Introducing - the Glidetrack Hybrid!
 

Soz, this has been top secret for a little while, but today I was able to take the password off.... so now sharing with you:


my craziest, most experimental editing to date... for an amazing new product from GT

the new "Glidetrack Hybrid" is as smooth as butter, and slides down walls (also like butter!)

I'll be using it at every wedding/corporate-job from now on. quick jib/crane-type shots in cramped rooms, no probs!
You can even use it while it's upside-down...lots of creative shots to be had!

cheers

Very good, but the style is in danger of hiding the "message" in the video.
I like what you've done with the glidetrack!

I've been waiting for someone else to say something, but they haven't, so....

I don't see what is so top secret about this. It's a standard igus rail and carriage with nice looking feet. I've had something like this for a year, and I was a late starter.

Nice use of the technology, though.

Pete

Hhmm. Looks like IGUS made wheels in addition to their plastic bearings?

And is the black carriage made by Glidetrack? Looks pretty cool :)

Best,

No...you are missing the point, it is not a standard Igus carriage. These are made exclusively for Glidetrack by Igus, and allow the Hybrid bearings to be used in the correct configuration for use as a camera slider. The Hybrid carriage uses both sliding AND rolling bearings. These offer all the advantages that both types of bearings offer, without any of the disadvantages associated with each type.

Glidetrack started WAY back in 2008 and this is the latest evolution of that product.

Richard. I have had a Glidetrack SD for a couple of years. It's great and I take it everywhere. Is it possible to upgrade to the new hybrid carrage and will this cure the occasional stickiness ?

yes it is:
igus DryLin® WJRM Hybrid Bearings

The Igus hybrids are meant to be used with the track turned 90 degrees.

That is why Glidetrack now makes its own carriage. The bearings sit on their side, so the carriage has to be custom made.

I am thinking of doing this as well I have sample bearings here. And I am testing a prototype now.

A while ago Igus actually had the roller hybrids available for the flat application, but the wheels were bumpy so I decided not to use them. They have now stopped making those.

Igus has also sent me some samples of a "looser " fit bearing, that I am testing now. But I think the best solution will be the hybrids unless Igus comes back with a high quality flat bearing. This is supposedly in the works.

The problem with the Hybrids is that it is more expensive to produce the carriage. And one of the things everyone loves about the Igus system is the low cost. And if they are aligned properly they work very well. The slight resistance is like a liquid head. If yours is really stiff or sometimes sticky, you need to clean the bushings and track and realign the carriage. Pretty easy. And don't ever oil or silicone the track that attracts dirt and will cause big problems later.

The new Glidetrack Hybrid launched today and I finally got to post my review of it.

Glidetrack Hybrid Slider Review | Paul Joy

Best Regards

Paul.

Can't wait
 

Ordered mine today. I actually found the hybrid bearings first and the igus rep said GT was working with them. Checked it out and decided to save the hassle of building it myself. I didn't mean to be an early buyer..it just worked out that way. I'll give an honest review when I get it.

Re: Introducing - the Glidetrack Hybrid!
 

Welcome to my first "Vlog". Let me start by saying I'm not usually the type to do a product review or unboxing type of video. I do often find them usefull and since I ordered this product as soon as it launched I felt the need to give back what information I have.

My Glidetrack Hybrid Slider arrived only a few days after I ordered it. It was well packaged, however it was missing the end stops or feet. I sent Glidetrack an e-mail and had an apology assurance they were being sent ASAP within ten minutes of contacting them.

Since this product is mostly about the carriage (although the adjustable feet do look pretty nifty) I'm going to go ahead and write what I know so far. The carriage travels along the rails much more smoothly than the original Glidetrack models. I almost don't think of this as a hybrid as it feels much more like a roller based dolly system, than a low friction "slider" system.

The adjustable resistance knob works well to provide a little resistance or even lock the carriage securely on the track.

The track and carriage system can be cleaned with water. No oil, cleaning products or Pledge needed.

I would say the only downside of this product is the noise. It is a fairly quiet system, However I don't think I'd use it for studio work while capturing audio. The original Glidetrack models aren't exactly known for their whisper quiet operation either, but the Hybrid Slider is a tad louder.

Anyway, Check out my unboxing vlog:

Milestone Productions | Saint Louis Wedding video | Professional video for your event

Re: Introducing - the Glidetrack Hybrid!
 

We have been using the Glidetrack Hybrid extensively & it is a really great improvement on the original Glidetrack with friction bearings. However there are just a couple of niggles.

Firstly the little ball feet spontaneously unscrew themselves from the threaded rods that are the legs that the track sits on. I have even found a couple of them loose in the back of the car after returning from a shoot. There seems no way of tightening them sufficiently & I think that I shall need to put a drop of epoxy glue or Loctite on each thread before tightening up to ensure that I don't lose any.

Secondly when adjusting the height of the threaded rods (legs) it's just not possible to tighten up the knurled wheel tight enough to prevent the legs slipping after moving the unit a couple of times. A lever like that used to secure the carriage would be far preferable in order to get the degree of force required to tighten up properly. Perhaps this would be a useful improvement for V2?

Re: Introducing - the Glidetrack Hybrid!
 

Nigel, what length do you use?

Thanks.

Re: Introducing - the Glidetrack Hybrid!
 

We have the 1m which I regret getting now as the smaller 0.75m version would be that much lighter & more portable. I have also used another slider of that length & found it perfectly adequate.

Re: Introducing - the Glidetrack Hybrid!
 

Thanks. I think that's what I'll go for (.75). Cheers!