Never thought I'd say this but

[Mark Karavite]

Hey Jamie,

 

I remember hearing that PRO would not sell connectors to operators who weren't buying a complete system from them. When I put together my new rig 1 1/2 years ago, George not only sold me the parts I needed to complete my dream Frankenrig, but he went above and beyond to help me figure out some compatibility problems, which ended up being MK-V issues, not PRO issues. If you are still wanting the PRO connectors, maybe you should try George again, & offer him the $$ with a slice of humble pie.

 

I ended up with a PRO DB3 & upper J box, XCS 2" post and gimbal, & an MK-V nexus battery stage. I went with the MK-V, partly because the AR was looming on the horizon, and I wanted to be compatible if I went with an AR. I must say, PRO and XCS make gear that works the first time, and every time. If there is a hint of a problem, they are on it like a rat on a cheetoh. I wish all equipment suppliers supported us like they do.

 

The PRO DB3 is the best top stage I have ever flown, and combining it with XCS baseplate makes for an extremely rigid combo. Whether Erwin came up with the idea to combine the 2 or not, others should cut the man some slack. Erwin spends more time and money than a small country looking to progress the art and technology of Steadicam (just look at the contacts list he posts on his site).

 

Mark "can't we all just get along" Karavite

[John Morrison]

Mark,

 

Interested to read your post as I'm thinking about going the same route with my new rig. A few questions though, what bits do you need from Paddock to make this conversion work, what were the specific problems you encountered? and, how much did it cost you!

 

I'm planing to go the same way except using the Pro battery system so perhaps it will be a little simpler for me.

 

Also do you have any photos?

 

Thanks in advance

 

John Morrison

[JamieSilverstein]

Mark;

My quarrel with PRO is long in the past. I own a D Box 3, have PRO connectors on both ends of the post and have had work done by PRO on my sled. I have the utmost respect for George and PRO, and think that their equipment is some of the best out there.

It never serves me to dwell on the past.

Jamie.

[RonBaldwin]

this isn't really related to top satges, but back when I upgraded from a model 2 to a pro sled in Dec '97 I mentioned to George that I was saving up for a pro arm. He asked if I had a Preston yet -- I did not. He suggested getting one first before breaking my piggy bank on the arm. He commented that the 3-A arm is a great arm and it should be just fine while I gather other equipment I might need more. I've always admired him for being a fellow human rather than merely a salesman always trying to peddle his wares and make a quick buck.

 

Ron B

[Erwin Landau]

Again not related, but...

 

The first time I visited GPI. George talked to me forever, let me run around with the rental rig all afternoon and after wasting his whole day, the only equipment advice he gave me was: "Get a Preston and my Gimbal and buy the rest on the used market... and you'll be fine." ...that's what I did.

 

Even thought I deviated a bit (quite a bit) from the PRO path, I'm still welcome at GPI.

 

 

 

Erwin "Thanks! Sansei George" Landau

[Juan M.Ramos SOC]

Hi!!!!

I´m fine.really busy again after my trip.

About DB3,it was only a comment,I don´t like because it has too many movement small pieces.I prefered a really and simple topstage,the probability of something wrong happens in a simple topstage it is lower and if you travel a lot and shoot in differents countries you have to be able to replace your topsatge ;also I had no choice and I had preferred to buy the DB2 with my PRO sled.

With a new model you have to have the chance of choose what version do you want to buy it but I couldn´t when I bought my sled.

Now I´m moving to a new chrosziel topsatge.

I wasn´t my intention to use this topic for add something...sorry.

Best regards to everyone and I´m sorry for my english

 

PS:the meeting after CINEGEAR was really fun,thanks everyone for make feel really good!!!!!

[RonBaldwin]

I'll trade you my db-2 for your db-3!

 

so, this chroziel topstage...anyone going to post pictures or what? All I can find online about chroziel is concerning their mattboxes.

 

Ron B

[Juan M.Ramos SOC]

I´m buing a new one from chrosziel,soory.This is the link,look in acccs.

 

http://www.anthrazit-design.com

[RonBaldwin]

thanks for the link. Never heard of one until you mentioned it -- I'd love to see it in person someday (that Churchill monitor mracket too).

 

rb

[Mark Karavite]

Dear Jamie,

 

Sorry I misunderstood your post. I thought you hadn't obtained your PRO parts yet. My bad!

 

Hey John,

 

If I hear you right, it sounds like you want to build a PRO sled, with a 2" carbon fiber post. If that is your goal, you will have an easier time than I did, because I complicated the process with a MK-V battery stage. For your needs, you would simply order a 2" carbon fiber post from XCS with PRO connectors instead of XCS Ultimate connectors. Gregg builds it both ways, and even has a PRO style superpost for rental if needed. If you buy the PRO 2 battery stage, it will come with the proper connectors. My rig was more complicated because I needed the PRO connector for the MK-V battery stage.

 

In hindsight, I might have gone the route you are considering. The MK-V Nexus is not completely PRO compatible. I needed my machinist to make a custom spacer to mount the Nexus to my post. Also, the Nexus doesn't feed the 12v Aux power to a PRO upper J Box, so if I ever need to run a high speed base for an Arri 3, I'm kind of screwed.

 

A couple of other thoughts:

 

1) A PRO gimbal won't work on a 2" post, so your options are XCS (which I own and love) or maybe an MK-V which I haven't flown. I saw that Erwin Landau was selling a XCS gimbal, so check out the For Sale section, and you could save some $$. Look at the ergo handle as well.

 

2) MK-V also makes a PRO conversion, with a their 2" carbon fiber post. Eric Fletcher has this setup, and you can find pictures of his rig on this forum. The reason I didn't like the MK-V 4 stage post is that, when not using the super post feature, I thought it was too long in standard length. I just prefer a shorter sled when doing standard operating.

 

3) Whether you choose an XCS or MK-V 2" post, I would suggest buying post, gimball and monitor bracket all from the same vendor. I own gear from both, and personally the XCS gear has not had any issues, and XCS support has been top notch.

 

4) While I'm on the XCS bandwagon, you should take a hard look at the Ultimate sled as well. It is a different approach to power managment and sled adjustments, but a very nice piece of equipment.

 

The good news about building a new sled, is that there are so many choices. The bad news about building a new sled, is that there are so many choicies.

 

Good luck,

 

Mark Karavite

[Kareem La Vaullee]

thanks for the link. Never heard of one until you mentioned it -- I'd love to see it in person someday (that Churchill monitor bracket too).

 

rb

 

 

Hi Ron,

 

If you download this : AC Tools Pricelist.pdf

 

on page 34 you will find this :

 

 

and on page 35 this :

 

 

 

 

I tried the first prototype of that stage and it was already very good, in the mean time Christian Betz did some adjustments (I told him, like everybody else, that the side to side trim was reversed from common use and he corrected that on the final product) and a lot of operators here in Europe are using that stage and they say a lot of good things about it, I still own Christian Betz's previous stage model (designed by Ted Churchill) on my back-up Sled and even if it's a bit obsolete now it's still a very robust piece of equipment.

 

I also own the Monitor bracket still on my back-up Sled, it's ok, very modular, even too much, but don't put your monitor too far out on that curve or it will wobble.

 

Cheers,

 

K.