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G50 / G70 / G50X / G70X Maintenance


Mariano Costa

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Hi all G50/G70/G50X/G70X owners, I have a question regarding these arms and maintenance - I remember having read that they can be easily and quickly disassambled for cleaning and maintenance by the operator himself, I even believe a service manual was planned (but I never found that on the net...).

 

Am I remembering this correctly and if so, how often are you doing it (cleaning etc.) and is it really as easy as he (I believe it was Garrett) said?

Edited by Mariano Costa
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Hi all G50/G70/G50X/G70X owners, I have a question regarding these arms and maintenance - I remember having read that they can be easily and quickly disassambled for cleaning and maintenance by the operator himself, I even believe a service manual was planned (but I never found that on the net...).

 

Am I remembering this correctly and if so, how often are you doing it (cleaning etc.) and is it really as easy as he (I believe it was Garrett) said?

 

i second it! very good question indeed.

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Hi all G50/G70/G50X/G70X owners, I have a question regarding these arms and maintenance - I remember having read that they can be easily and quickly disassambled for cleaning and maintenance by the operator himself, I even believe a service manual was planned (but I never found that on the net...).

 

Am I remembering this correctly and if so, how often are you doing it (cleaning etc.) and is it really as easy as he (I believe it was Garrett) said?

 

i second it! very good question indeed.

 

Thanks, Evrim - but it`s quite strange that not a person chimes in to enlighten us... :D

 

I hope some of the Tiffen folks can share their knowledge regarding this - right now the Atlas arm is making it very hard for me, as it has a gigantic advantage in this area (maintenance)!

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This is in no way a diss to Tiffen gear, but I don't think much of ot is user serviceable at all (it was in part because of this issue that other operators began making sleds/gimbals/arms/etc to form the gear manufacturers we have today). If I am wrong I apologize

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We had a very lively debate over G-series arms. Perhaps no one wants to touch to that subject again :)

 

Personally I try to avoid the need for maintenance on my g-70 arm by protecting it not only from rain but also from dust. I use a pair gaiters to protect the arm from the outside world. You can look this topic for pictures: http://www.steadicamforum.com/index.php?showtopic=16263

 

Before getting my own g-70, I borrowed Pro arm frequently. The maintenance of the arm is very easy indeed.

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We had a very lively debate over G-series arms. Perhaps no one wants to touch to that subject again :)

 

Personally I try to avoid the need for maintenance on my g-70 arm by protecting it not only from rain but also from dust. I use a pair gaiters to protect the arm from the outside world. You can look this topic for pictures: http://www.steadicamforum.com/index.php?showtopic=16263

 

Before getting my own g-70, I borrowed Pro arm frequently. The maintenance of the arm is very easy indeed.

 

I was almost certain Eric would stomp in asking me if I`m nuts for comparing a G50/70 versus Atlas/Titan :D

 

What a pity that it (field maintanance) was not kept, even though I know that springs won`t break so easily and dust/water should be avoided - it`s always better to have the possibility to disassemble stuff when necessary.

 

Evrim, why did you still choose a G70 when you used the Pro (Titan) before?

And regarding the covers you made - did it interfere with the arm`s performance in any way?

Edited by Mariano Costa
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When I said the g series arms were not user serviceable it was an assumption based on the design and past history of Tiffen/CP. As far as rain covers, I imagine the arms aren't all that different in size and what fits one arm will probably work for another...so there are a few sources that make arm rain/dust covers.

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When I said the g series arms were not user serviceable it was an assumption based on the design and past history of Tiffen/CP. As far as rain covers, I imagine the arms aren't all that different in size and what fits one arm will probably work for another...so there are a few sources that make arm rain/dust covers.

 

HAH! I found the old thread/posts where it was mentioned

 

http://www.steadicamforum.com/index.php?showtopic=1716&view=findpost&p=24508

http://www.steadicamforum.com/index.php?showtopic=1716&view=findpost&p=12488

 

what a pity the manual never came out...whatever the reasons are...

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Evrim, why did you still choose a G70 when you used the Pro (Titan) before?

And regarding the covers you made - did it interfere with the arm`s performance in any way?

 

Mariano,

 

Are you seriously asking me to compare G-70 VS Pro arm? Is this a trap? This will certainly make Eric appear and he will bite my head off. But, I’m a courageous fella. So here it goes.

 

I think i should make a list comparing the two arms in different aspects. The order of the aspects is random and not according to their value.

 

1- The weight of the arm: point Tiffen. Less weight to carry around compared to 4 canister PRO arm.

 

2- Price: point Tiffen. Less expensive compared to PRO arm with 8 canister set.

 

3- Maintenance: point GPI. We had a "garden hose" argument which wasn't that far-fetched.

 

4- Ease of adjustment: clearly point Tiffen. You can adjust the G series arms (lift and iso) without even taking it off the vest and no tools. Easy, fast and also very discrete. With pro arm if there is a big difference of camera weight between two jobs, you find yourself disassembling the arm (which is not very hard but certainly not discrete or as fast as turning a knob) and god help you if someone dropped your Allen key off of the stand while carrying around to help you.

