DIY IndieSlider...

I was literally set with EVERY part, description, configuration and an INSANE amount of detail prepared - set to order parts for a ZazaSlider first thing tomorrow morning. Then you pop up and COMPLETELY BLOW MY MIND. Thank you! This looks like an INCREDIBLE alternative! Wow! Boy do I have a few more hours of research ahead of me...


Richard Crowley said:
To be honest, this seems like a much better deal (as a DIY version)...
http://www.dvxuser.com/V6/showthread.php?t=193933
I'm going to pursue making a DIY version of this concept vs the Igus rail.
It can be built for lower cost, and has better length and flexibility.
Click to expand...
 
Richard Crowley said:
I got a quote from Igus on 16-Dec and they quoted slightly over $100 for the rail and $50 for the slider. Delivery time would depend on how much you want to pay for delivery. The quote repeated "Current Lead Time: Stock, subject to prior sales" several times.

They have nice products, but seem pretty clumsy for handling small-scale online sales. Even with the "formal quote" as an attached MS Word document, still no mention of payment methods, etc. The ordering process seems very formal and labor-intensive.

To be honest, this seems like a much better deal (as a DIY version)...
http://www.dvxuser.com/V6/showthread.php?t=193933
I'm going to pursue making a DIY version of this concept vs the Igus rail.
It can be built for lower cost, and has better length and flexibility.
Click to expand...

That dollie, is there DIY manual somewhere?

I hope I hear back from igus people soon and get info on when I can get product.
 
craigglaspell said:
Holy cow, what a thread.
I just submitted a 'rfq' to the igus site for the zazaslider parts, now will they get back to me on how to pay and shipping time frame?
Anyone order recently? what kind of delivery times are we looking at?
Thanks for the thread.
Craig
Click to expand...

All you have to do is call the order in.... the RFQ process is really for large-scale linear motion projects.

1-888-803-1895
sales@igus.com​
 
In retrospect that Dana Dolly looks like its a pretty cool solution, but not for me. Too cumbersome for a one-man job and I'm on a 7D so it's a bit of overkill... Plus it doesn't look very safe, like a regular skateboard dolly it can be easily knocked off it's track by a careless PA or the like and thus, there goes your camera. Too bulky for a small camera like mine. I'll stick to the Zaza solution - ordering parts tomorrow!
 
I went to order my parts today and was told they are currently out of stock on the railing under the part number listed on the first page of this thread. This is the drilled railing. They said it would be 4-6 weeks before more is available.

They do have the undrilled rail in stock at this time and mine should ship today.
 
I was away for a few days, but wanted to check in and let you guys know I got my parts. I order the 10-40 parts on Dec 17th with standard ground shipping to California, and they arrived on December 23rd. I'll drill and tap later this week when I have some time, and let you know how it goes.
 
Hey guys, jumping in late to this, but so glad I found this thread it saved me a bunch of $$!! Now I just have to contain my excitement for the 4-6wk lead time on my order!! In the mean time has anyone worked out a locking mech. for the carriage? Also, I already own a 501 head on a bogen tri. and am debating whether to buy an additional "cheaper" head to live on the slider, but am having reservations on spending the money. How sturdy is the slider if I mount it to the quick relaease on the 501 head??

Great Stuff guys!!! Really Great
 
GordoVicious said:
Hey guys, jumping in late to this, but so glad I found this thread it saved me a bunch of $$!! Now I just have to contain my excitement for the 4-6wk lead time on my order!! In the mean time has anyone worked out a locking mech. for the carriage? Also, I already own a 501 head on a bogen tri. and am debating whether to buy an additional "cheaper" head to live on the slider, but am having reservations on spending the money. How sturdy is the slider if I mount it to the quick relaease on the 501 head??

Great Stuff guys!!! Really Great
Click to expand...

Welcome to the ZazaSlider World!

1. igus makes a lock, but you have to be using the 150mm carriage. It works good but not the best design for our use. I'm going to drill a hole in the side of one of the glide blocks and tap it...then use a durlan screw to add pressure against the bearing insert. Should work just fine. I'll keep everyone posted.

