What´s the BEST DIY STABILIZER project?

gumonstro

gumonstro

Well-known member
I can´t afford a Steadicam or a Glidecam. The only solution is building it! I´ve seen SO MUCH plans and now I´m completely lost. What´s the best project of a handheld stabilizer for a PD170/DVX100 weight?
 
thats true, I have seen a few also.

I think the key is the counter- weight. Case in point: A steadycam jr. is almost useless without a proper counter balance at the bottom. The same is true with the glidecam.

So, the best project is to just grab a tripod and strap on your girlfriends leg weights; counter-weight the heck out of it.

-ab
 
You cannot build a gimble (the "steadi" in "steadicam") for less money than just buying one.
All the plans for stabilizers don't really have a gimble design that I've seen.
 
I've seen gimble plans, but I can't fnd them at the moment. :-(

Basically, two concentric rings with pivot points to take care of the X and Y axes.

Dan
 
Dan, a gimble actually toates on all 3 axis, X, Y and Z!

You *can* build a workable gimble, if you have the right tools for it. But to build a really good one, then you had better me a master machiner.

- Mikko
 
Shawn Murphy said:
So, none of these guys: http://homebuiltstabilizers.com/greyfullrigs.htm

...have accomplished a reasonably legitimate "steadi" gimble design, and done so economically?
Click to expand...
Beats me. I don't know how much time they spent working on / re-designing / fixing their rigs or any clue to their actual performance. The pictures look nice, though. I'm not much a fan of homebuilt anything, with a dolly being the exception. Those seems pretty hard to foul up. Maybe these guys have working stabilizers with real gimbles. Was it cost effective? Depends on how much one values their time. I'm sure they had fun making them, but I think if it takes more than two weeks to design and build a Magicam-like copy, then it's probably a better value to just purchase one. But, that's based on how much I value my time. It's different for others. My two cents.
 
thisiswells said:
Was it cost effective? Depends on how much one values their time.
Click to expand...

Indeed, time is money and time is usually in short supply! (my DIY dollie definitely passed the cost/benefit analysis)
 
There's a pretty good hand held one (meaning no vest) in Dan Selakovich's book:

http://www.dvcamerarigs.com/Stabilizer.html

I haven't built it yet, but the things I have built in the book are pretty good, and this stabilizer seems about as good as you can get for the DIYer. The plans are clear, with plenty of pictures. This book (along with Dan Rahmel's Nuts and Bolts Filmmaking) has saved me a buttload of cash. Okay, that's not true. What it's really done is allow me to make some gear to do the job of stuff I can't afford.
 
thisiswells said:
Beats me. I don't know how much time they spent working on / re-designing / fixing their rigs or any clue to their actual performance. The pictures look nice, though. I'm not much a fan of homebuilt anything, with a dolly being the exception. Those seems pretty hard to foul up. Maybe these guys have working stabilizers with real gimbles. Was it cost effective? Depends on how much one values their time. I'm sure they had fun making them, but I think if it takes more than two weeks to design and build a Magicam-like copy, then it's probably a better value to just purchase one. But, that's based on how much I value my time. It's different for others. My two cents.
Click to expand...

I just want to say that my rig, which may be simple, but it produces incredible shots on the level of a Glidecam, sometimes higher in skilled hands, costs roughly $50 to build, and takes no more than 11 steps. It has a full 3-axis gimbal. On HomeBuiltStabilizers's forum, there was once a link to an $11 gimbal setup. These things are simpler than you'd think when you tear it all apart.

Also, Gimbles are the least of your worries, Everyone has one of those on their rig. Now arms, that's another story. :grin:
 
Sorry, but I felt Tom's post was just sneaky with the "Oh, almost forgot. Here's my set of plans:..." and then a link to purchase the plans. Not being upfront about trying to sell something really pisses me off. As for Barry Green you're right--he does a lot of promotion on this board for his DVX book/DVD, but I think I should clarify my thinking about the "rules". If someone is going to contribute to this community, they're given some lattitude to benefit as well. Barry Green has patiently and clearly answered several thousand questions, so he's got an account to draw on. Waltzing in and immediately trying to profit off the board is just not cool, and trying to fly in under the radar isn't going to win you friends and influence. So I think the idea that you should contribute something to reap a financial benefit is pretty fair.
 
Cool Barry, i didn't see the link, it just struck me wrong to kill a link like that, thanks for the update.

Previous defend tomthemacman post removed.:thumbsup:
 
Sorry guys, never saw any rules that said no advertizing, so I figured that if we're talking about stabilizers, I might as well share my book. I wasn't trying to sneak under anyone's radar, all I was trying to do is drum up some more interest in my new book. Apparently that's not welcome here, and I completely understand. I would appreciate it if you wouldn't make snide comments about me though. I was never trying to "waltz right in" and sell my book, I just wanted to get the link out there.

I hope you guys have enough sense to just write this off as a misunderstanding of the rules, and nothing more.
 
thisiswells said:
You cannot build a gimble (the "steadi" in "steadicam") for less money than just buying one.
All the plans for stabilizers don't really have a gimble design that I've seen.
Click to expand...

Then you need to check out "Killer Camera Rigs that You can Build". Gimble Galor!

Dan
www.DVcameraRigs.com
 
Do you have a link for Rahmel's book. I have Dans book and am building the Dolly and Small killers Kiss Crane now.
 
thisiswells said:
I'm not much a fan of homebuilt anything, with a dolly being the exception. Those seems pretty hard to foul up. Maybe these guys have working stabilizers with real gimbles. Was it cost effective? Depends on how much one values their time. I'm sure they had fun making them, but I think if it takes more than two weeks to design and build a Magicam-like copy, then it's probably a better value to just purchase one. But, that's based on how much I value my time. It's different for others. My two cents.
Click to expand...

Well, it's all about the green, isn't it? Would I rather buy a steadicam flyer than build one? Heck Yeah! But for $6,000 I can make a feature or buy a flyer. Hmmm.... rather build a stabilizer and make a movie. Another thing to consider is are you going to be using this stuff day in day out? Most, I think, will actually be using rigs only weeks out of the year when they have the time and money to shoot. Most commercial rigs are a major investment that will sit in the garage most of the time. If you build this stuff yourself, you'll save yourself thousands and have a whole arsenal of dollies, cranes, stabilizers, car mounts, etc at the ready when the urge to shoot strikes. Besides, I can't tell the difference between the shots I do with my home built stabilizer and any commercial version. I've got a dolly with a short jib that cost me just over $100. When I was a dolly grip a lifetime ago we used a Fisher Dolly with a short boom to get the same shots. Really, the same shots, plus some you CAN'T get with a fisher. Of course you can't put an 35mm Arri or Panavision on my version, but then again, I don't need to.

Dan
www.DVcameraRigs.com
 
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