"bands" around the arm

[Kiel Michael Eulberg]

Hello all, so I'm a flyer LE owner/ operator with an issue. I'm often on set with rigs that are over my weight limit, and I've heard about operators using elastic bands on the outside of their arms to compensate. Does anyone have experience doing this, or know what sort of material to buy to accomplish this? Hope this will help other operators as well.

[Afton Grant]

It's a trick you might get away with once in a while in a pinch, but it wouldn't be recommended to do as common practice. It's not just your arm that has a weight limit. The rest of your rig is designed to carry only a certain amount of weight and if that limit is exceeded repeatedly, you could likely see failures in the gimbal, post, stage, or elsewhere - some potentially catastrophic.

[Kiel Michael Eulberg]

Oh I agree with you in every way, this is a temporary solution until I can afford a new arm. I just think it would be easier on the system if I was to use bands until my next arm purchase.

[Victor Lazaro]

The thing that will give up first before the arm is your gimbal. the bearings will bend before your arm suffers if you go past the weight limit. If you can't carry the weight, I would recommend you send the job to someone who can lift it (I've done that in the past). Instead of risking to break your tools and make a customer unhappy about Steadicam. Remember, we are a community, if one operators is bad on the job, it can have repercussions for all of us.