Jump to content

Earliest back mount vest


Jerry Holway

Recommended Posts

  • Premium Members

Hi Jerry,

 

Did not want to start a riot, just very protective of friends that where there for me when nobody else was... (Thanks Walter).

 

 

Thanks for the Pictures Michael,

 

I was very certain that Garrett hat experimented with this style way before when and early on deemed it not worth while. And I should have know as nothing original ever came from that company that demonstrated it back in 2005.

 

We should maybe start a new thread... but then again it's a short lived curiosity... interesting to look at but not for the real world.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Premium Members

I'm also aware of at least one other early failed vest that had the hard elements in the back, pre- 1982 at least: Some Austrailians who got their Model one without instructions just put on the vest backwards.

 

This sad tale was told at my first workshop - we all laughed - but I also remember Garrett saying that it worked fine.

 

We still laughed, (how dumb!) but no one there picked up on the possibility of a workable, properly designed back mount vest - so any idea of that was lost or wasted on all of us.

 

Persistence and belief in the idea (even seeing that it is an idea) gives us the current back mount vest, and all credit goes to those that had the vision to see the possibilities and make it real. Devil's in the details - the knock-offs of Walter's vest, even with the clear, proven model in front of them, don't measure up...

 

so apologies, again, that my first post about that early photo was seen as a slight; I should have been more clear...

 

Jerry

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Moderators

From the AOL archive (not sure of the date because I actually copied it off GPI's site - but it would have been when the PRO vest first came out some time ago):

 

"Through one whole year of working on various concepts, including rear mounted (huh???), we resolved to focus on addressing the problems in the existing Steadicam vest, while keeping it within a familiar realm for the operator." - Chris Haarhoff

 

Great minds think alike; the devil is indeed in the details though and Walter certainly deserves kudos in that department.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Premium Members

I used to work for an engineering and manufacturing firm in Switzerland...

 

On average for every 100 ideas we made one prototype and for every 20 prototypes one actually became a production model that saw the show room...

 

It's only thanks to Garrett's persistence that the Steadicam actually saw the light of day (one non working prototype in the first year of collaboration with CP... wow). Just seeing how many ideas he had and later prototypes... you can imagine what kind of tour the force it is to actually get something build and sold these days. But he saw it through...

 

And also checking out all the "failed" prototypes, like George Paddocks first Gimbal design (usually referred to as the $60'000.- paperweight)... and all the other goodies that are lying in the back of workshops around Los Angeles and abroad, like GPI or used to at Bob DeRose (the Magnesium 3A arm made for Scott Sakamoto... that bend without any load on it)... tons and tons of PRO hybrids and dismissed XCS prototypes at Greg's place (including a "self locking" gimbal for several $10K that actually "self unlocked")... All the "steadi junk" that Whitehouse used to have sitting in boxes at his old place...

 

Many had the idea. Yeah GPI was toying with the back mount, they even build a self leveling head for the PRO... The PRO LCD monitor... the PRO onboard PCMCIA recorder, PRO Harddrive recorder, the PRO video rig... etc.... didn't take...

 

Walter saw it through with what, just over 70 vests sold in the first 8 years of "production"...

 

 

Oh yeah... Lynn Nicholson with his Alien...

 

BTW: Jerry how is it going with the integration since Tiffen acquired the patent over a year ago?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Premium Members
Many had the idea. Yeah GPI was toying with the back mount, they even build a self leveling head for the PRO... The PRO LCD monitor... the PRO onboard PCMCIA recorder, PRO Harddrive recorder, the PRO video rig... etc.... didn't take...

 

 

.... and someday there will be the PRO "Flyer" for small cameras. I really thought about that idea... :D

 

HE

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

Loading...
×
×
  • Create New...