William Santana Posted November 16, 2009 Report Share Posted November 16, 2009 I've had the Pilot for a few months now but have only gotten around to flying it three times at the most; Usually outside with a lot of noise. It wasn't until today during the exercise on page 54 of the Operator's Handbook that I notice that the arms are creaking rather loudly when I am booming up and down. I was wondering if anyone else has experienced this issue and what steps have they taken to remedy it. I'm a long way from using this in an actual production (Hopefully the Steadicam Workshop I'll be attending this December 11th-12th will kick my enthusiasm and proficiency into high gear compliments of Mr. Papert's tutelage.) but I would like to resolve this pesky issue preferably before the workshop so I could continue my training without delay. Any input would be greatly appreciated. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
William Santana Posted November 17, 2009 Author Report Share Posted November 17, 2009 After additional testing I've narrowed down the problem area to the double action hinge. It creaks when it moves during horizontal movement. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Premium Members Erik Brul Posted November 17, 2009 Premium Members Report Share Posted November 17, 2009 After additional testing I've narrowed down the problem area to the double action hinge. It creaks when it moves during horizontal movement. Hi William, You pointed out most likely the ´correct´ spot. In all cases it´s seems to be the spot were you can split the arm into 2 parts, the release pin ! I must admit, i´m disappointed that this seems happen to often to a lot of users including myself. Use some acf-50 on this particular spot and that sound will disappear. To be honest, í really don´t understand why all new arms, big and small are now all fitted with this release pin.. why on earth is it handy to splitting a arm in 2 when it has been more then 30 years in one piece ?? Good luck Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RobinThwaites Posted November 17, 2009 Report Share Posted November 17, 2009 Hi William and Erik We prefer conventional oil or better still silicon oil to sprays, sprays can be messy and do dry out. Robin Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
William Santana Posted November 17, 2009 Author Report Share Posted November 17, 2009 Alright I'll get my hands on some silicon oil. Any suggestions on brands or where to get it? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris McKissick Posted November 18, 2009 Report Share Posted November 18, 2009 I second the silicon oil... Worked like a charm... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Premium Members Erik Brul Posted November 18, 2009 Premium Members Report Share Posted November 18, 2009 Well.. this forum should be informative. If you search the last couple months on arm sounds (espec the Pilot) results are for example : Thin oil by robin (customer support tiffen) very small amount of white grease by Dave (operator) conventional oil or better still silicon oil (customer support tiffen) Or even do a search the last couple of years for arm sounds: Main result is ACF-50 and NOT 123 oil or simular ! The problem here is, this is a international board with people from all over the world. What is common for UK or US residents when talking about silicon oil or ACF-50 is for them easy, they know almost exactly what you mean. For me from the Netherlands, or guys from Denmark or Germany for example this is not so common. So long story short: Pls provide us with a working internet link to a shop in the UK / US were they sell specificly the oil you are talking about. The oil that Tiffen for example is using when they get a arm in for service or repair and fix it with this specific oil from brand xxxx or brand yyyy ! I myself removed the release pin, placed it on a clean towel and used a little bit of teflon spray. This was done in september and the arm is still quiet... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Premium Members Jess Haas SOC Posted November 18, 2009 Premium Members Report Share Posted November 18, 2009 ACF-50: http://www.skygeek.com/10013.html Also very similar and my preferred lube for most things, Corrosion-X: http://www.corrosionx.com/ Both are thin film aviation lubricants and I believe both are available in both an aerosol or a pump spray bottle. They differ from conventional lubricants in that they create a very thin non sticky layer on the metal that does an amazing job at fighting corrosion. They also lubricate and don't seem to attract contaminants quite as much as stickier lubes. WD-40 and most simple hardware store lubricants should be avoided for most steadicam related uses. When it comes to silicon oils, teflon lube and white greese it is possible to find a wide range of products with these description on the container. It would be nice to get some more specific recommendations. ~Jess Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
William Santana Posted November 19, 2009 Author Report Share Posted November 19, 2009 ACF-50: http://www.skygeek.com/10013.htmlAlso very similar and my preferred lube for most things, Corrosion-X: http://www.corrosionx.com/ Both are thin film aviation lubricants and I believe both are available in both an aerosol or a pump spray bottle. They differ from conventional lubricants in that they create a very thin non sticky layer on the metal that does an amazing job at fighting corrosion. They also lubricate and don't seem to attract contaminants quite as much as stickier lubes. WD-40 and most simple hardware store lubricants should be avoided for most steadicam related uses. When it comes to silicon oils, teflon lube and white greese it is possible to find a wide range of products with these description on the container. It would be nice to get some more specific recommendations. ~Jess Agreed, I ran searches for silicon oil and get a variety of options; I don't know which one will be safe for the Steadicam. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RobinThwaites Posted November 19, 2009 Report Share Posted November 19, 2009 Ha Erik! I like the question! The best stuff I have found to date was at our workshop last week in the BBC training centre where I was lent some by a friendly technician. It was in a half litre squashy bottle with "silicon oil for photocopier" written on the side in marker pen. Worked perfectly on a G-50 spring and a Flyer arm pin and some socket block screws and one or two other things as well. No idea of brand though. Robin Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Premium Members Erik Brul Posted November 19, 2009 Premium Members Report Share Posted November 19, 2009 Ha Erik! I like the question! The best stuff I have found to date was at our workshop last week in the BBC training centre where I was lent some by a friendly technician. It was in a half litre squashy bottle with "silicon oil for photocopier" written on the side in marker pen. Worked perfectly on a G-50 spring and a Flyer arm pin and some socket block screws and one or two other things as well. No idea of brand though. Robin Well Robin, this is exactly why i pop up this question on the board.. and you are being a bit funny which is fine ofcourse ;) But the thing is.. a lot of people have discover these problems and sometimes even directly from the factory. So there must be a general solution or general stuff you guys use.. It ´seems´ so simple question and a simple answer.... Best, Erik Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RobinThwaites Posted November 20, 2009 Report Share Posted November 20, 2009 Hi Erik,, yes a bit funny but a bit serious as well. my point is that this is an unbranded oil from an unknown source but was crystal clear suggesting that it was very pure and it worked a treat. In an emergency on these kind of squeaks you use what you can get, we even used olive oil from the restaurant on arm springs at one exhibition and it worked for a while. Chap sticks (for lips) are very effective for vest squeaks. It is easier to say what I would avoid which is anything with detergent in it (e.g. WD-40), anything with solvent in it (many other sprays), anything that is highly coloured and anything that even hints that it is penetrating oil. Naturally this does not necessarily apply to trunions, gimbals or anything that requires disassembly and I would defer to engineers on this. Robin Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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