Built A Home Made Dolly... Help!!!!

>>using two 3/4 pieces of plywood bolted together.

Me too.

>>I've got it on 16 skateboard wheels (ripped off of some el-cheapo skateboards >>purchased at WallMart)

Me too. I also have periodic bumps. Annoying as hell I want to upgrade to real wheels, in the hope that it solves the problem.

Might I suggest 1" 1/4 EMT aluminuim tubes. Much more solid than PVC.

Let us know if changing the wheels worked.

-J
 
Make sure you don't let weight sit on it while it is idle. You will get flat spots in the wheels. They go away after a while but that is a common cause of "bumps"
 
Check out a local skateshop and see if you can get a deal on buying 16 Wheels ands Bearings. Mine were $75.00 or $100.00 I think? Maybe a little more (Can't remember) and they are solid.

No bounce on my dolly. No extra weight. NO water jugs. No ballast sans operator and camera.

Get solid wheels.

And wipe those tracks with a static dust rag.
 
Perpendicular, parallel, what I'm supposed to be a friggin geometry major now???

DOH!!!

(You of course are correct and I, am usual, am an idiot)
 
mikkowilson said:
- I'm thinking of adding to 4 in each corner to smooth out the joints. - My track connections arn't that great.
My track is 30mm diamiter Aluminum pipe, cut to 1.5 lengthes and fastened at 62cm guage. - The track sections can fold for easy portability.

- Mikko
Click to expand...

Mikko, your track looks amazing! I REALLY want to build that kind of track. Do you get big bumps at the joint points?

And can anyone suggest where to find flexable PVC pipe for a circular track in southern CA? I went to both loews and home depot and everyone there looked at me like I had two heads when I asked. Did they stop making it or something?

Heading to find skateboard wheels tomorrow. Must see Star Wars this evening.
 
STORYTELLER32 said:
Mikko, your track looks amazing! I REALLY want to build that kind of track. Do you get big bumps at the joint points?
Click to expand...

Yes actually i do at the moment. I hand cut them with a crappy little hacksaw without a jig, so the cut's arn't very striaght.
Also the conneing "pegs" that go in the track are curently only made of wood, so they don't fully lock teh track in teh right place.
I need to file down the edges to be smooth and get some better fitting metal connectors to get it smoother.

- Mikko
 
would it be useful to cover the tracks with a garden tube for water? i just don´t remember the word right now but i wanted to tell you this. If you cut a thin line at the bottom and cover tracks then all the surfae should be smooth. Maybe i´m wrong. What do you think?
 
thisiswells said:
Has anyone used the 3-legged Losmandy dolly with FlexTrak? Should be about $1400 for a kit.
Just curious.
Click to expand...

Charles Pappert (Instant FIlms) does and from what I understand he is satisifed with it.
 
mr._guiyotinne said:
would it be useful to cover the tracks with a garden tube for water? i just don´t remember the word right now but i wanted to tell you this. If you cut a thin line at the bottom and cover tracks then all the surfae should be smooth. Maybe i´m wrong. What do you think?
Click to expand...


Actually, that sounds like a good idea. But a garden hose is pretty narrow. You'd need something with a larger diameter to cover a 1 & 1/4 inch PVC or aluminum track. With the smaller diameter, I suspect it would create ripples in the hose which would give you bumps galore. Now that I think about it, I tend to doubt the surface texture of a garden hose would lend itself to smooth movement in general.

Just bought some wheels today. Not cheap, but at least I know they'll work.

Johnny Hudson: What's your track made of? PVC? Steel pipe? Are they jointed and connected or just one large even piece?
 
OK, so I changed out the wheels. That was ABSOLUTELY 90% of the problem. Spent a tad over $100.00 on the wheels and bearings (I'm told the oil prices have increased the cost of these kinds of wheels because of what they're made of? My timing sucks..)

ANYWAY... I still don't have flawless footage. My track is made of 1&1/4 inch pvc pipe in 5 foot sections. I jointed them with wooden dowels and placed a thin tape over the connecting points to try and cure the bumps. No dice. That's exactly where I'm getting camera jitter now is right on those joints.

So here's my problem. I've storyboarded this 20 foot running dolly shot in a short I'm about to shoot. Anyone have any suggestions about track and how to get that much length without joint bumps?

I thought maybe I could find flexible PVC in that length and transport it to my shoot that way, but I can't seem to find it available for purchase at the major hardware stores (ie. Loews, Homedepot)

SUGGESTIONS PLEASE...? :shocked:
 
Head back to Lowes or Home Depot and buy some more PVC. Get yourself four 10 foot sections and don't cut them down this time. Use wooden dowels inside the ends of the PVC pipes to join the ends together. Put a single screw in the underside of the PVC into the wood. Works like a champ.

For transportation let the PVC touch the floorboard and hang out the back window, put a little red flag hanging off the tips to keep you legal.
 
Hey Hart,
Thanks for the feedback. 1 Question though:
Won't putting a screw through the bottom of the PVC into a wooden dowel at either end cause the joint points to bow a bit?

If ya got frame grabs of your track and how you did it, could you post some? (ok, so that's 2 questions...)
 
