table dolly?

Thomas J. O'Hara

Thomas J. O'Hara

Senior Citizen
has anyone made a dolly that can fit a camera person, the tripod, and an actor?

I saw the huge skater dolly that someone made, but it didn't look big enough to hold an actor on it.

i'd want it to be a circular table, kinda like this one-

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i drew up a rough plan for what i think it should look like.

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it has to be a heavy table so the actor can hop on the moving dolly without a bump.

you guys have any suggestions for parts? those big heavy tables are kinda expensive.
 
yeah, i need some heavy duty casters, but I don't think i'm gonna go on a track. you see, it's acting as a carousel, spinning around in a circular motion, while being able to move in any direction simultaneously.
 
That thing seems gargantuan!

A Chapman or Fisher on dancefloor can do that. As well as ped up or down.
 
I made up a simple one that was 7' 8" in diameter the rolled on angled skate wheels mounted to the perimeter of the deck. I made it using 4 sheets of 4'x8' plywood laid out in a two layer deck, screwed and glued together with 2x4 bracing. I used the same wheel blocks that I use on my skater dolly just with one less wheel. I don't have anything posted online to direct you towards but if you want technical drawings I can email them to you just let me know. BTW, we were having to support 1100lbs of people and material so we ended up using 12 wheel blocks if that helps any.

Bob
 
Cynic821 said:
i dont know what kind of shot you would do, but wouldnt you want the actor in the middle?
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rough drawing, but yeah he'd be close to the middle. The shot I want is the lead singer running up to the camera, so he'd have to hop on the dolly as we're slowly moving by. then he sings while we circle around.
 
that means the dolly would have to be in two chunks so the middle of the dolly doesnt spin. That is if you are going around his head, or if he spins too, then you will only see his face for the entire shot like the Tom Petty video.
 
ya, one peice is fine so he turns with you, but if you wanted to go around him and he not spin, it would need 2 peices, or there would need to be a hole in the middle.
 
Could be expensive.

A friend of mine snapped up a cast-off loading dolly from behind a grocery store. It had one big wheel directly in the middle and two smaller pairs at each end. It has a nice spin to it and could easily be utilized for the shot you describe.

Another alternative cheaper than a giant floating DIY lazy susan would be a skater dolly, though you might have to change the choreography somewhat to accommodate it.
 
HappyGobo said:
A friend of mine snapped up a cast-off loading dolly from behind a grocery store. It had one big wheel directly in the middle and two smaller pairs at each end. It has a nice spin to it and could easily be utilized for the shot you describe.
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I've seen those, but they wobble.
 
i'll check the stores, see if there's anything back there. could be promising.

i think i'm just gonna watch craigslist and see if any cheap or free tables come about. I saw one of the rectangle ones for $35, but I need a circle.

another thought I had, if I were to build it, It would be nice to put hinges in the middle so it can fold up for transportation issues. I'd have to make it so the handle bars come off too.
 
You can get solid or inflatable tire/wheel combos at Harbor Freight for about $10 each. A few weeks ago I saw a rotating stage built by high school kids for a play that was just a 2x4 and plywood deck with wheels under the outside edge and a motor and pully in the center. I think the pully went around a pipe and was bolted to the bottom of the deck. The motor was too small to be more than 1 HP and the thing worked.

The platform was at least 15 feet across and this was as crudely built a piece of gear as I have ever seen. It doesn't take much if it doesn't have to last long.
 
Blaine said:
I've seen those, but they wobble.
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Yes. But he got it for free so I guess he wasn't complaining. I shudder to think of how he drove it home hanging out the back door of his sedan.
 
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