.xcs.inc.com/techdata/tb6pins.htm The TB-6 wiring info The pin outs for EFP 6 pin hirose are Pin 6 Power ground Pin 5 +12vDC Pin 2 Video signal input Pin 1 video ground I hope that helps...If it doesn't call Fred Davis! The cable answer man. Rich "no relation, but loyal customer" Davis

Hey guys, I'm selling some old odd parts on E bay...maybe something you need or want. Search Steadicam on E bay. See ya, Rich

Toby, The 6 pin Hirose connector marked "monitor" carries 12v power and video. Rich Davis