Kessler Crane at DVinfo.net

Michael Best · March 17th, 2005, 07:02 AM

Has anybody used one of these?

http://www.kesslercrane.com/

Alan Galbraith · May 17th, 2005, 10:11 AM

Havent used it... but have one on order... will let ya'll know my impresssions once I get it all set up.

Will be using it on a shoot next monday.

Dean Harrington · May 19th, 2005, 05:07 PM

seems like a sturdy piece of equipment. What's the price?

Kevin Penhorwood · May 19th, 2005, 05:11 PM

Good post, I am considering one myself. I emailed and asked some questions and they returned my emails very quickly. I wish you could order directly from their website though!!

Alan Galbraith · May 19th, 2005, 05:12 PM

OTD mine was $450 ish...

I upgraded... I got it painted and with the ball bearing option.

should be at my door on Friday.

Michael Best · May 20th, 2005, 05:45 AM

They are a little backed up right now, the 12 footer is up to $589 now w/shipping. When I first inquired they were $450 out the door but they
have made some improvements evidently to stiffen some things up.
I ordered now as they said the price would be going up again. They
don't seem to be getting any complaints but we'll find out.

Alan Galbraith · May 20th, 2005, 03:42 PM

oh, oh oh.... its here... UPS says "Delivered" to my home !!!

cant wait to get there and set it up.

*rocking back and forth while editing....*

Kevin Penhorwood · May 20th, 2005, 04:57 PM

Okay Alan, I am anxiously awaiting your review of the crane, be sure to let us know what you think!!!

Alan Galbraith · May 21st, 2005, 10:51 AM

well shoot...

I posted a short write up.. but I guess it didnt take..

anyway... I like the crane.

well made, easy to set up.

it seems to handle the weight of my DV500 fine. It gets a little bit of shake at the end of a movement, but I suspect thats more a problem with the operator than the crane :rolleyes:. Prolly just need some practice.

the manual tilt feature works nice, although it seemed easier to use with the tripod head tilt handle than the crane handle. Doing a move with a tilt and crane is pretty complex, and take some practice.

I think I like the idea of EZFX's FX handle better than a manual tilt feature... but this is tons cheaper, so I'll make due.

its scary hanging yer camera waaaaay out there. If one thing fails, it allll comes crashing down. I re-checked all the fasteners about 10 billion times during my little test session.

will take some pics of the crane this weekend.

Kevin Penhorwood · May 22nd, 2005, 02:36 PM

Thanks for the info Alan, I am glad to hear that it is a good crane. BTW did you order the 8 foot or the 12 foot?

Alan Galbraith · May 24th, 2005, 09:24 AM

8 foot version

will take some pics tonight.

Pretty happy with it.

Michael Best · June 1st, 2005, 05:49 AM

Just got the 12 ft. last night and I was definitely impressed but keep in mind I've never used one before. The shots these things can get blows me away.
Someone else mentioned the ability to lock the camera down from a tilt standpoint and I agree with that as it can be very difficult to hold the in a
continuous horizontal position while operatin the boom. I suppose you could
just tighten down the basket for a particular shot but haven't tried it yet.
I got no bending, wavering or anything. It's on a Bogen 3066 head, the larger
plate I'm sure helps.

Alan Galbraith · June 1st, 2005, 07:02 AM

still no pics.... been busy shooting.

havent used the crane yet, I need to make a dolly so I can move the crane around.

Thats one downside to the whole rig, its pretty set in place.

I'll make a pneumatic tire dolly so I can put the crane set up on it, and just pull it around.

Eric Holloway · June 1st, 2005, 10:39 AM

I purchased the 8' kessler crane and i'm pretty happy with it. It would be nice to be able to lock it in position so you don't have to hold it in any one position, so i think i might mod it a little bit. The handle for the manual tilt is just a metal bar and very uncomfortable. I might try to but some sort of soft rubber grip on it. I also bought a bescor motorized pan/tilt head and I was surprised on how nice it was for the price. I bought a lanc extension cable, video extension cable, and the bescor extension cable. I still need to get a monitor but for now i'll just use my laptop to see the video.

I doubt I'll be using it at weddings but maybe for the establishing shots.

Eric

Michael Best · June 1st, 2005, 11:30 AM

Eric - what camera are you using? Is your Bescor plastic or metal? I purchased a motorized pan/tilt from another company but it's not sturdy enough and I'm worried about a metal pan/tilt and the camera being too much weight. A while back to get by, I bought one of those 5" crt's from K-mart I think it was, black & white, can velcro it to anything, built a shroud out of galvanized to block the sun and it actually worked quite well for framing, critical focus no, but really not that bad, better than most lcd's and it cost $29. I need the long LANC cable, where did you get that or is it standard cabling? Thanks!

