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Any new impressions on EXOVEST?


Libor Cevelik

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Cool Video!

 

Yes Victor, as Jerry said, I just use a Zephyr/Flyer sized socket block on the Exovest. Actually I do the same with my Jerry Hill Hardmount, the hole pattern is the same, they're interchangeable in minutes.

 

Is the black overcenter lever a new one and part of the upgrade? Mine is blue, and together with the lower dovetail the only true issue I have with my Exo, because the dovetail is really hard to close, and if one does manage to close it to the point where the overcenter lever can be fully closed it works its way up against the lever which then becomes stuck and requires violent pushing to unlock.

Chris said there's gonna be an update, just wondering if the black lever shown here is part of it.

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So you are using the exovest with a Zephyr? How?

VICTOR, the pilot - zeyphor socket block has the same 8 screw pin on the back as the regular block.

 

all you need to do is to swap it ~

 

 

Or~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ !

 

Ive seen Garrett brown has a socket that replaces the Zeyphr socket with just one pin (makes the zeyphr arm socket the same as G50/70X).

 

BUT ! its a prototype ~ and its not available for sale. and has a special note on it that says" GB only"

 

Quote from Garrett When Im asking him to let Tiffen sells me this : " You can't have everything !"

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Ummmm.... I want that, too?! Please?!

 

The tool-free socket block of the Zephyr is the #1 pain in the b*** about the whole rig! It's just a totally failed design - it is impossible to turn the side-to-side adjustment screws by hand while the sled is on the arm, way too stiff (which is obvious while loaded) constant docking and undocking is necessary for proper adjustment. Holding the rig up doesn't help, the arm alone is weight enoug to stop the screws from being loose enough to turn. Fingers get sore before it will move. Result - either a lot of wasted time or accepting a less-than-perfect balance. It is one of the major reasons I want to upgrade sooner rather than later, and yes I get that that may be Tiffen's exact reason for not giving the big one to the Zephyr even as an option (since you say it exists...). But the Zephyr is such an awesome rig, it'd really deserve a good socket block. I'd pay for having that immediately, probably more than would be reasonable...

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Hi Brian,

 

I dont share my rig, but I find that with different weights on the Zephyr, the arms slack varies calling for adjustment, so it floats nicely in the sweetspot I want it to. Maybe I'm trying to be overly precise, but I prefer a finely tuned rig, just makes things easier. Of course this is an adjustment required just once per setup, but if you fly different setups almost daily, its a daily thing. And sometimes in the kind of productions I currently work on, when people are waiting, things need to go as quick as possible and this ist just wasting time.

Also, those screws are as loose when unloaded as they are tight when loaded, so they loose adjustment during transport. This however I sometimes counter by marking them.

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Frederic-

 

I don't have a Zephyr arm to try this on at the moment, but for all arms and socket blocks, it's best to position the sled to unload either the fore-aft screws or the side-to-side screws when adjusting, even if you have the leverage from a tool.

 

The key is to move the sled's center of gravity - i.e., the gimbal - in line with the screws you are NOT trying to adjust; this takes the pressure off those screws.

 

Restated: drag the sled to be in line with the fore aft screws (way to the right side for regular side operating). This should make it easy to adjust the side to side screws. And vice versa for the fore-aft adjustments.

 

Not sure this is enough for the Zephyr system, but it should be. Regardless, it's worth a try

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Frederic,

 

I'm confused. Of course the lift of the arm will change per setup, but your socket block adjustments will not change unless you lose or gain weight yourself, or if you stand differently. If the latter, you should be learning to stand the same every time rather than adjusting the socket block to your new stance. To start, If you use a mirror, or better yet another person watching, to line yourself up in the right position, you can adjust the socket block to that. After that, every time you put it on you'll know you're standing correctly when the sled floats in the sweet spot.

 

I think your frustrations would be the same with any rig. Adjusting the socket block daily would be a pain no matter what. Once you get your muscles trained to the stance you should keep every time you'll be much happier.

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Brian,

 

I trained proper posture a lot and I know for a fact that I do not have those issues when I use more heavy-duty arms like a G50x, G70x or Pro. The Zephyr arm (well, my zeohyr arm at least) tends to bend under load (talking only about loads in its official weight range of course), and somehow that changes the geometry of the arm requiring a readjustment of the socket block. I have the same issues when hardmounted to a bazooka, but there I just set the socket block to 0 and adjust the threeway-leveler. But to proove my point I just did a test: I leveled the hardmount to a point where with my usual socket block adjustments it floats the rig in one specific spot, and thus matches my stance. Since its fixed, it has the same equivalent of "stance" everytime. Then I changed the load on the rig and nothing else and the spot changed - dramatically.

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My Exovest is on its way if no one helped you till then i will be there to tell you what it feels :) i have to add something about how happy i am for the customer service these guys showed me until i decided to get the vest .. from Chris Fawcett to Robin Thwaites these guys answered maybe hundreds of questions i asked.. so im sure they will help anyone

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Strongly seconded, Chris will be standing by to help you with any questions - as he sais it's his baby and he is behind it 100%.

 

Bob, if you have any specific questions, I've had my Exo since September and am happy to answer anything about my experience with it you'd like to know.

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A few small notes about the fit of the Exovest to various operators (from my experience with it).

 

Since there isn't continuous, broad padding like in traditional vests, it's very important to get the smaller pads in the right spot to direct the forces of weight and torque into the right spots. Pay attention to the video for this aspect and others!

 

It's absolutely essential to have enough padding in the shoulders to keep the rear rods off your back at all times.

 

It's not critical (or necessarily even good) to have the front and rear rods extended to the same length.

 

Adjusting these rods, front and back, will place the shoulder pads where you need them for torque loading AND it will determine how much weight will be put into your shoulders. You should experiment, and continue to experiment, with the rod lengths as you get used to your Exovest. My current preference is a bit of weight on the shoulders, but that might change as I use it more, or change the weight of the rig radically, or go through a long day.

 

The key feature for me is how it is extremely and instantly customizable for individual preference and fit.

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