Premium Members MichaelReedy Posted October 28, 2016 Premium Members Report Share Posted October 28, 2016 Hey all, Just wanted to check and see if the Betz topstage has the ability to adjust for different width plates and I'm just not seeing it.Have just taken delivery of one and it came without a plate (not through Betz themselves) and have a shoot in 11 hours. Borrowed a PRO plate and although it appeared to work at first, it's definitely not clamping the whole way down.Any advice would be greatly appreciated :) Thanks in advance. (Have already emailed Christian and am hoping for a solution from that end.) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Premium Members Benjamin Treplin Posted October 28, 2016 Premium Members Report Share Posted October 28, 2016 AFAIK it is not designed to be adjusted. It should work with PRO plates. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Premium Members MichaelReedy Posted October 29, 2016 Author Premium Members Report Share Posted October 29, 2016 Thanks Benjamin :)Christian did indeed email me back (rather quickly might I add, have to love that!) and say basically the same thing. Maybe this is just an odd, one-off plate? Ah well, new one is on the way. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderators Alec Jarnagin SOC Posted October 29, 2016 Moderators Report Share Posted October 29, 2016 By no means a long term solution, but in a pinch (as you seem to be), add a piece of Gaff tape to the clamp down piece or wedge a small piece of aluminum foil in there to close the gap. (Disclaimer, I don't own a Betz stage - nor have I ever used one, but this is not the first time a plate has not fit into a top stage). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Premium Members Jerry Holway Posted October 29, 2016 Premium Members Report Share Posted October 29, 2016 You can also use a rubber band along one edge of the "dovetail grabber" 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Premium Members MichaelReedy Posted November 1, 2016 Author Premium Members Report Share Posted November 1, 2016 Thanks for the replies Alec and Jerry. In my tired stupor, I probably didn't explain it correctly. The plate itself was too wide and it was the lever that wasn't clamping down far enough. The proper plate is en route and will solve the issue. Thanks again. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Premium Members Dale Vance Jr. Posted February 2, 2017 Premium Members Report Share Posted February 2, 2017 Just so your aware, the lever to lock the plate in is NOT designed to close flush (the way it rests before you drop the plate in, but on the opposite side). They should send this note with the topstage but they do not. I clamped mine all the way down forcefully when I first got it, and Jack over at pro said don't do that when I called to ask what was wrong. It is a odd design concept. You need only to press firmly on the lever until it is snug. It will not look closed, but it will not slip. Hope this helps. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Premium Members Dale Vance Jr. Posted February 2, 2017 Premium Members Report Share Posted February 2, 2017 Also your old plates will not be thick enough to keep the camera body from hitting the lever. The plate that comes with it will work great. Cinematic Precision sells the Alexa plate in the same thickness Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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