 

5- Boom range: point Tiffen.

 

6- Feeling of materials and feeling of build quality: point Pro. I don't think there is a significant quality gap between the two brands but PRO arms feeling is certainly better.

 

7- Fly quality / smoothness: OK. This is the big one. The winner is PRO but with a very small margin. And this is G-70 VS PRO. I reserve my right to update this one after i get my G-X upgrade next year.

 

If had to buy a new arm today it still would be Tiffen. From my point of view the fly quality is very close to each other. But ease of adjustability and boom range is very crucial. It is true that pro arm is very forgiving if you don’t have the time to adjust your float point for the shot but this makes you lose the edge you have over Tiffen arm about flight quality. (I’m a micro adjustment junkie. I love to be able to adjust every aspect of the rig for the shot. Tilt-stage, iso, lift, motorized stage with memory buttons, inertia…)

And maintenance is not that big an issue if you take good care of your arm.

But of course all of these ideas are very personal. Both arms are very, very, very, very good and you will be happy with either one of them. I know I was happy flying with Pro and now I’m also very happy flying with a G-70.

 

“And regarding the covers you made - did it interfere with the arm`s performance in any way?”

 

Nope. It flies great with the covers. No interference whatsoever.

 

Disclaimer: I don’t work for Tiffen or currently trying to sell my arm, yada yada yada…

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Evrim, why did you still choose a G70 when you used the Pro (Titan) before?

And regarding the covers you made - did it interfere with the arm`s performance in any way?

 

Mariano,

 

Are you seriously asking me to compare G-70 VS Pro arm? Is this a trap? This will certainly make Eric appear and he will bite my head off. But, I’m a courageous fella. So here it goes.

 

 

Thank you very very much for this very long and interesting explanation!

 

And sorry having brought you into this situation! You know...comparing X with Y... :D

Edited by Mariano Costa
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I have been flying a G50 for a year and a G70 for 3 years. I bought the G70 for the same reasons mentioned here before. I try'd a pro for a few minuts with an ar, and it was a pain. ( mostly becose of the ar :-)

 

After using the G70 for over 3 years i got a pro in my hands. It was from a fellow op who was selling his gear and asked me if i knew somebody. i told him to drop it off by me and i would do my best. During reharsel of Xfactor i try'd the pro for the first time in real life. OH MY DEAR........ I could cry, what a HUGHE difference. I never took the arm off again and sold the G70 in a heartbeat.

 

So i guess i have to disagree on the points that Evrim makes. But its personal i guess.

Weight difference between the pro and the G70? No idea, could be, cant be much. It never bothered me.

Price point, yes there is, but thats understandable. There is a difference in the arm, so it should be in the pricepoint. + a second hand pro arm is sold in a heartbeat for a very good price. So it has a great secondhand value, and i think its save to say it wil keep more value than a G series arm.

 

Yes, maintanance, how cool is that, just hose it off. LOL, love it.

 

Ease of adjustment: Well, you have to experience it on set i guess. Its so easy to adjust. Yes, you need a allen key, wich is attached to my gorelock, so i never lose it. Few turns and your done. Changing the spring almost never have to do that. Perhaps 2 blacks if your heavy. My 4 black i only use on 3d crap. Changes in a hartbeat, under a minut for 4

 

Boomrange, is there a difference? If so, i am fine with the pro boomrange, never experienced a shortcoming there.

 

Building quality, well, yes the pro is great, but i also liked the G series build quality, the honeycom construction. But i must admit that the G50 i use to own felt stiffer under heavy load. Could be flexing or could be that particulair arm. I leave that one to the experts.

 

The difference in preforming i found hughe. No more footsteps on the pro, very easy to boom up and down, even felt so much lighter then the G arms while booming. And easy to keep on its place.

 

For me, Pro win's hands down. The G series arm is a really good second place, but imho nothing can beat the pro arm. And no, i dont work for pro nor for tiffen. i am a daily user of steadicam gear and am not intressed in sale, not intressed in political agenda's nor do i care what other people or compagny's think of me. I just want good gear and keep looking for better no matter what.

 

This is not to offend anyone, its just my personal experience. Btw, i still have a G50 for sale. But i would go for a atlas i guess LOL

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Thanks, Job!

 

These infos makes it even more tougher :D

 

Regarding weights - one dealer quotes the G70 being 5,1 Kg and the Pro between 4,1 to 5,3 Kg, depending if you attach 2 or 4 spring canisters, actually not a very big difference.

 

the difference felt a lot more(approx. 1.5kg) but perhaps i'm mistaken.

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Thanks, Job!

 

These infos makes it even more tougher :D

 

Regarding weights - one dealer quotes the G70 being 5,1 Kg and the Pro between 4,1 to 5,3 Kg, depending if you attach 2 or 4 spring canisters, actually not a very big difference.

 

the difference felt a lot more(approx. 1.5kg) but perhaps i'm mistaken.

 

The pro weights listed are correct

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