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  • Hey all, just changed over the backend after 15 years I figured time to give it a bit of an update, its probably gonna be a bit weird for most of you and i am sure there is a few bugs to work out but it should kinda work the same as before... hopefully :)

Camtree Hunt Shoulder Rig

What "didn't work" about your Zacuto?

Be wary of Chinese/Indian stuff. Some of it is great (Tilta), some of it not so great. I have seen a few examples now made with very soft aluminium... stripping threads out of the box, that sort of thing.

Personally, I think it's hard to go past the Mantis. It may not be the most comfortable but I'd be happy dropping it down a flight of stairs.
 
This is a partial knock off of a Genus/Tilta shoulder rig, of which I had some design input. I would stay away from it if only for ethical reasons, although I doubt that the quality is very good.

As the previous poster said, Tilta quality is very good. Genus gear is rock solid and I can vouch for their Sherpa shoulder rig, of which this one is a rip off.

Ron
 
Hudson Tanimoto said:
What "didn't work" about your Zacuto?

Be wary of Chinese/Indian stuff. Some of it is great (Tilta), some of it not so great. I have seen a few examples now made with very soft aluminium... stripping threads out of the box, that sort of thing.

Personally, I think it's hard to go past the Mantis. It may not be the most comfortable but I'd be happy dropping it down a flight of stairs.
Click to expand...

Thanks for the input regarding stripping threads and soft aluminum - was thinking that the build quality wasn't going to be as good but wasn't sure how.

As for the Zacuto rig I had a counter balanced unit with a 5/7 lb weight on the back. As the camera setups got heavier I simply can't shoot with this all day. W/ a DSLR, Monitor, etc, after 3-4 hrs my back/shoulder was feeling it. So scaling up with a Red body/monitor/baseplate/PL lenses - not going to work in the long run. So I need something that puts the camera on the shoulder and get rid of the counterweight.

I was looking at the Mantis, All Star and WC rigs as well, but I've been reading different things on comfort from different people. Not sure what route to go down. Might just rent for the time being but it's a hassle each time I need it.
 
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Although this looks pretty good, I have tried to put some cheap solutions together and nothing ever worked quite right. Finally bit the bullet and ordered a BT DSMC Base Production pack and couldn't be more pleased. Like all RED products, it is super high quality. This one also seems infinitely configurable; I am still trying to get the "ideal" set-up. Highly recommended; worth the extra $$, IMO.

http://www.red.com/store/products/dsmc-base-production-pack-bt
 
I have the TILTA Rig which is basically just the same as this, and for sure it's good, but it has some flaws too.
The thumb screws have all broked for me, just by turning too much, and so the thumb part stayed on my hand and the screw on the rig.
For some reason, the shoulder pad is made for left shoulder.. can't figure out why, maybe the Tilta-guys just don't know how to handheld a camera?
Also the knob that fastens the handgrip moving from side to side, didn't work. I tried to fix it, but it just seems to be bad design.

Well, I replaced the thumb screws and made a new shoulder pad myself, so after all it's a very nice rig for the price. But I guess I could claim to Tilta about these and ask for new better thumb screws.


Actually, this Camtree-one seems to be better (by picture) in all these, better thumb screws, better fastener on the side movement, and the shoulder pad seems better too.
 
Terry VerHaar said:
Although this looks pretty good, I have tried to put some cheap solutions together and nothing ever worked quite right. Finally bit the bullet and ordered a BT DSMC Base Production pack and couldn't be more pleased. Like all RED products, it is super high quality. This one also seems infinitely configurable; I am still trying to get the "ideal" set-up. Highly recommended; worth the extra $$, IMO.

http://www.red.com/store/products/dsmc-base-production-pack-bt
Click to expand...

Thanks Terry. How many hours do you normally have the rig on your shoulder? I've read the Red shoulder pad isn't comfortable for all day shooting. I'm looking at something btwn 5-10 hour days (rig's not going to be on the shoulder that entire time but I will be operating with breaks here and there). I was actually considering putting something like this together w/ WC parts because the red parts are just too expensive for me at this time. Basically:

1x Crossbar
2x Rosette Handles
1x 19mm rod clamp
2x 18" 19mm rods
1x WC Bridge plate
1x letus shoulder pad attached w/ velcro

also considering an Atlas rig, but that's another $3k lol, and not nearly as portable
 
Mikko Suomalainen said:
I have the TILTA Rig which is basically just the same as this, and for sure it's good, but it has some flaws too.
The thumb screws have all broked for me, just by turning too much, and so the thumb part stayed on my hand and the screw on the rig.
For some reason, the shoulder pad is made for left shoulder.. can't figure out why, maybe the Tilta-guys just don't know how to handheld a camera?
Also the knob that fastens the handgrip moving from side to side, didn't work. I tried to fix it, but it just seems to be bad design.

Well, I replaced the thumb screws and made a new shoulder pad myself, so after all it's a very nice rig for the price. But I guess I could claim to Tilta about these and ask for new better thumb screws.


Actually, this Camtree-one seems to be better (by picture) in all these, better thumb screws, better fastener on the side movement, and the shoulder pad seems better too.
Click to expand...

