My Kessler Crane Setup :)

Ram S.O.S

Ram S.O.S

Well-known member
Here are some pics of my Kessler setup, I have a Kessler KC8 crane with the optional brake and tool less kit. My original setup used a bogen manfrotto combo with a 501 head, I tried using manual tilt mode with that setup and it was very hard to control. The 501 head is not strong enough to use with the cran in my opinion. I also had a problem the the legs, the clamps don't tighten up enough to hold the weight of the setup. I had to use some gaff tape on the legs to stop them from slowly sliding down. The whole setup tipped over and luckily a member of my crew caught it before my DVX hit the floor.

That was my first experience with it and I had another shoot the next weekend, so I decided to buy the Bescor MP-101 auto pan and tilt head with the extended controller cable. Some people don't like that head but I love it, it did everything I wanted it to do I continued using the same tripod setup and I got decent results. But I still felt leary about the stability of the setup.

The Next weekend I decided to bite the bullet and upgrade the tripod and head which can be seen my last 2 pics. I bought some much beefier legs and a massive Bogen 316 head rated at 35 lbs! now I thing I have the perfect setup. Additional accessories for my setup include a sony GVD900 mini DV video walkman for the monitor which I rigged up onto the right with some wooden blocks and some gaff tape and a Zoom Commander DVX remote zoom controller. I also used an Inde Snap Matte Box.

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Here it is in a little action, I'll post the music vdeo we were working on next week.
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Looks cool RAM. Would love to see the results. Two DVX's?

Where are you shooting it? Looks like a cross between a skate park and indie band venue.
 
ncje said:
Looks cool RAM. Would love to see the results. Two DVX's?

Where are you shooting it? Looks like a cross between a skate park and indie band venue.
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You are pretty on point with your observation. The place is an Indie Venue with a Half Pike in the middle of the room. The really cool thing about it is it has very tall ceilings and my office is right upstairs from it in the same building. The buildings owner let's me use the space as my studio. There is also a huge backstage area that I can utilize. It's a historic building but it has a modern electrical system with breakers so it can handle my lights. And yes we did have 2 DVX100A's, my business partner and I both own one.
 
GREAT pics, Ram S.O.S!!

Yeah, that 501 and those chinzy legs look like trouble; good that the DVX was caught in time! Any crane needs some STURDY legs to go with it. The new legs and 516 look SWEET!

I'm thinking about getting the Kessler "fluid swivel"; that looks like a nice addition to the Kessler crane.
 
Damn Ram, that 316 weighs 10 pounds!

Good point about getting a better head. I picked up a 116/3066 head (rated to 22 pounds) for $250 used, and I don't really mind if it eventually gives out. I find the tilt function difficult (but functional) even with the 116 - more practice might help, but I don't think so. It's just hard to move - even without the crane mounted. Maybe it really wants a heavy camera sitting directly on top.

It'd be good if you could let us know how the 316 works for you.


btw, I've ordered a dolly like this from ebay...

http://cgi.ebay.com.au/Heavy-Duty-D...oryZ3319QQssPageNameZWD2VQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

...this should make the crane a little less cumbersome on set.

Thanks for sharing.
 
StMad said:
Damn Ram, that 316 weighs 10 pounds!

Good point about getting a better head. I picked up a 116/3066 head (rated to 22 pounds) for $250 used, and I don't really mind if it eventually gives out. I find the tilt function difficult (but functional) even with the 116 - more practice might help, but I don't think so. It's just hard to move - even without the crane mounted. Maybe it really wants a heavy camera sitting directly on top.

It'd be good if you could let us know how the 316 works for you.


btw, I've ordered a dolly like this from ebay...

http://cgi.ebay.com.au/Heavy-Duty-D...oryZ3319QQssPageNameZWD2VQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

...this should make the crane a little less cumbersome on set.

Thanks for sharing.
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The 316 is a monster head but it is worth using in my opinion because it makes manual tile mode work super easy, even if you tilt 90 degrees it goes back to zero with little to no effort. The Dolly is a great addition and it will definitely be the next purchase I make for my setup because as you mentioned the head weighs 10 pounds alone so it is very heavy now.
 
vidled said:
GREAT pics, Ram S.O.S!!

