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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 :)

Letus Gimbal

Hi Stefan,
The 4th axis comes with a m3x20mm locking screw. You thread this screw through the right side of the 4th axis and "lock" it on the screw hole on the tilt motor. That way your Helix will not be swinging and you still can control your tilting because it doesn't hard lock the tilt.

Hope that helps.
 
GT, Is there a way to control the Helix with the forth axis using an RC controller? I'd like to be able to do this without going to suitcase mode for stability.
 
GT Le said:
Hi Stefan,
The 4th axis comes with a m3x20mm locking screw. You thread this screw through the right side of the 4th axis and "lock" it on the screw hole on the tilt motor. That way your Helix will not be swinging and you still can control your tilting because it doesn't hard lock the tilt.

Hope that helps.
Click to expand...

Ah - I see what he was asking now.

@Stefan - I hope I didn't confuse you! Just ignore me and listen to GT. lol
 
Steve,

I believe the locking screw will also allow for you to RC the Helix on the 4th axis bracket.
 
Where exactly does this locking screw go and what does it do? How would the Helix pan in this configuration? Are there any pictures you can share?
 
Right under the slot where the ballbearing on the handles fit into the 4th axis bracket, there's a hole where you can thread that locking screw through and screw it onto the tilt motor side.

When in 4th axis mode, you pan through pivoting the 4th axis as if you are steering a wheel. The ballbearing in the bottom of the 4th axis bracket where the support arm post go into will allow for a smooth panning (which also further smoothed out with the pan motor in follow mode).
 
This play is absolutely not acceptable for a gimbal system where the balance is crucial. So everybody have this play with the Helix and no worry about it ? Surprising.
 
Malik, that play is not normal, and you should contact Letus about the issue. Mine is completely solid.
Brendan, The JuiceBox batteries on the standard Helix are 5200 MAH, I believe you need to carry these on, although I'm not 100% sure. They are pretty light though.
 
Stefan Scherperel said:
Malik, that play is not normal, and you should contact Letus about the issue. Mine is completely solid.
Click to expand...

Hi Stefan, thank's for your answer. I have contacted Letus and they said "it's totally normal, all the units have this play" ... Are you sure that yours Helix is completely solid?
 
Hi Malik, had a chance to work with the Letus today. Checked the tilt motor, checked all three motors and they are all completely rock solid. In fact I learned a little trick today that vastly corrected the slight vibration I would see every now and then. Even though the motors are solid, and also make sure you check when they are on, not just off, the platform that the camera sits on has a little vibration to it. Even though I have the heavy duty plate, I noticed a slight vibration every time the letus would have a stronger move, (footstep, quick move, bump etc). This would be amplified by the camera vibrating with the lens being the furthest away from the fulcrum, and therefore having the most vibration... not good. This is solved very simply with a 15mm to 1/8" noga arm. I placed the 15mm section over the 15mm rod mounting the camera plate. I then secured the other end to the top plate of the camera in a 1/8" mount. I then tightended the arm and bam... The helix is now solid as a rock. Not a single vibration to be had. This was really the only downside that I saw to the helix, and with this little noga arm, everything seems to be taken care of.
 
Stefan Scherperel said:
Hi Malik, had a chance to work with the Letus today. Checked the tilt motor, checked all three motors and they are all completely rock solid. In fact I learned a little trick today that vastly corrected the slight vibration I would see every now and then. Even though the motors are solid, and also make sure you check when they are on, not just off, the platform that the camera sits on has a little vibration to it. Even though I have the heavy duty plate, I noticed a slight vibration every time the letus would have a stronger move, (footstep, quick move, bump etc). This would be amplified by the camera vibrating with the lens being the furthest away from the fulcrum, and therefore having the most vibration... not good. This is solved very simply with a 15mm to 1/8" noga arm. I placed the 15mm section over the 15mm rod mounting the camera plate. I then secured the other end to the top plate of the camera in a 1/8" mount. I then tightended the arm and bam... The helix is now solid as a rock. Not a single vibration to be had. This was really the only downside that I saw to the helix, and with this little noga arm, everything seems to be taken care of.
Click to expand...

Could you post a photo please?
 
So this is my current solution (note Red Noga Arm). I'm going to try to find something a little more elegant, but luckily this should work out great for a temporary solution tonight.
 

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Hi All,


Does anyone know the difference between these two different Helix (attached images)?

I mean, I spot they've got different motor on the right handle, plus the frame looks different.
What's the difference in motor and frame (maybe plus any other aspect I missed)?

thanks!!

Tony
 

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The first image is of the Mark II. Same quality performance but with some build changes, noticeably the motor sizes, a couple frame modifications and a larger electronics housing. It also includes an on/off switch and the pan locking pin (both found on the Jr) used for fine tuning the tilt balance.
 
Malik Tigrine said:
Hi Stefan, thank's for your answer. I have contacted Letus and they said "it's totally normal, all the units have this play" ... Are you sure that yours Helix is completely solid?
Click to expand...

replace carbon rods with metal rods and make sure everything is strongly tightened down. I've had bad luck with some carbon rods that flex.
 
steve green said:
GT, Is there a way to control the Helix with the forth axis using an RC controller? I'd like to be able to do this without going to suitcase mode for stability.
Click to expand...

To add to this line, once you have the 4th axis and the Devitte mount (for sachtler heads) you can park the cam on your tripod anywhere, or with the locking screws and the 4th axis you can hang the rig from a jib or fixed point and control with an RC.

The RC set-up works great up until you hit about a 25-knot wind, which is pretty stellar performance.

H
 
Nicholas Wise said:
The first image is of the Mark II. Same quality performance but with some build changes, noticeably the motor sizes, a couple frame modifications and a larger electronics housing. It also includes an on/off switch and the pan locking pin (both found on the Jr) used for fine tuning the tilt balance.
Click to expand...


@Nicholas,

Thanks for your input, mind pointing me to where you get the information from? Cause I've been doing some researching with this matter online and couldn't find any - even on Letus's site.
Because the motors on The Mark II are different, so I wonder how they perform compare to the previous version.

cheers man

I'm sure there are others wonder about the same matter, anyone from Letus mind sharing the information?

thanks
 
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