Joseph Stunzi
Veteran
Understandable John. I'm loving their follow focus after playing with it this week!
mounting firestore to hvx
- Thread starter jeeyof
- Start date
John LaBonney
Well-known member
Thanks to everyone who has contributed to this discussion.
I gave this idea a try and mounted the FS to the HVX using the angle bracket method described in this thread. By using 4 rubber washers (although only two might work), I found that the bracket was pretty stable and the velcro was unnecessary to keep the unit from swinging. So instead I used the strip of velcro to bundle up the firewire cable and keep it out of the way. In fact, the bracket is so stable that you can tilt and turn the camera in any direction (including upside-down) and the FS remains solidly in place. It's definitely a plus to be able to have the FS screen facing you.
One bonus was that I didn't have any problem with the cable coming loose from the HVX at all, which was something that was really slowing me up while using the belt clip. I had looked into getting the firewire saver but a) it was out of stock until recently, and b) it won't work with a right-angle cable. The belt clip is good and solid, and it's what I've been using, but it's a pain to look at the FS screen when it's attached to your waist and you're holding the HVX.
I have a set of knurled thumbscrews on order from smallparts.com to attempt to make this assembly a little easier to attach and remove. However, I don't know if they'll work well with the rubber washers. If they do, I'll superglue the rubber washers to the bracket, and then if I can figure out some type of retaining clip to keep the screws in the bracket after removal, the entire package should put on and come off pretty easily without a whole bunch of easily lost little pieces.
Having the FS mounted on the camera this way makes it a little unwieldy, plus it makes it awkward to carry the camera by its handle. I think that a spiderbrace or DVrig might be in order for handheld/run-and-gun shooting. I took the setup up to my daughter's school and made a little film of her at field day, and by the time we were done my arm was killing me. The other catch is that the record button and zoom control on the handle aren't as accessible, but they're certainly still reachable.
But for the price (about $15, I couldn't get a single bracket at Lowe's, had to buy four, and some such stuff (now I have a bunch of extra parts)), I don't think this solution can be beat. It would certainly work very well for tripod shooting.
Spray paint the bracket black and we're good to go!
I gave this idea a try and mounted the FS to the HVX using the angle bracket method described in this thread. By using 4 rubber washers (although only two might work), I found that the bracket was pretty stable and the velcro was unnecessary to keep the unit from swinging. So instead I used the strip of velcro to bundle up the firewire cable and keep it out of the way. In fact, the bracket is so stable that you can tilt and turn the camera in any direction (including upside-down) and the FS remains solidly in place. It's definitely a plus to be able to have the FS screen facing you.
One bonus was that I didn't have any problem with the cable coming loose from the HVX at all, which was something that was really slowing me up while using the belt clip. I had looked into getting the firewire saver but a) it was out of stock until recently, and b) it won't work with a right-angle cable. The belt clip is good and solid, and it's what I've been using, but it's a pain to look at the FS screen when it's attached to your waist and you're holding the HVX.
I have a set of knurled thumbscrews on order from smallparts.com to attempt to make this assembly a little easier to attach and remove. However, I don't know if they'll work well with the rubber washers. If they do, I'll superglue the rubber washers to the bracket, and then if I can figure out some type of retaining clip to keep the screws in the bracket after removal, the entire package should put on and come off pretty easily without a whole bunch of easily lost little pieces.
Having the FS mounted on the camera this way makes it a little unwieldy, plus it makes it awkward to carry the camera by its handle. I think that a spiderbrace or DVrig might be in order for handheld/run-and-gun shooting. I took the setup up to my daughter's school and made a little film of her at field day, and by the time we were done my arm was killing me. The other catch is that the record button and zoom control on the handle aren't as accessible, but they're certainly still reachable.
But for the price (about $15, I couldn't get a single bracket at Lowe's, had to buy four, and some such stuff (now I have a bunch of extra parts)), I don't think this solution can be beat. It would certainly work very well for tripod shooting.
Spray paint the bracket black and we're good to go!