Thanks for the feedback. That's crazy that all your thumbscrews broke, I would hate dealing with that. Seems like ergonomically it's not going to work for me
 
I found the Allstar to have a really comfy (but not adjustable angle) shoulder pad. Unfortunately overall build quality not fantastic. The Mantis is rock solid but even with an angle-adjustable shoulder pad it's not super comfy. The WC rig looks good, haven't tried it but their other products are excellent.

Couple of important points with shoulder rigs... 1. Being able to get your EVF where you need it without straining your back/neck to see it... 2. Keeping the CG of the rig as low as possible - bridge plates and riser plates move the camera upwards and it becomes less stable.

EDIT: Really? You can't say W--den Camera on here?
 
Arthur Woo said:
Thanks Terry. How many hours do you normally have the rig on your shoulder? I've read the Red shoulder pad isn't comfortable for all day shooting. I'm looking at something btwn 5-10 hour days (rig's not going to be on the shoulder that entire time but I will be operating with breaks here and there). I was actually considering putting something like this together w/ WC parts because the red parts are just too expensive for me at this time. Basically:

1x Crossbar
2x Rosette Handles
1x 19mm rod clamp
2x 18" 19mm rods
1x WC Bridge plate
1x letus shoulder pad attached w/ velcro

also considering an Atlas rig, but that's another $3k lol, and not nearly as portable
Click to expand...

I haven't really shot much with it at all yet. And I don't tend to do long days or very long takes on the stuff I shoot. Honestly, it is too soon to tell how comfortable it will be as I am still working with it. I will say that the pad itself does not seem like it will be all that warm and fuzzy. I'd expect I might add some padding along the way. The build and adjustability, though, is stellar.

I also looked at WC - and I like their stuff a lot - but, in the end, getting close to this set-up, the prices just came out too close. And with RED I get complete compatibility with other RED accessories.
 
Hudson Tanimoto said:
I found the Allstar to have a really comfy (but not adjustable angle) shoulder pad. Unfortunately overall build quality not fantastic. The Mantis is rock solid but even with an angle-adjustable shoulder pad it's not super comfy. The WC rig looks good, haven't tried it but their other products are excellent.

Couple of important points with shoulder rigs... 1. Being able to get your EVF where you need it without straining your back/neck to see it... 2. Keeping the CG of the rig as low as possible - bridge plates and riser plates move the camera upwards and it becomes less stable.

EDIT: Really? You can't say W--den Camera on here?
Click to expand...

LOL. Yeah they blocked that phrase. They had a lawsuit against WC a while ago.

Thanks for the tips. I'd be using the 5" touch screen and not a bomb evf, I have no idea how people can see the tiny image on there. Not a big fan of the other EVFs out there where I need an extra arm just to get it to stay on the rig. Also I'm pulling my own focus for the jobs I'll be using the shoulder rig for so I wouldn't need a focus puller. So the WC rig looks like a good solution since you can put the monitor on the offset handle. That also means another $200 "investment" on a longer monitor cable. lol. I was thinking about putting together a custom rig made up of WC parts that bypasses the whole need for a dovetail and uses 19mm rods directly into a bride plate to lower the CoG. It'll be several hundred more than the bundled WC unit though
 
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Danny Condruti said:
Look at all the parts here and build your own rig. I did that.
http://www.coollcd.com/products_new.html?productsort=5
Click to expand...

Thanks Danny, I was actually looking at that site a few days ago. I'm a little nervous about the build quality. I'm sure that the american company's handles are way overpriced ($2-300 for a rosette handle...really?), but the fact that some of cool lcd's handles are $30 bucks makes me a little worried about their quality.

Previously it was mentioned some of these companies use lower quality materials. After rethinking this I'm not sure if I want to save a few hundred/thousand now for a rig that might break down. How has yours been holding up? What do you have on it...scarlet/pl lenses/etc/FF/mb?
 
Terry VerHaar said:
I haven't really shot much with it at all yet. And I don't tend to do long days or very long takes on the stuff I shoot. Honestly, it is too soon to tell how comfortable it will be as I am still working with it. I will say that the pad itself does not seem like it will be all that warm and fuzzy. I'd expect I might add some padding along the way. The build and adjustability, though, is stellar.

I also looked at WC - and I like their stuff a lot - but, in the end, getting close to this set-up, the prices just came out too close. And with RED I get complete compatibility with other RED accessories.
Click to expand...

I hear you. I'm just doing a lot of research right now since I've used a few other rigs in the past that ergonomically were not very good. I hate the process of buying and selling. I'd rent if I didn't have to fork over $65-100 a day for a rig lol, just makes more sense to buy. I'd like something I could live with for a few camera systems down the line
 
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The quality of the Cool LCD is super good, actually in some few cases the finish is better than on the similar WC parts. Also the aluminum is 6061 good stock. All parts are CNC made, nothing is cast and file finish...The black anodize is very shiny and mirror like. I have bought a lot of parts from them, no problems so far. The only trade off is the $$$ shipping from China if the part is not in stock in CA, so buy a lot of parts to save on the rowing boat...
 
Has anybody of you bought this rig? If yes, is it any good? It looks pretty durable imo.

Camtree Dovetail Shoulder Rig Cage (Link)

$_3.JPG
 
CAMTREE is made in India and is soft alu. and pats look like file finished.
 
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