Has anyone tried to make a more portable jib arm?

M

MrHeavySilence

Active member
Has anyone tried to make a portable jib arm that can be quickly disassembled and packed away?

I have been looking at a couple great Jib arm DIYs, but with something that long, its impossible for me to find space for it. I'm also wondering if anybody has any ideas for a extendable/retractable jib arm. What about grouping together a couple of extendable steel painter poles for the dslr mount? Or do you guys think that it would not be able to handle the pressure of something like a camera?
 
Can anyone help me identify parts for this camera crane?

Here's the link. I'm not very construction savy so I don't know what these steel bracket things are called for the pivot arm (looks like a bottom bracket and hinge thingy). Are those aluminum bars and rectangular that he uses for the crane arm? Sorry, I'm pretty ignorant- but hopefully you guys will be willing to help; I'll probably buy a drill press to go through the camera crane arm for the different screw knobs.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bfmnQUgWdkg&feature=channel_video_title#t=1m37s
 
That is a very simple, clever design that requires a minimum of tools to make (hack saw, drill, vise).

The main arm - Yes, that is aluminum tubing. You can probably find what you need at a local hardware store or onlinemetals.com

Most of the other metal (the black items) looks to be aluminum flat bar; maybe .0625 (1/16") or .125 (1/8") x .75 (3/4") bar. Also available at onlinemetals.com. Just bend the bar into the shapes you see on a vise.
 
Thanks for the advice! I'll look at some tutorial videos on bending using a vise. I'm guessing hack saw to cut the metal?

Despite my lack of experience I think this will be fun and frustrating
 
If you don't have a vise, you can just use a hammer and any square edge like concrete steps or a brick wall to bend the flat bar into shape. 1/8" flat bar is very easy to bend into shape. Just lay the bar flat on a surface with the place you want the bend at the edge of the surface. Hold the flat bar on the surface with your hand. Then hammer the edge that is hanging over the edge. You strike the metal at different points to control the bend. It's very easy. You will see what I mean when you try it. Sometimes you need to strike 3 or 4 inches from the edge to keep the bar flat. Then other strikes will be close to the edge to make the bend sharp. If you make a mistake, just set the bar back on the flat surface and hammer it back to its original shape. It may sound complicated, but try it once and you will see how easy it is to get exactly the bend you want. A vise makes it easier to get very sharp bends.

You can also use any narrow slot to bend the bar. Just stick the bar in the slot and bend it.

Go to a local hardware store any buy a 3' piece of aluminum flat bar (get 1/8" and-or 1/16") and try this. If it works for you, then you will have the confidence to do the rest of the project. The usually sell anodized and plain aluminum. Buy the plain stuff. The anodized aluminum is a waste of money (more expensive).

Yes, hack saw to cut the aluminum.
 
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