STORYTELLER32 said:
So here's my problem. I've storyboarded this 20 foot running dolly shot in a short I'm about to shoot. Anyone have any suggestions about track and how to get that much length without joint bumps?


SUGGESTIONS PLEASE...? :shocked:
Click to expand...

This is how I did it. I was using 1 1/2 ABS but it should not matter. Get another length of PVC pipe, the same diameter of the one you are using. Cut it into 1-foot sections. Then (be VERY careful) with a dremmel tool or hacksaw, Cut down the middle of each section. Removing the difference + 1/8" in circumference. IE outside diameter is 1.25" inside diameter would be maybe 1"? (measure it) Do the circumference math 3.14 x inside diameter. Once you figure that out cut the difference between the outside and inside out. Or you could eyeball it :) Anyways what you would have is 1-foot length of PVC that has about a 1/3" cut down the center. It is now a C when seen from the end. Squeeze it together and shove it into the ends of your pipe. You can use a little water to lube it up. When you run your dolly just make sure the seams come at different points to minimalize them. If for some reason you do get bumps run a little tiny bit of Teflon tape (I keep mine gaff taped to the bottom of my dolly) along the seam. This method will allow you to build as long of track as you need (I ran a 60' in a wharehouse last year) This is the best solution I have found.

Jonathan-
I can post pics if the above post does not make sense
 
Thanks John,
That's a REALLY good way of doing it. The pressure exerted by the coiled down inner tube would make for a tight grip. I am wondering, however, how do you go about separating the pieces of track when you're done? Sound like you could potentially do some damage to your track during separation, no?

And while I understand what you mean, posting pics is always a good idea for those who don't. MUCH APPRECIATED INFO, thanks so much.

Off topic: When do you think you'll be going into production on the G35? Someone said there's a way to trick the camera into flipping the image right side up with magnets or something? How is that done?
 
STORYTELLER32 said:
Thanks John,
That's a REALLY good way of doing it.
Click to expand...
It is. I shot 1 feature and 2 shorts myself with the rig. The feature being with 40lbs worth of X-prod and Support. I'm a big guy 6'2 245lbs the dolly held up fine.
STORYTELLER32 said:
The pressure exerted by the coiled down inner tube would make for a tight grip.
Click to expand...
You got it! It takes a bit of muscle to get them apart and together (especially when they are new) but you get the hang of it. You just leave the 1' segment in one of the pipes.
STORYTELLER32 said:
I am wondering, however, how do you go about separating the pieces of track when you're done? Sound like you could potentially do some damage to your track during separation, no?
Click to expand...

Nope, the only damage mine received is from fake blood and flying stuntmen. The occasional squib hit that came too close to the track. :cheesy:

STORYTELLER32 said:
And while I understand what you mean, posting pics is always a good idea for those who don't. MUCH APPRECIATED INFO, thanks so much.
Click to expand...

Here you go:

1.jpg

2.jpg

3.jpg

4.jpg

5.jpg


I would suggest using ABS. It has a thicker wall and generally stands up to getting thrashed on better than PVC. You will notice I shaved down the end of the coupling to make it easier to connect.
STORYTELLER32 said:
Someone said there's a way to trick the camera into flipping the image right side up with magnets or something? How is that done?
Click to expand...

Yep, the top picture is if you want to be looking down at the LCD I.E. with it horizontal or any degree between horizontal and Vertical. If you want it Vertical, for instance you are holding it above your head you want to place the magnet in the position of the bottom photo. If the magnet trick does not work flip the magnet over. You have the wrong polarity. These magnets can be found at any Home Depot across the country. A pack of 10 is $9.

dvxhoriz.jpg

dvxvert.jpg


STORYTELLER32 said:
Off topic: When do you think you'll be going into production on the G35? Someone said there's a way to trick the camera into flipping the image right side up with magnets or something? How is that done?
Click to expand...

We are shooting for a month and a half. That's not a long shot either. Keep your eyes peeled for some new footage and some more updates on our forum www.guerilla35.com/talk
 
My track is exactly like JHouser's pics except I used a wooden dowel rod jammed inside the pvc. I put a screw thru the underside just to hold the dowel in place. Screw side then goes toward the ground. They are also counter sunk into the pvc. I have some pics comming soon of my whole rig including a dolley tripod I made. I just repainted it all... Waiting for the paint to dry.

Maybe I will post tomorrow....
 
Has anyone ever tried replicating the flextrak material using silicon cord material, hydraulic hose, or half-round rubber/silicon type materials?

there's a thread over on dvinfo on this subject but it went dead on 6/5/2004 before any test results came in, anyhow, I posted over there as well, but thought I'd chime in on this thread as it was alive and well on the subject at hand.

With the hydraulic hosing, although it isn't solid, it just might be heavy duty enough to handle the weight distributed across 16 wheels, and at $2.28 a foot would be an extremely reasonable cost. If not for supporting a human and camera, it might be fine for a tripod system:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&category=57009&item=7516765900&rd=1

or, for flat surfaces, there is the solid half-round stuff: http://www.acmerubber.com/round.htm as well as solid silicon cord material. It might be sufficiently durable (not sure if it can be durometer/shore rated [as if I know how that translates to dolly requirements!]), but if it's solid enough it would be great for a flat surface!
 
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