The Clutch & DSMC Modular Assault Plate Pack incompatibility...

[Lewis-M Soucy]

I made a strange and very sad discovery on a shoot yesterday... And just before a shot loosing a lot of time in the process: the DSMC Modular Assault Plate Pack doesn't fit in the Clutch. So bye bye trying to use 15mm setup on the clutch...

Really I don't get it?! Just when I'm all excited to go "clack-clack" from the tripod to the Clutch with the Red Quick Release system, which I adore, I make the very sad discovery to see that the Clutch's front handle plate prevents the front part of the 15mm Assault Plate to fit in the Clutch's Quick release platform...

Is there something I'm missing??? I'm really bummed out!!!

The only solution I can think of right now is to make an extra layer with another sandwich of Mounting Plate and bolt-on Quick Release Platform... An extra 700$ to go from the tripod to the clutch... More weight, more height, more money...

Come on?! Tell me I missed the joke!...

 

[Jonathan Stevenson]

I would imagine that the 15mm compatibility wasn't considered since the 19mm rods are built into the system, thus assuming one would be using 19mm gear with the clutch. That said, I would be just as bummed as you to discover it.

One solution would be to buy an extra 19mm universal mount, put it on the forward rods upside down, then attach the handle bracket to the underside of the universal mount, thus giving clearance to your assault plate.

 

[John Marchant]

I spaced the rod mount forward from the QR plate with some 1/4-20 standoffs to get around this. Easy enough, alternatively you could have the section with the rosettes skimmed thinner by a machinist. Shame it doesn't just work, but 15mm and 19mm are not that commonly used concurrently I guess.

 

[Lewis-M Soucy]

Yeah, it's not the rosettes that get in the way, it's the Assault Plate, it's got a thickness underneath at the front that is blocked by the handle bar that is screwed in front of the QR plate... It's hard to explain, I'll post pictures later...

I know you hardly swap from 19mm to 15mm system, but I'm going light with the Epic, so I hardly use any 19mm gear anymore. Also, the 19mm system on the Clutch is a bit odd, having to remove the MB and FF when you move to the tripod, and having to re-equip the camera with a new plate and rods etc... Unless you click directly the Clutch on the tripod, as I did many times... Much faster! A mounting plate under the Clutch and a QR plate on the tripod and you're set...

Anyway, I made a QR plate and Mounting Plate piece and I leave it on the Clutch. It's my 700$ solution...

 

[Lewis-M Soucy]

The really odd thing is there seems to be no actual real QUICK system either way, 15 or 19mm between the Clutch and a tripod...

If you work 19mm, you need to remove the camera from the Clutch, remove the Mattebox from the Clutch, then remove the Follow Focus from the Clutch... Then swap the Mounting Plate from the camera for a different Mounting Plate or QR platform, with new rods, then re-install the Mattebox on the tripod setup,and finally re-install the Follow Focus on the tripod setup as well...

If work 15mm, well just like my case for instance, you're good to go with the DSMC Modular Assault Plate and 15mm rods, with MB and FF, but when you move to the Clutch, unless you make that 700$ sandwich with both QR platform bolt-on AND Mounting Plate, there's actually no solution for your 15mm rods at all!

It's not making me regret any of my accessories, and the Clutch certainly is the best shoulder rig I've ever used, but i'm just really surprised and bummed out...

Anyone at Red could comment on this? I'm very curious to hear the design/concept explanation for this...

 

[Björn Benckert]

Yeah, it's not the rosettes that get in the way, it's the Assault Plate, it's got a thickness underneath at the front that is blocked by the handle bar that is screwed in front of the QR plate... It's hard to explain, I'll post pictures later...

I know you hardly swap from 19mm to 15mm system, but I'm going light with the Epic, so I hardly use any 19mm gear anymore. Also, the 19mm system on the Clutch is a bit odd, having to remove the MB and FF when you move to the tripod, and having to re-equip the camera with a new plate and rods etc... Unless you click directly the Clutch on the tripod, as I did many times... Much faster! A mounting plate under the Clutch and a QR plate on the tripod and you're set...

Anyway, I made a QR plate and Mounting Plate piece and I leave it on the Clutch. It's my 700$ solution...

Do this, Loose the handle bar/ plate from the QR plate. Use the 19mm rods to be the connection between the front handle and the 19mm rod holders in the back of the QR plate so you actually slide the front handles a little forward, then it works...

 

[Curran Giddens]

http://www.reduser.net/forum/showthread.php?65220-Modular-Assault-Plate-and-the-Clutch

See my thread for a solution using parts you already have. Since I posted that thread I have gotten rid of the single rod altogether. I now mount the chest support onto the dovetail using an Accessory Attachment Bracket.