Need help balancing my Laing M-02 stabilizer

[Sanjay Sami]

I like the guys credit list at the end :D

[Charles Papert]

One of my AC's picked up a Laing recently and we put it together to see what's what.

 

What's what is that it is a lot of rig for the money, but that's like saying a 40 of Olde English 800 is a lot of beer for the money. Neither cost much but later you'll probably wish you spent more.

 

Cheap rigs have come a long way. The basic parts are there, you can adjust the pitch of the arm in the usual axes, build quality is reasonably refined. However there are a lot of design issues as one would expect. The top stage is a pain to adjust. Don't think about trying to work with the arm boomed up or down towards the limits. And the gimbal, while seemingly smooth enough, is of course deliriously non-linear: static balance, pan 90 degrees and watch it tip.

 

I wouldn't want to start advising either how to work with it or how to improve it (so please nobody ask me). The $50 guitar analogy is sound. A lot people who buy these nouveau knockoffs insist that it costs relatively so little, it kind of doesn't matter if it sucks. Haven't quite worked that one out. I think that by the time you would actually get good enough at using it, you would have outgrown it (or started putting plenty of time and energy into modifying it to the hilt).

 

So yeah, it's less clunky and cheaper than the lowest end rigs that have been floating around for the past 10 years or so (anyone remember the Magiqcam??). That's some progress. Fits perfectly into the mindset of so many these days which is to acquired as much cheap gear as possible to sound like a more impressive entity and to impress the "clients".

[Chris Poynton]

Thanks Charles. Can you expand at all on the following?

 

Don't think about trying to work with the arm boomed up or down towards the limits.

[Alan Rencher]

He probably means that the higher or lower you move the arm, the more tension you have to fight. That's something I noticed when I tried one on at NAB.

[Quaid Cde Baca]

Hey,

So i unfortunately had one too (the bigger M-04 for RED), it sucks–surprisingly amazing customer service though. They're terrible functionality, all I can say–from experience– buy the steadicam operator's handbook and study it (dynamic balance). It is a bad stabilizer, but you need to start with something and work on operating skills. I would:

1. Study the handbook

2. Check your dynamic balance (monitor/ battery placement)

3. Move the gimbal more upward

4. Check weight on top stage and bottom of post via drop test.

5. Get a new rig

[Chris Poynton]

Quaid can you provide some detail on the problems?

 

 

So i unfortunately had one too (the bigger M-04 for RED), it sucks–surprisingly amazing customer service though. They're terrible functionality.

[Quaid Cde Baca]

The arm is a spring, NOT ISO, so it holds in the middle range or where ever the weight pushes it to = booming up and down is almost impossible without sacrificing a smooth shot.

The top stage is scary, and I don't trust it to hold more than 15lb when I would tilt/ pan/ angle/ low mode

The bottom stage worried me with the weight it held, didn't seam strong.

Oh, and on one set, the arm's post holding the sled snapped in half dropping the sled (fortunately only from 6") but scary and unacceptable non the less.

 

it's like having a ferrari kit car. It looks like a steadicam, but all the parts are from the .99 cents store. the arm is not ISO, but just a spring so it's only range is middle, the top stage is terrifying to tilt or do low mode. It has the parts and functions, but no where ever close to a professional steadicam.

I did and do have one now (trying to sell), it got me comfortable with bigger cameras until I recently got the balls and money to get a loan and pick up a Master Series rig. It's another world. it works how it should and you can no longer worry and just focus on operating. I am nowhere near a good professional operator yet, but it needs to be learned on a 'real rig'.

 

Though I was very very pleased on the customer service from the company. It is a good bang for your buck, but don;t expect serious performance out of that buck.