Brevis Interview with "Dolly"

Dennis Wood

Dennis Wood

DVXuser Sponsor
Ok, this is a sneaky way to launch a product, but it was shot during stillmotion.ca's studio opening last week. It's worth a laugh...and I'll admit I'd had a glass of wine or three before doing it. Patrick Moreau of stillmotion.ca fame shot it on a Brevis flip with XH-A1, and Canon FD glass. These guys throw a mean party :-)



Mature theme warning: http://www.cinevate.com/images/dolly.mov 21MB Quicktime file. The Cinevate Dolly (yep, patent pending) is code named "Ballare"...latin for dance.



More info here: http://www.cinevate.com/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=1929
and here: http://www.cinevate.com/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=510&start=27
 
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you like 'em big and chunky then Dennis? Can't believe you said that line about leaving her for the still motion boys to ride...!!!
 
Well, most Canadians are humble, politically correct, apologetic, and generally self deprecating.

That however, is in the absence of alchohol. For the record, I'm happily married and my wife is far better looking than me :-)
 
No, just some slick couplers for 1"/25mm ID tubing. We've been using IPEX white PVC drain pipe which is inexpensive at $20/10 ft and bends very nicely into curves. Because the dolly can handle corners, tubing that is not paralell, and even undulating track, there are endless options. The stillmotion guys had a curved track set up in their studio and were pretty excited about the shooting options that open up. Setup time for a curved track affair is under 4 minutes. Shipping is always a challenge, but if there's demand, we'll certainly do track.
 
Well you know, it's all downhill, and the dolly has no less than 44 ball bearings. I figure it's good to about 50km/hour before the speed wobbles set in :-)
 
Charles, we'll have a clip up next week of what we're using...it's just 1" sched. 40 PVC pipe....cheap at $20 per 10 feet. We'll be shipping couplers with the dollys to do 20 feet...curved or straight. It's strong enough to support a ton of weight, but also bends very nicely into smooth 6 foot radius bends. We're just finishing the couplers right now and will a video clip of a typical 360 degree setup...set up in about 5 minutes :-)
 
Are you going to sell the couplers separately?

Been experimenting this week with irrigation pvc. strong stuff, cheap too, but making couplers is where they get you :grin: tried to gaff + sticky tape the next size down but always gets squished when connecting and etc.... :crybaby:
 
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Dennis? WOW wtf. Youve bought out a pro looking dolly for 1300 bucks? Thats something I can use in the field with clients. How much does she weigh? (for shipping)?
 
I'm so jazzed. i'm going to be getting this thing as part of the prize package. woo hoo. Only bad part is it'll be like 2 months before I can get it b/c I'm out of the country right now :(

Later,
Jason
 
Looks just like this: http://www.porta-jib.com/spider_dolly.htm

At less than half the price though. Not bad at all.

However, would it be better than just say purchasing this?
http://www.porta-jib.com/porta-glide.htm

I find with low budget work (where we can't afford a Fisher 10 or the like), a piece of ply on a pair of "sleds" with 32 wheels can't be beat. Easy on, easy off - keep everything on sticks. There has to be a reason you never see the Losmandy spider dolley on sets but the sled/plywood combo is common place. Also, the Losmandy sled has different size wheels, eliminating the dreaded soft spot bump endemic to skateboard wheel dollies. If this feature where incorporated into a spider dolly - now that would be a huge hit.

I still think 1400 is a lot for a skateboard sled - maybe Dennis can design one better and cheaper. He did it with the spider.

Tim Naylor DP
www.timnaylor.com
 
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Well and the nice thing is for half the price, it looks just as sturdy as the spider dolly. Interested in seeing the seat option.
 
Tim, the overall principle of articulating legs is similar, (and must be part of the design to follow non-paralell tracks), however our patent applies to a third axis of movement in our wheel system...unique to the market. Note also the offsets on the wheels...they're there to address bumps. No other dolly can be this stiff, and still follow uneven track. Factor in 46lbs weight and now you've got something you can throw in your trunk too.

If we weren't using our typical JIT, highly efficient manufacture, and selling directly, this unit would be nowhere close to this price. In order to keep costs down, we have had the wheels, and even spec sealed bearings (not bushings like you'll see everywhere else) made specifically for this application...in volume. It's funny though, that when folks see a low price, they automatically assume quality must be commensurate. This dolly has seen at least two dozen revisions from the garage prototype I built 3 years ago...and all based on feedback from our growing collection of filmmakers that we closely interface with. Folks will be loving it :-)
 
Very cool. Sounds like you one upped Losmandy at an indie price. Can you explain how the offset helps with the bumps? 3rd axis is brilliant. Also, any notions for flatspot bumps from skateboard wheels or am I asking too much for too little? Anyway, this dolley has me excited since it looks like it'll fit in my trunk.

What would be really cool to add to the mix is an inexpensive brace for levelling aluminum tubing similar to DVmoves Ron Dexter's DIY recipe without the DIY. Also a way to join inexpensive aluminum tubing would be great. No one does that and PVC has it's limitations (levelling). Something like that would have pros buying the braces and joiners en masse, especially for super long runs.

Tim Naylor DP
www.timnaylor.com

PS. Any discounts if you buy it with the Brevis Flip?
 
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