Stefan Baltz Posted December 3, 2014 Report Share Posted December 3, 2014 my gimbal clamp on the Zephyr seems to does not work correct anymore. It is very stiff and almost impossible to clamp the gimbal. I unscrewed it to see if there might be something between the screw and the clamp but nothing. It just seems that the thread which is inside the clamp does not rotate anymore, like it does f.e. with the other clamp for the post extension. does anyone had simmilar issues and knows advice how to handle it?? any help would be very appreciated, I have a shoot tomorrow, and I just discovered this :( Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Premium Members Chris Van Campen Posted December 3, 2014 Premium Members Report Share Posted December 3, 2014 Hi Stefan, there's a few threads around on this issue but I don't have time to dig today. I had a similar issue, and rectified it by taking the clamp apart and lubing up the threads with some teflon lubricant. It actually worked like a charm and has continued to work great. Good luck! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stefan Baltz Posted December 3, 2014 Author Report Share Posted December 3, 2014 Hei Chris, thanks for the hint. I dropped some machine oil on it and it seems to work quite fine now :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Premium Members Chris Van Campen Posted December 4, 2014 Premium Members Report Share Posted December 4, 2014 Good to hear, have a great shoot!! Cheers, Chris Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Premium Members Victor Lazaro Posted December 5, 2014 Premium Members Report Share Posted December 5, 2014 Call Tiffen Steadicam customer service. It is a known design issue and they will send you a replacement clamp. Make sure to use a drop of purple Loctite on the thread Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Premium Members Chris Van Campen Posted December 5, 2014 Premium Members Report Share Posted December 5, 2014 Hi Victor - I suspect Tiffen has already addressed the issue. I remember reading about it back in 2012 when I bought mine. The fix at the time was that they added a delrin spacer that keeps the clamp more properly aligned. Mine has the spacer, and they all should at this point. Problem is, once the threads dry up, it requires a lot of torque on the lever to get enough bite to keep the gimbal in place. Mine was getting to the point where I could tell I was in danger of bending the threaded shaft. Once I lubed it, it's been fine. Can't hurt to lube it and also put some Loctite on it as well... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Premium Members Alan Rencher Posted December 12, 2014 Premium Members Report Share Posted December 12, 2014 I bought my zephyr from one of the first batches available, and Tiffen has always provided me with updates as they have come up with them. I have the benefit of being able to walk into their facility in Burbank, since I'm local. They've never charged me for these types of repairs, and have even centered my gimbal a few times for free. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Premium Members Chris Van Campen Posted December 12, 2014 Premium Members Report Share Posted December 12, 2014 They've never charged me for these types of repairs, and have even centered my gimbal a few times for free. Same here, just had 'em fix the spring loaded pin on my vest's bridge plate. No charge, just had to get it to them and they shipped it back. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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