kurt nolen

Thanks, Nick. Glad I'm not alone/just nuts. Out of curiosity, how long has it been away for servicing and how did you get a hold of Don to set up the service? I've emailed but no reply yet.

Yes, I know about the nightmare customer service stories. And yes, I have already purchased the thing I should have bought in the first place. I'm planning on using my analog Bartech/M-1 as a backup if and when the M-1 should ever return from being repaired. All that being said... I'm having an intermittent issue with my M-1 spinning like a pinwheel for 5-10 seconds when I power my receiver on, stopping, then start spinning for the same duration once the focus knob on the handset is turned. I've read a lot about the chattering in the motor, but haven't seen anything relating to the specific issue I'm having. I've talked to Jim at Bartech and we've narrowed it down to the motor or cable, and side I've tried a sack of different motor cables with the same results it looks like we are down to the motor. Anyone else have this issue?

Figured it out: gimbal's likely out of calibration.

for some reason the pictures won't orient correctly but you get the idea.

I just had the gimbal replaced on my frankenstein rig and I'm finding that if I statically balance the sled smart side out, and then pan it 180 degrees with the lens now facing backwards and let go of the sled, it's balance has now changed and it rocks back - aiming the lens upward - to the point that my level will actually slide off the stage. any thoughts as to cause?

are they naming them after 1930's comic book/ radio characters? because I see a trend.... Maybe they'll do Mandrake or a Flash model in the future.

thanks a lot everybody!

Well no one has put a Cinetronic 2 up on a rig yet. Having said that if you can mount a monitor with a pro spigot you can mount a Cinetronic That's the trick, I don't believe a Pro Spigot would work on my rig - while the guts are all Pro, the rest of it is either tiffen or custom fabricated. The original Archer 1 yoke mounts onto a block attached to the end of two rails, so it's looking like either the monitor (if I'm lucky) would fit into the existing yoke, or it's off to a machine shop.

Hi there, folks. My frankenstein sled uses the monitor yoke from an Tiffen/Steadicam Archer 1 and I'm looking pretty hard at a Cinetronic II. Cinetronic says they know of "some operators mounting [their] monitors on Archer sleds" but I don't know if that's Archer 1, 2 or if they were having yokes custom machined. I'd obviously prefer as little downtime as possible and I'd rather not go the custom machining route if I can avoid it. So if there's anybody out there that actually put a Cinetronic in an Archer yoke, I'd love to hear the details. Thanks a lot!

I bought a used Archer 1 with the intent of upgrading it. The actual cost of the modification wasn't so bad compared to the advantages of the increased functionality. The downside was the time it took to get the design of the modification the way I wanted it. I'm extremely happy with the final product, but the 7 months I went without a rig was crap. I might advocate for modification if you already have another sled or you have astoundingly specific electronic requirements for your existing sled.

I find both the handle idea and the tucking the fingers in totally useless. They can try to push and pull you all day and you will barely notice. Instead tell your spotter to poke you in the side to tell you which way you need to go. The only time I want my assistant to actually grab the vest is if I'm in a situation where I might need them to catch me. This doesn't come up too often but if I'm in a position where - for example - geography, architecture, or blocking requires that I have to take stairs in missionary (er... or "forward operating position") at a little speed, I'd like my spotter to have more than a little fingerhold to grab onto if something goes wrong. Other than that a tap really is more than sufficient.

I think I need to clarify my phrasing regarding the rod supports on the front and back because the wording I used was crap: the statement about it "just being rods" on the front and back related to the minimalist design of the vest's unobstructed interface with the operator's front and back only - which for me is a definitive plus. There's a lot more going on there than "just rods." I was genuinely impressed with the prototype and the removal of all that material from the front and back of the traditional vest is an exciting prospect.

Just got back from helping out at the Pennsylvania SOA workshop. Since all those other guys are lucky skinny bastards, I got to spend some time in the prototype exovest they had up there so they could put a fellow of more "full frame" in it. After talking to Chris and Jerry about it at some length this past week I completely understand the concept, and if the production model works the way they're saying it will; it solves most of the problems I've been having with the vest designs that are out there right now. it was whispered around a bit that the expected price point will be "around that of the current ultra vest." This could obviously change between now and whenever the production model comes out and I'm not a "screaming to the rafters 'I'll pay anything' " kind of guy. That being said, the theorized pricepoint is a little steep. What is the solution to my chest compression gripes worth? I guess we'll find out when the vest is released for sale. My impressions: at first it feels astoundingly weird. The pivot points were throwing my walking off until I acclimated to them. At Chris' suggestion I took a fast run in it and realized half way through it that I wasn't seeing any bobble or subtle shift in the monitor telling any kind of motive transference to the sled. Once I stopped trying to walk in it like it was my regular front mounted vest the weird factor went away and I primarily noticed how easy it was to breathe in the thing. I'm hauling around 15-17 lbs I could live without and my original concern at the vest's design was thinking it would cut into the middle of my stomach. That didn't happen at all. Initially the aft rods dug into my back but some additional pads took care of that. After lifting the rods off my spinal column, my only complaint was the that yoke was too close to my face. I've been told this has since been redesigned. My shoulders (shoulderblades specifically) felt the weight of the rig and my hips mainly felt like they were working in concert with the rig's own weight to stay firm on my frame. The connection to my body at the waist was extremely comfortable to the point that I have no critique of that element of the vest's design. The emergency ejection mechanism seems a little complicated and looking at the prototype I have minor concerns about accidentally snagging the mechanism's activation cord. Prototype... I'm still in the LX vest after eyeballing the ultra vest for a couple years. I've stayed off the Klassen primarily because it's so bloody heavy. Possessing something of a barrel-like chest and broad shoulders, the Ultra just doesn't fit correctly for me. I was taking a hard look at PRO's vest but I hadn't gotten enough time in it to talk myself into making the jump yet - particularly since my main concern about a vest is it's weight and how much it compresses my chest. Love the PRO's weight, but the siren song of the back mounted vest kept me in a holding pattern... ah... yet its corpulent weight pushed me away. The exovest prototype I got to monkey around with feels in the hand a tiny bit lighter than the LX. No connection to my front, no connection to my back, free breathing... stuff was looking good. About 10 minutes in I started feeling the strain in "that muscle" that I usually have in my lower back right between my shoulderblades and it was time to get out. All of this is derived from my 11.5 minutes in a prototype that according to Chris had undergone several revisions since the version I was testing. Bottom line: I liked it. Jerry (and I think Chris too) said that the tingler I got between my shoulderblades would be eliminated by additional padding at the collar of the vest on the back. The sizing system as it stands now requires an extra pair of hands and apparently a bit of tweeking, but I was told the pads would all be affixed with industrial velcro and should squarely stay in place during removal of the vest and sit right back in place when you put the vest back on. I'm going to hold off on a new vest until the production model comes out to see if it does what they say it will do. I would also like to throw out there something David Svenson brought up: Since it's just 19mm (or so) rails on the front and back, why not make an assistant's handle to just bolt onto it? (I hate assistants tucking their fingers under my vest. it's distracting). Flan is good. I'm for flan.

wonderful, thanks guys. -kn

Hi there. Stupid question requiring probably a short answer. I'm looking to get a backup sled and the 3a keeps popping up as a financially viable option (I really am talking about just an "Oh s#*t!" backup). At present I own a G-50 arm. Knowing nothing outside of having operated a modded 3A once for about 20 minutes, I need someone to tell me if the 3A sled is compatible with the G-50 arm. I searched for an answer to this before posting and didn't find one. Thanks for any help.