Circle Dolly - Test Footage

Matthew Bennett

Matthew Bennett

Well-known member
Here's a DIY circle dolly i made:

Bennett_fixed_circle_dolly.jpg



It was cut from an 8x4 foot sheet of MDF
It works pretty good but needs a steady hand.
Heres some footage:

http://www.stickypod.com/videos/uploads/1214/Circle_Dolly_Test_h264.mov

enjoy
 
The track piece is just a flat sheet of MDF board, 5/8ths of an inch thick, cut into the shape you see. I lay that down flat on the floor (rised slightly actually) and roll the skater dolly along it (wheels to the ground).
Get it?
It's the stupidest possible way to make a circle dolly (stupid being that it weighs a tonne), but I tried real hard to make a proper one out of track and failed miserably, so I got fed up and made this.
That;s my story. It works, so I don't give f**k
 
Yardsale said:
how exactly does it stay on the track properly?
Click to expand...

It sits on top perfectly. The wheels go one on the top, on the edge. It rolls along.
This is actually hard to explain in a logical way...
just trust me it works, not perfect perfect but it works.
 
how does it roll on it?

oh i think i get it, it goes along hte edges of the board, man, sick.
 
this is seriously impressive! would u be able to give us a guide (or some close up photos) into how to make our own, i mean, the track is obvious, but what did u use to make the dolly? ive been looking for a way to make a cheap circular dolly for ages and i believe you may have the answer im looking for!

dave
 
JesterJJZ said:
Footage looks great. :D Idea of transporting that that thing anywhere...not so great. :(
Click to expand...

Yeah, it's basically stuck in my apartment. I urge all DVXusers not to attempt to construct one of these.
If you do, then use an MDF board, and cut with a jig saw. Use this technique to cut the arcs perfectly (they will need to be as perfect as possible)

http://www.diynet.com/diy/hi_tools/article/0,2037,DIY_13936_2912802,00.html

Use the leftover piece to construct the skater dolly. It's just metal corner siding cut into one foot pieces, and some wal-mart skateboard wheels. I'll post a close up photo so you can see, but it's basically the same exact concept as all the other DIY dolly platforms. You have to angle the wheels properly so they are keyed to your particular curve that you cut.
voila, circle dolly.

Price: about 100 bucks, if you bargain hunt, you could get it all for less. A days work.
 
Wow. Some of the slower moving shots look REALLY good. Nice job... now you just have to come up with something to shoot IN your apartment ;)
 
JesterJJZ said:
You could always try turing that into a jig or template for curving actial pipe. :D
Click to expand...

I was thinking that, too. To bend PVC pipe, you have to heat it up with a paint stripping air blower. It becomes pliable enough to bend, then sets hard when it dries. It's pretty hard to do without deforming the roundness of the pipe, though.
I'm planning on trying that method in the future.
 
You should cut some big ass chunks out of the middle, you know. Take some of that weight down. Very innovative though.
 
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