GH4 Best Cage for the GH4 with locking device for it's HDMI connector.

@James Carpenter

I'm about to pull the trigger on the motion9 cube cage. I'm getting in black as well and was wondering about the quality of the paint job...it looks like you've got some aluminum shining through around the 1/4 holes. Does the body scratch easily?

I'm usually filming in rugged situations on saltwater and on boats with steel hulls.
 
Read through this whole thread but still don't know what cage is right for a Speedbooster combo. Even on the previous page the user had to tweak his Cube cage to fit it in... Was thinking of going with the Wooden Camera or Viewfactor - but now I'm completely at loss of what to invest into.
 
Just wondering after recently acquiring a GH4 and apart from a headache from reading yet another manual and trying to encompass yet another menu system I am also trying to wade my way through the plethora of choices to "cage" the camera. This is a large and sometimes bewildering thread, so i though I'd just throw a question out there.
I've quite a few Small Rig bits and pieces for rigging some of my other gear and whilst it's not top of the range, ( certainly not in price ), I've found their stuff more than good enough for a lot of what I need……So, looking at the Small Rig cage for the GH4 it does look very much like the Wooden Camera one, but has anyone bought and used the Small Rig "version"?
I've a lot of Wooden Camera pieces and there's nothing wrong with their gear at all, but they are expensive…..and I 'm not yet ready to overspend on the GH4 like I have on the other camera rigs I have.
So, the Small Rig cage seems to do what I need, but would love to know if anyone has actually bought and used it before I plumb down more $$$$$ and then maybe regret it.
 
Peter - I own the Smallrig 1510 cage for the GH4. It fits the GH4 well, and provides me with a ton of additional mounting points. Couple it with the NATO rail handle from Smallrig,and you're in good hands.

BTW - I'm also in Baltimore, so if you ever want to take a look at the 1510 or something, feel free to reach out.
 
Hello Brandon, thanks for this.
I do have a Wooden Camera NATO rail and top handle that is part of my WC rig for my Ikonoskop DII, plus the WC Quickbase too that allows me to mount that rig/camera on 15mm rods. I was hoping that some of those "bits" would work on the Small Rig cage too.
So as you say it works for you that makes me more confident about going for the Small Rig option rather than paying a whole lot more for the WC cage.

As for taking a look at your rig I'd love to, but right now I am over in France and will be for another 4-5 months, but thanks for the offer!


Added later:
I forgot to ask, with your Small Rig cage do you have a way of mounting the cage / camera onto a 15mm rods assembly, if so what did you use for that?
 
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@Petermullett

I am able to mount the cage onto rails by adapting it to a quick release system + rails... It really is almost an exact Wooden Camera ripoff, albeit a very well made one!
 
Peter - I own the Smallrig 1510 cage for the GH4. It fits the GH4 well, and provides me with a ton of additional mounting points. Couple it with the NATO rail handle from Smallrig,and you're in good hands.

BTW - I'm also in Baltimore, so if you ever want to take a look at the 1510 or something, feel free to reach out.

So many cages.... so few suitable ones.


smallrig-quick-cage-medium-1510_06.jpg

Was also looking at the SmallRig cage but having that bit of rod going from the bottom plate to the top, it seems like it would be in the way of accessing the lens (as you can see in this picture).....especially the iris control if using a speedbooster. You would have to reach around it. It is possible to run that on the other side by flipping the top and bottom pieces? I'm guessing not.
 
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Pretty sure it was mentioned earlier, but haven't seen it talked about since - The Birdcage from LockCircle looks spot on:
http://www.lockcircle.com/birdcage/panasonic_gh4/

Small and lightweight, solid build quality, LockPort with micro to full size HDMI adapter, and several options for speedboosters and other adapters ;) Only downside could be the price- with a speedboster mounting plate, you're looking at roughly 450$.. + an extra 100$ for a handgrip... think it's worth it?
 
The rod going up to the top actually isn't as bad as I previously thought it would be. With a speedbooster, I'm sure it would be a tad bit cumbersome, but that's probably the biggest sacrifice you'll make using the cage. You cannot run it backwards to have the rail on the right without running into a ton of issues with battery door layoute/etc.

So many cages.... so few suitable ones.


View attachment 97256

Was also looking at the SmallRig cage but having that bit of rod going from the bottom plate to the top, it seems like it would be in the way of accessing the lens (as you can see in this picture).....especially the iris control if using a speedbooster. You would have to reach around it. It is possible to run that on the other side by flipping the top and bottom pieces? I'm guessing not.
 
@Petermullett

I am able to mount the cage onto rails by adapting it to a quick release system + rails... It really is almost an exact Wooden Camera ripoff, albeit a very well made one!

Hi Brandon, which quick release system was this that you use, another from Small Rig?
I ordered the Small Rig cage the other day, it'll probably take a couple of weeks to get here, ( deliveries tend to be slower in France ), but when I get it I will first see if I can adapt it easily enough to the WC q/r plate/rig/rods that I use for the Ikonoskop. It would be great if that could happen. Not banking on it, but you never know.
 
Hi Brandon, I received the SmallRig cage today and I have to say that I am very pleased with it.....Albeit a WC rip-off I guess, but the pricing is unbeatable for what you get compared with anything else out there. Will be trying to figure out mounting it to a 15mm rods system somehow or other soon, but for now this cage does everything I needed it to at the right budget. Thanks for the "nudge" in this direction!
 
Does the Honu V2 cage still have the handle wiggle problem? I'm looking to finally pull the trigger on one, I just wanted to check to see if that was still a problem or if there was any solution. Thanks!
 
Does the Honu V2 cage still have the handle wiggle problem? I'm looking to finally pull the trigger on one, I just wanted to check to see if that was still a problem or if there was any solution. Thanks!

Amswer: yes, it wiggles horizontally, due to the fact that the square plate of the handle is not wide enough.
 
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