Igor Bineli
Member
I dont know if my suggestion would really help someone
but I put the FS100 with its "unremovable" part that fits in that hilder at the end of the upper part of the HVX, then a place little pieces of "EVA" (I dont know how this material's called out there... but it's the same material they use on surfer's clothes) to fill the space between the FS100 and the HVX. finally I wrap both of'em with stripes of gaffer tape
I know that it's not an appealing idea, but this gear's proven it's stability on a running actor with a bodycam. it's REALLY reliable
on the other hand, puts the FS100 fan closer to the built-in mics (but I, particularly, never use the audoi that comes out of it)
but I put the FS100 with its "unremovable" part that fits in that hilder at the end of the upper part of the HVX, then a place little pieces of "EVA" (I dont know how this material's called out there... but it's the same material they use on surfer's clothes) to fill the space between the FS100 and the HVX. finally I wrap both of'em with stripes of gaffer tape
I know that it's not an appealing idea, but this gear's proven it's stability on a running actor with a bodycam. it's REALLY reliable
on the other hand, puts the FS100 fan closer to the built-in mics (but I, particularly, never use the audoi that comes out of it)
Contact_Therapy
Well-known member
Hey John, looks good.
One suggestion I could make is to wrap your firewire cable around the outside of your hand grip; the velcro grip with the Panasonic logo on it. You can secure it at both ends with velcro straps and keep it tight with another velcro strap in the middle of just the FW cord. It won't snag on anything if it's kept tight and even if it does, it leverages the strength of the grip so it would not pull out or damage your FW port or FS-100.
I'll post a pic when I get a sec.
One suggestion I could make is to wrap your firewire cable around the outside of your hand grip; the velcro grip with the Panasonic logo on it. You can secure it at both ends with velcro straps and keep it tight with another velcro strap in the middle of just the FW cord. It won't snag on anything if it's kept tight and even if it does, it leverages the strength of the grip so it would not pull out or damage your FW port or FS-100.
I'll post a pic when I get a sec.
John LaBonney
Well-known member
Moving on to level two of this little project, the knurled thumbscrews arrived and I replaced the other screws with these. I spray painted the bracket black, which makes it look considerably more professional.
I tried using some retainer clips on the screws to hold the screw and it's associated washers in place on the bracket after release, but it didn't work very well. They really just made it harder to tighten the screws, so I think a better solution is to superglue the washers to the bracket and then just leave the screws loose.
The catch with the knurled thumbscrews is that it''s better to attach the bracket to the HVX first, then attach the FS-100 to the bracket, because it's a tight squeeze once the FS is attached to the bracket and there's not much room to get your fingers in there to tighten the screw to the HVX.
While not "quick-release", it's "quicker-release." It's tool-less, the knurled thumbscrews look pretty cool, and all-in-all seems to hold on just fine.
I tried using some retainer clips on the screws to hold the screw and it's associated washers in place on the bracket after release, but it didn't work very well. They really just made it harder to tighten the screws, so I think a better solution is to superglue the washers to the bracket and then just leave the screws loose.
The catch with the knurled thumbscrews is that it''s better to attach the bracket to the HVX first, then attach the FS-100 to the bracket, because it's a tight squeeze once the FS is attached to the bracket and there's not much room to get your fingers in there to tighten the screw to the HVX.
While not "quick-release", it's "quicker-release." It's tool-less, the knurled thumbscrews look pretty cool, and all-in-all seems to hold on just fine.
Joseph Stunzi
Veteran
John that looks sick! I wish I had that sort of mounting solution for my HVX when I had my Firestore. I'm assuming it only has one physical attachment point? Is there a way to make it attached on both the front and the back of the handle for added stability?
John LaBonney
Well-known member
There are a couple of suggestions in this thread. Velcro was the solution I chose, wrapping the Velcro strap around the bracket and the handle, but I found the rubber washers hold the FS in place without it swinging out from the handle. It's remarkably stable.
rod support hf1
rod support hf1
hi there,
there is a rod support where you can mount firestore disks directly. on the picture linked below a elipZ accu was used, but it works also fine with firestore.
http://www.hartmann-filmtechnik.de/html/matte_box_support__rod_support2.html
rod support hf1
hi there,
there is a rod support where you can mount firestore disks directly. on the picture linked below a elipZ accu was used, but it works also fine with firestore.
http://www.hartmann-filmtechnik.de/html/matte_box_support__rod_support2.html
John LaBonney
Well-known member
Just in case anyone out there is considering using this setup, I thought I'd report that after some usage, the rubber washers are not providing the same grip that they did when they were brand new and there is some swing in the mount. I expect that thicker washers might be a solution.
Chris Santucci
Veteran
I use the Focus Enhancements cradle and mount the thing to the top shoe on the camera with a ball mount.
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