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Camera cranes for Epic (anno 2016)

T

Thomas Koba

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I've searched couple of older posts (4 years old) about cranes and jibs here on Reduser. I´m thinking of investing in a long crane 12 - 30 ft. Something like that. Doesn't have to be a light travel kit, I would rather have something stable and secure and rugged.

What are good options out there as of 2016?

I already own the Kessler tripod, which I used for the Cineslider. Does the Kessler Crane 12ft support a Red Epic securely?

Are there other cranes/jibs which would fit nicely on the Kessler Tripod?

Where do I find power cables that are 12 - 30 ft long? So that I can mount the battery off the camera?

What do you guys think?
 
Thomas Koba said:
Where do I find power cables that are 12 - 30 ft long? So that I can mount the battery off the camera?

What do you guys think?
Click to expand...

Not a great idea. Voltage drop is a real thing that can be calculated.

TL;DR: if you assume a 14V battery, you need 5A to drive a 70W EPIC. Using 18 AWG wire, you see a voltage drop of about 2V, which means your batteries won't power the EPIC after they drop half a volt, which is very different that when the battery is directly connected and you can happily run until the battery itself has dropped 2.5V.

Of course you can use heavier wire to reduce part of your voltage drop, but you may quickly find that heavier gauge wires are their own problem.
 
Björn Benckert said:
Put two 12V in parallell and then a down converter in the head of the crane. I use these: http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/Car-Powe...-Down-to-12V-10A-120W-Regulator-/181199953380

they work excellent and are quite small and easy enough to screw onto something on the head like this: https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?...523042.-2207520000.1452778146.&type=3&theater
Click to expand...

By "parallel" I think you mean "series". Batteries in parallel double the amperage. Batteries in series double the voltage.
 
Being around for more than 20 years Jimmy jib is still one of the best systems for long lenths and lightweight, with good controls and very responsive. It outperforms Egripment cranes that sell at 2-3 times the price , and it has complete solution for FF and zoom, for all kind of lenses. Made by Stanton Arizona USA, the jimmy jib triangle is one of the best investments one can make when it comes to a crane jib, you can gradually build it up to your needed length up to 36 ft if I remember well.
I used to operate Jimmy jib and had my own, for more than 12 years, and I also operated many Egripment cranes, however , the head was way more responsive and smooth and user friendly. Designed for one man operation.

kind regards
 
Difference in Jimmy Jib and Egripment is the ease and time of mounting. I have super maxi jib (15ft) and I can mount alone it in 15 minutes with the head. 5 more minutes for the various cables.
I had a Jimmy Jib too, it's more a live crane than a cinema crane. The fact you still need cable at shorter lenght is boring. The Super maxi Jib needs none.

Csey Gren is selling his Javelin egripment right now on reduser.

http://www.reduser.net/forum/showth...Crane-Dolly-Track-Trailer&highlight=egripment
 
over 12 years of operating with a triangle , I shot even with a BL3 ARRI , on it. There isnt much difference in a live crane to a cinema crane. If you want to operate dual the choice is yours. But if you want to operate single, which in many cases is doable again you have the possibility. In all commercials we had Arri cameras we just had a focus puller. That was all.
The one thing I liked more though was the joystick response and smoothness. I operated all 2004 Olympics with 3 different Eqripment cranes. 2 were Javelins .Sure more rigid, and also heavier, but the thing I didnt like was the joystick response. I did not like it at all.
Maybe its different those days.

regards
 
I've had a jimmy jib triangle for years. Used it with everything from a BL 4 to a Millennium XL. I always use it cinema style, the electronics and controls are mounted far away. Actually I was just called in on a Bud Light Superbowl spot that used a jimmy jib. One benefit to the jimmy jib is it is low mass. That means it can be accelerated and stopped very quickly compared to a heavier crane.

Nick
 
Nick Gardner said:
I've had a jimmy jib triangle for years. Used it with everything from a BL 4 to a Millennium XL. I always use it cinema style, the electronics and controls are mounted far away. Actually I was just called in on a Bud Light Superbowl spot that used a jimmy jib. One benefit to the jimmy jib is it is low mass. That means it can be accelerated and stopped very quickly compared to a heavier crane.

Nick
Click to expand...

Thats also correct, you can do very dynamic moves that are very hard to do with a javelin or heavier cranes with out using a Grip to control the crane and one is at the controls separately. But doing this also requires good co operation of both and you dont always get to work with someone that knows how to move and see what you want to do instantly .
as for time of setting , for the 12 m I use to have , it took me about 20 m, if the location was accessible and could have my van next to the location.

regards
 
Well I thought we were talking about crane, not head.

I don't use egripment heads, I don't like them, you are completly right, their joystick are Weird. That's probably why rental are often gearwheels only
I have a varizoom cinéma pro, and the response is good. It's the former talon head, so it's no surprise.
 
ahh sorry , I thought you guys were talking about the total package. Thats why I commented about electronics and remote head thinking of that.

The Talon is a very good head , and has some motion control abilities, so yes.

Jimmy jib is an analog device , and you can get one total package with remote head at the price of a Talon. Its a long , lightweight package, and can be used with heavier loads, of course there is some flex and not so rigid as Egripment but it odes the job nicely once you put it together correctly.

there are a few more copies rip offs of it in the chinese market, but you know how I feel about the word rip off so I wont comment, nor its worth buying stuff that when they go wrong they die in your hands.

kind regards
 
I actually find the Varizoom cinema Pro, and Varizoom cinema pro Jr are quite the same. The Jr is 10k.
Of course, the Jr takes less weight and your rig has to be shorter in lenght, but with nowadays, it's not that much different, and the motion control box is compatible between the two.
THey sound different too. The Jr is noisier if you load them at their limits.

I agree about the knock off, but you know when I build my first crane, I build it like I've seen in making of, and crane from buildings.
It was the right design at the first take, and it was mostly like the Jimmy jib. Chinese knock off are not really knock off when the design is something our ancester had already figured out centuries ago. I mean... they are crane. Heads are differents.

Chinese grip equipment are dangerous because of the trust we have in them (or lack of to be more accurate).
you never know the materials they used to built.

But they are some who are nice, and I believe Luke Neumann here tested one of them.
http://www.reduser.net/forum/showthread.php?111792-Cheap-33-ft-crane-for-the-RED-Epic&highlight=
 
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