RonBaldwin

Yeah -- I knew that. I was just making the point that doing a day of Steadicam for $800 isn't as much as one thinks, even without the gear. Too many people working for scale or less hurts everyone and sets a bad precedent

In case people aren't doing math, $800/10 is $72.70/hr...which is basically operator scale in the Northeast corridor. Not sure what rate/scale in Atlanta is used for operators (probably similar to if not the same as LA...which is lower) but imho you should try and at least stay in the ballpark of scale for operating and significantly higher (at least 20%) for operating the noble instrument. Nothing sucks more than being worked like a mule then realizing you at making the same money as the guy sitting on the dolly sipping a cappuccino while swiping on Tinder. In the low budget world (including many tiers) they often try and stick you in the "operator" slot they have in their wonderful budget. They say that's all "the studio" will allo them to pay for the position of operator. This is pure bullshit and in most cases you are a sucker to fall for it...run away.

My gear was around my ex-wife for years and still functions perfectly. She lowered the ambient temps around her to about what Alec's garage is on a Feb night

Thanks John -- I have always heard fantastic things about your service and will be sending stuff your way soon...just wanna treat my batts right and knowing that AB most likely does not like third parties working on their stuff, I was wondering if there was some sort of incompatibility when tinkered with. Perhaps a conspiracy theory. I never doubted they would charge, just wondered about other features. You are correct that I'd love to hear some feedback from other clients. I also assumed you might have tried the charger out -- the silly boom box looking thing has been out a while I think. Ron

Hi John -- I saw this on your page. Just wanted a yes or no. So, I am guessing that the answer is "yes, there is no difference at all and all the charging, monitoring and calibration functions on the new chargers will be the same as a stock AB battery." Just wanted to confirm this before I replace my gimpy tm-4 charger with the new fancy one and send 8 hc-90's and 4 d-160's your way. Thanks Ron

Hello all I have a question about the compatibility of the new AB performance series chargers and recelled batteries from a third party. I am sure they will still charge but will all the battery monitoring/display recalibration bs still work? Thanks, Ron

I agree Jens -- the v-lock is anything but. Been crazy so will call AB on Monday and see what they say -- will also give Ritter a call and starte cycling some batts to them.

I use the pelican 1730 and pull out the rear hinge pins so the lid comes compltely off. Just pull off the batts and it goes right in. I wanted the assistants to have to do as little as possible -- just pull the sled out and put on the stand/cart

Jesus man -- call Robert Starling and offer a bottle of wine or two (or some ammo) then drive to him for an hour tutorial on balancing your rig. There are also others there with steadicams.

Sorry to hear about other woes with AB products -- I know there new line of batteries are just freaking ridiculous and I will definitely be looking elsewhere when it comes time to change horses. For now I will contact Ritter and see what they say

Thanks for shedding some light on this. Love to hear more about it if more info comes to you. We all need to evaluate and be very aware of where we are at any given moment on set (especially during stunts or big fx...but always) because even a normal day can turn sour when surrounded by all that power...hanging lights/props/grip and camera equip...cobbled together sets...firearms/explosives etc. We've all had close calls we were lucky to walk away from. Just keep your eyes open and voice every concern. It's the fucking circus, not life and death -- too bad it now seems the latter as greedy assholes bragging about record profits continually cut budgets and schedules for a few more bucks (might not have been the case here but seems to be the norm).Very sorry to hear about this. Let's hope we all make it to ripe old ages with all our digits, hearing, and eyesight in tact.

Two stations on my tm4 just mysteriously stopped working (red lights for these two stations stay on, no blinking) -- before I dig deep and/or call AB I was wondering if anyone else has this issue?

The techno on the roof would make me nervous but the car is awesome. My key grip this past season is co-owner of Roadrunner and has been taunting me with pics of this car for 6 months. It was always on tandems so I never got to play with it (I just wanted to check out the air system to steal ideas for my truck!). This is from last month on the beach with Eli.

Thanks Terry -- it's a sad day in our industry. We have lost a great dp, friend, and champion of the crew -- always standing up for what was right.

I've had the camjam telescoping bracket for almost a year -- very solid. I use a tb6 much of the time with no worries (just under 6lbs)

One step forward, two steps back

Something that has helped me keep the camera a little lower is using a tilt plate (a cool feature of the tiffen sleds). The camera can be kept lower when tilting up so height is not lost. A few people make them, I have been using a prototype plate made by Howard Smith -- having trouble attaching pic.

Had a great time catching up and meeting a few new peeps. Get together a like this really should happen as often as everyone can stand them -- great to be a tight group of friends exchanging ideas (and booze)

I am definitely going -- looking forward to getting sloppy drunk, losing a fight and getting kicked out (required behavior by the way -- Peter Abraham started the last fight...who is next?), and discussing the merits of amazingly fantastical advertising, including being a major sought after presence, taking captivating set selfies, and gaining tens of thousands of followers on Instagram.

Nice mod and killer deal!

Chris, your original footage is so organic! It made me cry

I don't have the stand I front of me to compare stability when the straps are level or at an angle to use the wheels, but I cannot imagine any difference at all except the benefit of using the stand without them in smaller sets/locations if one desires (or needs). I too found the single riser stand a tad short without wheels.

Wonder if they "roughed up" some of the original footage?

To be honest I rarely use wheels on my stand. I have the longer straps on my stand and I think the spread without wheels is similar to the older stand with wheels. No problems spin balancing this way. With the stand skinnied up to add wheels it feels the same to me. I wonder what they meant by loss of stability? If the spread is the same...I would guess it is the same unless they are talking about something else I am not aware of?

Decaf Will...decaf