Yeah, that 501 and those chinzy legs look like trouble; good that the DVX was caught in time! Any crane needs some STURDY legs to go with it. The new legs and 516 look SWEET!

I'm thinking about getting the Kessler "fluid swivel"; that looks like a nice addition to the Kessler crane.
Click to expand...


The head I'm using is a 316, the 516 might be it's successor but the 316 is rated to handle more weight than a 516. I won't be purchasing a Kessler "Fluid swivel because I like the option of manual tilt mode which is disabled with the fluid swivel. I have noticed a few people have purchased the fluid swivel and didn't realize the it has no tilting option. Here is a pic of the massive 316.
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the crane is alot of fun.. i have used it on a couple of shoots already. if anyone is thinking about getting one be sure to have a good tripod. it makes all the difference.
 
Ram, nice set up! did you end up going with the 8 or 12' kessler (looks like the 8 in the photos)?

Funny thing, I also ended up with the 316 head after I busted the head plate on my 501 from over tightening the quick release plate...

Also on your monitor, does there happen to be a 1/4" mounting hole?
 
DCERVENKA said:
Ram, nice set up! did you end up going with the 8 or 12' kessler (looks like the 8 in the photos)?

Funny thing, I also ended up with the 316 head after I busted the head plate on my 501 from over tightening the quick release plate...

Also on your monitor, does there happen to be a 1/4" mounting hole?
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I do have the 8 foot KC8 cranes, but I plan on buying the extension to make it a 12 foot crane when needed and at only $200 it's a bargain. I can safely do this now that I have the 316 in place. The monitor I'm using is a Sony Mini DV video walman and it does not have a hole ot the bottom, I just rigged up a mount with some gaff tape and wooden blocks. I'm considering getting a dedicated LCD monitor for the setup, but I might not since I can run the sony for 5 hours on one battery. Really that's the coolest thing about the whole setup, I can run everything on battery power. The pan tilt head takes 4 AA batteries and last all day, the monitor and camera both run on batteries so it's the perfect portable setup. I guess I'm lucky I didn't destroy my 501 using it with my first setup.
 
I'm confused. Isn't a perfectly balanced the tilt more or less inherent in the crane design? I'd be worried about trying to use the tilt on an acutal fluid head anyway--the fluid swivel head gives you the rock-steady sideways movement you need. It seems like using the tilt on the fluid head itself would unbalance the crane.

I could be wrong, I don't own one.
 
HappyGobo said:
I'm confused. Isn't a perfectly balanced the tilt more or less inherent in the crane design? I'd be worried about trying to use the tilt on an acutal fluid head anyway--the fluid swivel head gives you the rock-steady sideways movement you need. It seems like using the tilt on the fluid head itself would unbalance the crane.

I could be wrong, I don't own one.
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Here is the explaination, The Kessler Crane offers 2 different modes of use, one is Auto mode. In Auto mode the camera's tilt stays in what ever position you put the tripod head in, usually zero degrees and when you go from the ground to the maximum height the camera stays in that zero degree position. The second mode is manual, in this mode you can tilt the camera as you bring it up and down to follow your subject. Typically a crane will have a motorized head the will allow for tilting and panning, but this crane is targeted to indie filmmakers and videographers on a budget and a good pan tilt head with a joystick will cost you at least $1500. This is where manual mode will help you out if you cannot afford one of those, you can loosen the lock on your tripod and tilt the head. That same tilting motion is transfered to the base where the camera is mounted on the end of the crane and it tilts the camera. You can do this at the same time as you raise or lower the crane allowing you to keep your subject in frame. When you lock your tripod head the camera will stay in whatever postion you have the head in and you will go into auto mode, as you raise and lower the crane the camera will maintain the same position throughout it's travel. I bought a low cost pan tilt head that only tilts 15 degrees in either direction so having the ability to do manual tilting is still necessary for me at times. By the way i have no side to side movement at all. I hope I was clear in my explaination.
 
That does help a bit. I suppose I should observe the videos on their site more closely, or better yet get hands-on with one.
 
Ram S.O.S

is it possible you could post up the video i would be interested to see how well the crane worked and with the green screen and everything

Thanks
 
Yeah, how are the starts and stops on the bescor motorized head?
I have heard the starts and stops are abrupt, like a security camera.
 
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