Remote follow focus for £150/$300

Haha, I have some more photos, but it seems that a lot of you are 'fedup' of the updates and just want to buy it, which is very flattering, but in an effort not to piss off my potential customers, i thought id leave it for a bit and see what happened. You seem to want more, so you can have more if you like.


We had a bit of a problem with the pointer, it was very hard to set the white into the arrow. Today we made a few more, using a ballnose cutter instead of a flat end mill, which gives the arrow a shallow well shape, rather than an open ended arrow. This means the dye will sit in the little well, which looks nicer.

We have also changed the magnetic marking disk system a little bit. This new system holds the steel disks (what the magnets stick to) in with a thread, rather than being pressed in, as they were prone to dropping out under certain conditions.

Most of the progress aover the last few weeks have all been little mods and business stuff.

We are hoping to open up the reservation page on the website in the next two weeks.



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Nic - Thanks for the review and detailed photos. Regarding the "focus bump" issues, can you explain what the problem was? Did the unit skip slightly after you hit your mark? Was it simply inaccurate? Was it just a matter of changing off your marks after you changed a frequency so it never happened during the shot anyway? I'm trying to gauge the dependability of the unit.

Also, your bed photo with the steadicam is...interesting. You probably need a "don't try this at home" label for this forum's younger members because honestly that is extremely dangerous for your talent (and you) with just a slight weight shift on the bed. Not trying to be a Debbie Downer, just requesting that you grab some sash safety and a spotter. Hope the 5D worked out for you guys; a great tool for the music vid industry.
 
Avenger007 said:
Nic - Thanks for the review and detailed photos. Regarding the "focus bump" issues, can you explain what the problem was? Did the unit skip slightly after you hit your mark? Was it simply inaccurate? Was it just a matter of changing off your marks after you changed a frequency so it never happened during the shot anyway? I'm trying to gauge the dependability of the unit.

Also, your bed photo with the steadicam is...interesting. You probably need a "don't try this at home" label for this forum's younger members because honestly that is extremely dangerous for your talent (and you) with just a slight weight shift on the bed. Not trying to be a Debbie Downer, just requesting that you grab some sash safety and a spotter. Hope the 5D worked out for you guys; a great tool for the music vid industry.
Click to expand...


Peter with regard to questions like this, is the system using FM or AM modulation? The reason I ask is that as you know with FM a "nearby signal" will stop interference due to capture ratio. If you are on FM, I noticed the Aerial is shorter than the original. This surely means the ERP (effective radiated Power) is reduced, because the Aerial is no longer a 1/4 Wavelength. (The minimun length to have the lowest SWR ( Standing Wave Ratio)
This may explain the noise on the channel causing a malfunction.
 
David,

The HoFo is FM. Both the old antenna and the new antenna are 1/4 wavelenght helical. The wire inside the casing is coiled. They are both supplied by the RF devices manufcaturer and are designed for use with the RF components we use. The old (longer) antenna was actually empty, the wire inside the short and the long is the same. This is so the manufacturer can use the same length case for many differnt frequencies which may require longer antennas.

Pete.
 
Pete, I should have realised. This is what happens when you have been retired for 15 Years!
 
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Hi Everyone,

Long time and no updates.

Our websites shop will be opening in the next few weeks to take orders for the Hocus Focus. Leadtime? About three weeks.
 
Oo, heres an interesting fact for you.

The suspension wishbones on Jenson Buttons F1 car (the one that just won the world championship) were made on the same machine as the Hocus Focus motors. The very same machine also built most of the the Red Bull car.


HOrrayyy.
 
In Dutch we say: You have priced yourself out of the market with the 1800 us$ price tag.
Time will tell, but of course I hope you get your investment out of it and perhaps I can buy
one one day for say 999,- us$
 
Hi Everyone,

The shop will be open in about two weeks, with units in stock for next day deliery in the UK, and a few days everywhere else.

The Foveas has been around for years, and is dead as far as I know. They only ever made about ten, which were all sent for review. I did look at the Foveas myself before I started to develop the Hocus Focus, but after speaking with a few independant reviewers, I decided against it.

Note the lack of marking ring, impossible to pull focus with this properly. There is no feedback for the operator.

Also note the size of the motor, almost as big as a redrock box.
 
Peter, Whats the noise level from the Hitec servo in the alu case? do you have a vid (with sound ) of the finished unit working ?

Looks real good..

Where did you get the white letters/stickers that were on the old controller "power" "ant" etc ? i would love to put some on my kit cases, how strong are they ?
 
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Hi Everyone,

Quick update,

We are currently making a number of units, which will be for sale on our website in the next few weeks. Leadtime about three weeks.

I took the HoFo out at the weekend and handed it over to a very experienced and skilled steadicam/AR operator - Felix Forrest. He had also bought with him a Preston system, but opted to use the HoFo instead. Heres some photos.

Whilst we were in this field, we decided to test the range of the unit, and managed to retain full accurate control of the lens from 400 meters away. (1312ft) Bear in mind this was an open space.

The sound from the motor is fairly minimal on slow focus moves. I have found from watching this and other units in the hands of a proper AC, most focus changes during a shot are fairly slow, and noise levels are not significant. If you are twisting the lens fast from one end to the other, then expect some whining sound.

The white lettering is marked on using a 200 watt laser marking machine, its not a sticker, and it is perminant and very strong. The same machine can mark 1mm deep lettering into hardened steel if necessary.

Thanks,

Pete.

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