New DIY Camera Slider

I need it more than trying to save a buck, so I purchased 1000mm of rail for about $65 and the standard carriage with brake for also about $65. Both of those prices are local pickup for me. It's a little higher than I had hoped, but I need them and I'm ok with that.

So my price from a distributor was about $130 shipped to the distributor, and I'll pickup (it's about 15 minutes from my home). This is unlike DIY-Slider's purchase for the same equipment for about $95. But I could not get PBC to sell direct.

The original quote I had from PBC was $40 for the rail, and $38 for the carriage with brake plus shipping. If I could have gone this route, the total would have been the same as DIY-Slider's total of about $95.

The main reason I went PBC over igus is that it is a single piece carriage. I like that. Simple.
 
Logan LeBlanc said:
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.
Click to expand...

Logan,

The original Uni-Guide is VERY precise, each carriage is made specifically for the rail that it's used with. I know that they are used in some very high end plotters, so if they can be used to print large imagery, I'm sure they could be used as booms.

Again, I'm not a video guy like most of you, I'm just an engineer that has helped my friends with some of these sliders.

Take a look at this slider I did research on a while back, it has a hand crank Uni-Guide as a camera slider.

http://www.vcampro.com/
 
steveho said:
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.
Click to expand...

Sorry it's not as easy as I thought it would be guys. I do have an account with PBC, so that might be why I could buy direct. My company buys parts from them often.

I was actually on the phone with my rep yesterday and she said the reason for the wait is they can't keep up with the demand at the moment! I was told that once they catch back up, most distributors will carry it.

At that time, you could get it at McMaster-Carr, Grainger, Motion Industries, Applied Technologies, Bearing Distributors International, and Kaman.
 
Here's what my local distributor quoted (Applied Industrial)...

Carriage w/brake $46.50
700mm rail $34.00
Total $80.50

Plus tax and shipping.

Estimated ship date is currently mid-October.
 
Man, I'd like to see one of those in action. Is there any way to disable the drive shaft and use it free-hand, so to speak?
DIY-slider said:
Logan,

The original Uni-Guide is VERY precise, each carriage is made specifically for the rail that it's used with. I know that they are used in some very high end plotters, so if they can be used to print large imagery, I'm sure they could be used as booms.

Again, I'm not a video guy like most of you, I'm just an engineer that has helped my friends with some of these sliders.

Take a look at this slider I did research on a while back, it has a hand crank Uni-Guide as a camera slider.

http://www.vcampro.com/
Click to expand...
 
ParrotEyes said:
Here's what my local distributor quoted (Applied Industrial)...

Carriage w/brake $46.50
700mm rail $34.00
Total $80.50

Plus tax and shipping.

Estimated ship date is currently mid-October.
Click to expand...

Where is your distributor located? I found an Applied Industrial in Lanham, Maryland. That is pretty close to where I'm head quartered.

Also do you have exact part names and item numbers?

Thanks


Logan LeBlanc said:
Man, I'd like to see one of those in action. Is there any way to disable the drive shaft and use it free-hand, so to speak?
Click to expand...

I was thinking the same thing, but for the price I might just get 2. One with the hand crank and 1 without.
 
Last edited:
Logan LeBlanc said:
Man, I'd like to see one of those in action. Is there any way to disable the drive shaft and use it free-hand, so to speak?
Click to expand...

Logan,

I have not used the Original Uni-Guide for Camera Slider purposes, that's why I posted that other link. There are a few tips on that site.

http://www.vcampro.com/tips.html

What I have been using is their new "Low Profile Uni-Guide". The price difference between the two is quite considerable. Probably 2 to 3 times the cost.
 
GRENCH said:
I was thinking the same thing, but for the price I might just get 2. One with the hand crank and 1 without.
Click to expand...

This is a link for the difference in Uni-Guides.

http://uniguide.pbclinear.com/uniguide/images/Uni-Guide-Family.jpg

At Distributor prices you're looking approximately at:

$150 for the smaller Low Profile Uni-Guide with hand brake

$300 for the larger Uni-Guide

And maybe $500 for the Uni-Guide with end blocks and hand crank

I'll post the model numbers for the Low Profile Uni-Guide in a minute.
 
GRENCH said:
Also do you have exact part names and item numbers?
Click to expand...

Carriages with a hand brake:

100mm = UGA040C-0P1G10
150mm = UGA040C-1P1G10
200mm = UGA040C-2P1G10

Rails

900mm = UGA040R-0900-000
1000mm = UGA040R-1000-000
1200mm = UGA040R-1200-000


These are the Low Profile Uni-Guide models. For the Big Uni-Guide, or Original one, you'll have to look at their website.
 
Hey all! I just placed my order for this slider setup. 100mm carriage and 1000mm rail. With tax, 102.26. Fourteen day delivery. I'll post video, photos and "review" when it comes in.
I've never used a slider before (only pvc skater dolly). Very excited to try this.

Looking for source for geared belt 2500mm long. Any ideas?
 
From the pictures at the PBC Linear site, it was not clear to me what sort of plate one needed to attach the camera to. The picture showed the rail, and the 'slider', but not a plate with a bolt for connecting to either the camera or a tripod head.

Is there an 'accessory' item somewhere on the site?
 
j1clark@ucsd.edu said:
From the pictures at the PBC Linear site, it was not clear to me what sort of plate one needed to attach the camera to. The picture showed the rail, and the 'slider', but not a plate with a bolt for connecting to either the camera or a tripod head.

Is there an 'accessory' item somewhere on the site?
Click to expand...

Unfortunately, PBC and IGUS don't make camera sliders, they make carriages and rails that are used as camera sliders. That's where the "Do It Yourself" comes in. You'll have to drill the hole yourself.
 
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