New DIY Camera Slider
- Thread starter DIY-slider
- Start date
ZazaCast
Major Contributor
How did you come to the conclusion that it's "more sturdy" then the igus rail?
Do you have an igus-based slider? Have you weight tested both?
I have tested rail from a variety of manufacturers...and they are ALL sturdy.
This stuff is built to support some pretty heavy machinery. My research showed
that the igus 16-60mm was the best bang for the buck and
will support a load of 50 lbs. no problem. Plus, there's a reason so many
manufacturers are using the igus stuff for their sliders...it work great.
I looked into THK, PBC, SKF, SKI, igus, IDS and others... there are a LOT of companies out there!
No matter what rail you end-up using...remember, ZazaSlider Feet are designed to
work with ANY slider out there! (and now there are 2 different options)
Happy Sliding
DIY-slider
Member
Maybe you need to look into the new Uni-Guide Rail? I am an engineer, and I actually have two samples of the Uni-Guide and IGUS rail right in front of me.
Take a look at this link, you can see that the Uni-Guide is actually thicker and it's designed in a way that makes it more structurally sound from a mechanical standpoint. The factory uses I have for these rails are much different than camera sliders. The best thing about this new system is it's only two pieces instead of 14!
IGUS and Uni-Guide Profiles
I assure you the new Uni-Guide is cheaper as well, under $100 for 1 meter and a slider with a hand brake included. I've worked with all these companies over the years, and when it comes down to it, I'm getting the solution that best suits my needs for the lowest price available.
You should order one and try it with your zaza feet.
Ugh,
a German sales representative of PBC told me they don't sell to private persons for economical reasons?!
I didn't ask, but I guess that counts for Europeans trying to order from PBC's European locations?!
Any European here who has ordered from USA or contacted them for shipping costs?
a German sales representative of PBC told me they don't sell to private persons for economical reasons?!
I didn't ask, but I guess that counts for Europeans trying to order from PBC's European locations?!
Any European here who has ordered from USA or contacted them for shipping costs?
ZazaCast
Major Contributor
I have... and they work great! Thanks.:laugh:
http://www.zazaslider.com/products.html
I have a whole bunch of stuff from PBC..from redi-rail to uni-guide...at the time (over a year ago)
none of it was cheaper than the igus product (or any better imo). Maybe they changed their pricing
structure since? I dealt directly with an applications engineer at PBC.
Thicker isn't always better in this case...weight is a concern to most people lugging all this gear around
....and really, how heavy are most rigs in these days of the HDSLR? Rail from pretty much any of these companies will support
any rig out there.
Go forth, build & slide in good health!
DIY-slider
Member
I'm telling ya Zaza, this a brand new one, completely new. This one is the Low Profile Uni-Guide, or UGA. They gave me a demo sample back in June or July, but now they have it all perfected and it's great! Literally 2 piece design, that's what's best about it, because there's no misalignment issues. I first used it in creating a next generation pop machine.
Anyway, they're both aluminum, so weight shouldn't be an issue between the two. And it's an added bonus you can order it with a hand brake included.
So are you saying the rail guides don't have to be round to mount to your feet at all? Cause these ones are square. If so, those are some great feet!
ZazaCast
Major Contributor
Yeah... I see that it's new.... What have I started here!
rogar-BigGrin(DBG)I'm going to check it out.
...and YES... the feet will mount to anything now, all you have to do is drill a 25/64" hole in each end of the rail and the feet will attach using a single knob.
Works with either set of feet.
And if you see fit, you can always upgrade to the full ZazaSlider Feet down the road.
ParrotEyes
Active member
DIY-slider...
I have a question you may be able to answer since you have experience with rail systems.
Reduced length of travel and possible increase of friction aside, would a 150mm carriage give better results than a 100mm carriage if someone were to introduce a compound motion such as panning while sliding? (This would be with a 3.5 to 5.0 lb load) I'm thinking the 150mm would have less "chatter", for lack of a better term, than the 100mm. Or, are the tollerances so tight that it wouldn't matter?
I have a question you may be able to answer since you have experience with rail systems.
Reduced length of travel and possible increase of friction aside, would a 150mm carriage give better results than a 100mm carriage if someone were to introduce a compound motion such as panning while sliding? (This would be with a 3.5 to 5.0 lb load) I'm thinking the 150mm would have less "chatter", for lack of a better term, than the 100mm. Or, are the tollerances so tight that it wouldn't matter?
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Anchor Media Studio
Member
I'm going to buy one as soon as I get this question answered.... What is the advantage of various size carriages? I have a libec ls-38 tripod does that make any difference? I'll be shooting with a canon 7d and a sony z7u. Thanks for the advice and the heads up on the product!
DIY-slider
Member
Anchor Media Studio said:
Hey guys, for the most part I don't think many of your rigs would need a longer carriage. The exceptions would be the farther away from the rail your camera is, or the heavier it is, or if you're doing a vertical pan instead of horizontal.
Long carriages increase the 2:1 ratio, which is a fancy term that engineers use to say "decreases stick slip". Let's say you have a big rig for your camera, and the majority of the weight isn't directly above the carriage, it's more of a cantilevered or offset load, in this case a longer carriage would allow you to have a greater weight farther away from the moment load above the carriage.
Does that make sense? A short answer, 5 lbs wouldn't need 150mm, unless you went vertical, it might be slightly smoother.
DIY-slider
Member
DIY, thanks for the info. I am planning vert moves, so the larger sled would be better. Have you nailed down the "sell to the public" question? I font want to bug them until I am ready to buy.
Well, two months ago when I got their prototype I was going to start buying surplus and cut rails to length for people interested in them as camera sliders. But now, the design that they finally launched there's not a whole lot of value add that I can do since it already has a hand brake and everything. I could still buy long lengths and cut them down for people, but I would have to mark up the price after I prepped them for a head mount.
Zaza makes them with IGUS rails, and he adds the feet, so it wouldn't make sense for me to make feet either. So at this point I'm just sharing the idea with people. I only ever built the ones I did because I have some film school buddies. It's cheapest just to buy them from the manufacturer as long as they'll sell them individually.
ParrotEyes
Active member
FWIW, I sent them a quote inquiry two days ago. No response yet. I hate to bother them with a phone call when that could have been avoided with a simple "Sorry, we don't sell to individuals" reply.
Edit: Update... just received the quote this evening. Looks very good. Guess I'll be ordering tomorrow.
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Logan LeBlanc
Well-known member
Anyone order/receive one yet?
Logan LeBlanc
Well-known member
Hey DIY, on the original Uni-Guide there's a hand crank option. How smooth are they usually. I mean, this would KILL if it were smooth enough to get vertical/boom down shots.
TiE_Shepherd
Well-known member
So this whole thread is kinda moot until someone can confirm if they sell to individuals.
Anybody tried any of the slides from McMaster Carr? I've bought lots of smaller batches of stuff (less than $100) on several occasions back when I was into knifemaking so I don't know why you couldn't get rails and supplies there.
Patrick
Patrick
ParrotEyes
Active member
I think they will, based on the quote I received. I placed an order by e-mail with my 'local sales rep' yesterday (Friday). No reply yet, but it took about 2 days to receive the quote.
I had a quote from PBC directly that didn't include shipping. But when I called PBC today, they directed me to a distributor. They don't want to sell to individuals.
So, I ordered one from my local distributor today. It was a little more than the quote I received directly, but I'll have it in about 3 weeks. 1000mm with standard carriage and brake option.
Can't wait.
So, I ordered one from my local distributor today. It was a little more than the quote I received directly, but I'll have it in about 3 weeks. 1000mm with standard carriage and brake option.
Can't wait.