My version of the Homemade Dolly

[Bob Stovall]

Hi all,

Just wanted to put some pics up of my dolly construction. I got all of my ideas here, but used a little from each of you. The dolly is rock solid, and is able to be shimmed to perfect level, and it's so smooth, I don't have to worry about the sections joining together. The PVC doesn't slip around, and the handle is an improvised push broom stick at lowes.

Total cost: $110.00

Here are the links to the pictures:



http://homepage.mac.com/visiondigital/PhotoAlbum7.html

[blckhawk542]

Looks nice...its way different from the other kind of designs people posted on this forum.

Your dolly looks like its really heavy though....$110? dammn..thats a lot...

[Bob Stovall]

It's really not that heavy. It is lighter than steel track.
It is a lot lighter than the dolly track the Chapman Peewee dolly uses!
As far as the price, I have built cheaper dollys, but they never had the durability and stability that this one uses. I'm very pleased!

[Gary_McClurg]

Looks like a nice piece of work.

[pia12254]

Could you post a sample clip of some slow/fast dolly moves? I would like to see how smooth it is at different speeds and starting/stopping.

Looks good to me! And $110 dollars doesn't sound that bad to me....good job!

[limehouse]

That is very nice. I've made a couple of the cheaper, weaker dollies, and I've always realized that I would have been better served to have spent a few extra bucks and for something stronger. I'll be revisiting your pictures for ideas when I build my next one.

[DJQuikFingaz]

Hey Lime,

That "broomstick" handle is awsome! I also like your track a lot too. What exactly is the piece the pvc is sitting on?

[danslak]

Looks nice...its way different from the other kind of designs people posted on this forum.

Your dolly looks like its really heavy though....$110? dammn..thats a lot...

You can cut down on the price a ton by not using sooooo many wheels. 4 sets is plenty. How do I know? This is similar to the design in my book, except for the way the wheels are mounted. (NOT that I'm AT ALL saying he borrowed this from me! Great minds just think alike!). Depending on the price of the wheels and the size of the platform, you can make this for $25 to $60 bucks.

Pia12254, you can see this type of dolly in action at:

http://dvcamerarigs.com/killercontents.html

There are actually 2 quicktime movies: "The Dark Passage Dolly" and the "Killer's Kiss Crane" QT using the dolly with a jib in combination.

Dan
www.DVcameraRigs.com

[Bob Stovall]

I used eight wheels mainly because all of the other dollys that I have tried to build never were strong enough to put 200-300 pounds of gear on. This one is.. I built this one not to be "cheaper and lighter" but to be stonger and capable of heavy duty usage.
I understand why people may want to build as cheap as they can, but for me, that wasn't an issue. I'll keep mine in use, and rented out 15-20 days a month.

[Bigmagic]

Bob nice job. I like the handle. Does the aluminum bracket run the full length of the pvc?

[NO CA$H]

Looks good.
Do you know any ways to fabricate a curved track?

[theos]

Good Job, but how does it transport?

[danslak]

I used eight wheels mainly because all of the other dollys that I have tried to build never were strong enough to put 200-300 pounds of gear on. This one is.. I built this one not to be "cheaper and lighter" but to be stonger and capable of heavy duty usage.
I understand why people may want to build as cheap as they can, but for me, that wasn't an issue. I'll keep mine in use, and rented out 15-20 days a month.

That's the beauty of building this stuff yourself: customization!

Dan
www.DVcameraRigs.com

[Jay Rodriguez]

very nice. i like the idea for the push bar

[Bob Stovall]

Here is some test footage that I did with this dolly...

Dolly Test Video (http://homepage.mac.com/visiondigital/iMovieTheater8.html)

[Jay Rodriguez]

looks great but it only plays about 30% then it keeps stopping

[theos]

works like a dream