2. I have a cheaper head on my slider...very nice to have. I believe mine is a 701RC I picked up on eBay for cheap.

3. The rail & carriage are super sturdy...I guess it would depend on how you secured the QR plate on the bottom of the rail. Others have done it, so you shopuld be fine.

....now go forth and slide!:happy:
 
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After a few days of intense research I bit the bullet. Ordered from Igus, McMaster Carr, Amazon, Filmtools, and eBay! Once built, the rig will be for my Canon 7D. I found the Dana Dolly (previously mentioned here) to simply be too big and cumbersome for my needs. The Zaza/DIY solution will be perfect for my camera and tripod setup - I can't wait til it arrives to assemble it!

Here are the specs on what I ordered:

IGUS:
I'll be getting a 4' 3-1/2" (51.5", 1308mm) 16/60mm slider with 150mm carriage with lock. I wanted to have 4' of actual camera movement, and I'm using O'Connor 1030 sticks so I'm sure it'll support it. The extra 3-1/2" is for the rubber bumpers at the end, which I got from McMaster Carr. I literally ordered the last 4' of the 9' they had left (no pre-drilled holes). I plan on tapping the holes myself to give more a 'bite' to each threading, as I've read previously that you only get 2 or 3 threads taped if it comes pre-drilled and that simply sounded way too sketchy...

MCMASTER CARR:
Ordered 2 rubber bumpers and 2 rubber feet (got the 3-holed version, style #8 I believe) for the floor configuration. Also got a set of knobs that I'll use to attach everything (instead of nuts as it won't require the use of any tools on-set and will just as secure). I studied all of the CAD drawings from Igus and McMC so hopefully it'll all fit just perfectly as it does on paper!

AMAZON:
I have a 100mm ball head, an O'Connor 1030 (absolutely beautiful head) that I want to mount atop the slider configuration, so I ordered Manfrotto's 325N and 500BALLSH for mounting purposes.

FILMTOOLS:
I'll be picking up two gobo heads and two 3/8" female to 5/8" spud adapters so that I can convert the hole I'm using for the feet into spuds I can attach gobo heads and light stands to.

EBAY:
I ordered two baby light stands from Calumet on Ebay to mount to the 5/8" + Gobo combo rig so that I can use two stands two get angled shots and be very secure about it.

It's going to be incredibly flexible - tripod only, two stands only, floor/apple box only and I'll be able to flip the rig upside down to get an inch off the ground with the camera when I need to. It's going to be an amazing setup and I'll be posting photos of the rig in about a week once it's all delivered and completed! Thanks so much for the resources here, hopefully I give something back! When I'm done I plan on releasing my spreadsheet as a PDF with all of the data and instructions I mentioned above, including prices, totals, everything.

I'm also getting a case that'll fit the stands, camera accessories, and grip accessories in one perfect carrying case.

---

Has anyone found a decent solution for protecting the rails as far as a carrying case goes? I've looked into ski bags (too long), rifle bags (too oddly shaped), speaker stand bags (inches too short), and tripod bags (too wide)... any definite solutions? I would need a case that's roughly 52" as my slider will be 51.5"...
 
ZazaCast said:
Igus makes a lock, but you have to be using the 150mm carriage.
Click to expand...

The description of the WHKA-16 manual clamp at the Igus DryLin W website is very poor so I thought the following may be helpful for others. The WHKA-16 manual clamp is basically a 5th pillow block element as shown in the first photo below. It is installed next to one of the pillow blocks and allows to press this block against the rail. As you have already mentioned it unfortuntely doesn't fit on the 100 mm carriage.
 

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Blast! When I called yesterday there was apparently 3 meters of the "S" series in stock but I just spoke with Igus today and it turns out they're out! 3+ weeks unless I expedite it... bummer! I ordered up all the other parts and pieces too, glad I didn't pay any extra in shipping for all those parts! Looks like it'll be a few weeks before I can report back. Christmas comes late this year I suppose.


@Martin Koch - thanks, that's perfect! And now I'm pretty stoked that I ordered the clamp, looks like it'll work out really well!
@Zaza - you mentioned having issues with the clamp, what did you find wrong with it?
 
Nothing 'wrong' with it... it works, but also adds another pillow block (more friction) and only works with a 150mm carriage or larger. I use a 100mm carriage. I think there's a better way.

I also don't really see a need for a lock... I don't really need one for the standard ZazaSlider I use.

As I mentioned, I'll be experimenting with some stuff I picked-up at Home Depot for a brake.....standby.... it's a little crazy around the holidays!
 
Hey 5D/7D shooters (which is not me, unfortunately)...

Vincent Laforet, the guy who made the incredible "Reverie", and the new "Nocturne" (on the new 1D MKIV!) used a slider on the floor, with the HD DSLR on a noga arm maybe 1/2 inch off the floor. GREAT idea, very cool!

Check it out in this BTS at 1:15.

http://vimeo.com/8341236

And yes, check out "Nocturne", shot on the 1D MKIV at 6400 ISO, available light on the streets of LA!
Also on his Vimeo page. Gorgeous stuff!

Me? I'll be slappin' the DVX on my new slider when I get home from the holidays...
 
groveChuck said:
Hey 5D/7D shooters (which is not me, unfortunately)...

Vincent Laforet, the guy who made the incredible "Reverie", and the new "Nocturne" (on the new 1D MKIV!) used a slider on the floor, with the HD DSLR on a noga arm maybe 1/2 inch off the floor. GREAT idea, very cool!

Check it out in this BTS at 1:15.

http://vimeo.com/8341236

And yes, check out "Nocturne", shot on the 1D MKIV at 6400 ISO, available light on the streets of LA!
Also on his Vimeo page. Gorgeous stuff!

Me? I'll be slappin' the DVX on my new slider when I get home from the holidays...
Click to expand...

Is that a Noga arm or something larger like a Bogen Magic arm? And is he balancing the weight by just pressing down on the slider with his hand? I wonder if it's as easy as that.

Then again, maybe it would be easier just to put a couple blocks under the rail on the floor.
 
I finally received my 500 mm Igus rail and finished my "SpiderSlider".

It works well and allows smooth, stable slides but it is not rock solid because such quick lever clamps always have some play. The adjustability may be handy if you want to travel light without fluid head (e.g. just a quick change adapter) but with fluid head I see not much necessity for adjustabilty.

So while it looks cool I will probably end up with conventional feet blocks and end stoppers.
 

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GregJ said:
Is that a Noga arm or something larger like a Bogen Magic arm? And is he balancing the weight by just pressing down on the slider with his hand? I wonder if it's as easy as that.

Then again, maybe it would be easier just to put a couple blocks under the rail on the floor.
Click to expand...

Greg, I'm not sure which kind of arm it is, could you tell from the clip?

http://www.vimeo.com/8341236
(@1:15)

But the result of the arm is that it gets the DSLR less than an inch off the floor, even lower than it would be mounted directly to the carriage.

You can't see the end of the rail clearly, but there might be an orange sandbag on the rail?
And perhaps the feet are wide enough to provide stability even with the camera being several inches forward of the carriage.
And it evidently slides smoothly being off center, too.
 
Regardless, we've already seen this being possible by turning the rig upside and supporting it with two stands on either side. For me, that makes a whole lot more sense than putting the weight of the camera (I'm a 7D owner myself) in the hands of a Magic Arm! With the rig I'm building I'll be able to get an inch off the ground as well, without the need for an arm.

Also, in other news, I've successfully figured out a way to join two Igus rails together securely! Last night my housemate and I stayed up late with a bottle of wine and figured out an incredibly simple solution that will work flawlessly. More details on this as they come in. My new goal is to now have: 1). 4' on tripod, 2). 4' on feet on the floor, 3). 4' upside down and an inch from the floor, 4). 4' sliding at an angle with the use of two stands, 5). 8', two connected 4' pieces, supported by stands and thus absolutely negating the need for a 'real' full-size dolly... Again, more on this to come!
 
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