March 17th, 2005, 07:02 AM	#1
Michael Best Major Player Join Date: Apr 2004 Location: Oceanside Harbor, CA Posts: 446	Kessler Crane Has anybody used one of these? http://www.kesslercrane.com/

May 17th, 2005, 10:11 AM	#2
Alan Galbraith Regular Crew Join Date: Oct 2004 Posts: 98	Just ordered Havent used it... but have one on order... will let ya'll know my impresssions once I get it all set up. Will be using it on a shoot next monday.

May 19th, 2005, 05:07 PM	#3
Dean Harrington Major Player Join Date: Nov 2002 Location: Tokyo Posts: 898	looked at the videos..... seems like a sturdy piece of equipment. What's the price?

May 20th, 2005, 05:45 AM	#6
Michael Best Major Player Join Date: Apr 2004 Location: Oceanside Harbor, CA Posts: 446	They are a little backed up right now, the 12 footer is up to $589 now w/shipping. When I first inquired they were $450 out the door but they have made some improvements evidently to stiffen some things up. I ordered now as they said the price would be going up again. They don't seem to be getting any complaints but we'll find out. Last edited by Michael Best; May 20th, 2005 at 05:32 PM.

May 19th, 2005, 05:11 PM	#4
Kevin Penhorwood Regular Crew Join Date: Apr 2005 Location: Columbus, OH Posts: 82	Good post, I am considering one myself. I emailed and asked some questions and they returned my emails very quickly. I wish you could order directly from their website though!!

May 19th, 2005, 05:12 PM	#5
Alan Galbraith Regular Crew Join Date: Oct 2004 Posts: 98	OTD mine was $450 ish... I upgraded... I got it painted and with the ball bearing option. should be at my door on Friday.

May 20th, 2005, 03:42 PM	#7
Alan Galbraith Regular Crew Join Date: Oct 2004 Posts: 98	oh, oh oh.... its here... UPS says "Delivered" to my home !!! cant wait to get there and set it up. rocking back and forth while editing....

May 20th, 2005, 04:57 PM	#8
Kevin Penhorwood Regular Crew Join Date: Apr 2005 Location: Columbus, OH Posts: 82	Okay Alan, I am anxiously awaiting your review of the crane, be sure to let us know what you think!!!

May 21st, 2005, 10:51 AM	#9
Alan Galbraith Regular Crew Join Date: Oct 2004 Posts: 98	well shoot... I posted a short write up.. but I guess it didnt take.. anyway... I like the crane. well made, easy to set up. it seems to handle the weight of my DV500 fine. It gets a little bit of shake at the end of a movement, but I suspect thats more a problem with the operator than the crane :rolleyes:. Prolly just need some practice. the manual tilt feature works nice, although it seemed easier to use with the tripod head tilt handle than the crane handle. Doing a move with a tilt and crane is pretty complex, and take some practice. I think I like the idea of EZFX's FX handle better than a manual tilt feature... but this is tons cheaper, so I'll make due. its scary hanging yer camera waaaaay out there. If one thing fails, it allll comes crashing down. I re-checked all the fasteners about 10 billion times during my little test session. will take some pics of the crane this weekend.

May 22nd, 2005, 02:36 PM	#10
Kevin Penhorwood Regular Crew Join Date: Apr 2005 Location: Columbus, OH Posts: 82	Thanks for the info Alan, I am glad to hear that it is a good crane. BTW did you order the 8 foot or the 12 foot?

May 24th, 2005, 09:24 AM	#11
Alan Galbraith Regular Crew Join Date: Oct 2004 Posts: 98	8 foot version will take some pics tonight. Pretty happy with it.

June 1st, 2005, 05:49 AM	#12
Michael Best Major Player Join Date: Apr 2004 Location: Oceanside Harbor, CA Posts: 446	Just got the 12 ft. last night and I was definitely impressed but keep in mind I've never used one before. The shots these things can get blows me away. Someone else mentioned the ability to lock the camera down from a tilt standpoint and I agree with that as it can be very difficult to hold the in a continuous horizontal position while operatin the boom. I suppose you could just tighten down the basket for a particular shot but haven't tried it yet. I got no bending, wavering or anything. It's on a Bogen 3066 head, the larger plate I'm sure helps.

June 1st, 2005, 07:02 AM	#13
Alan Galbraith Regular Crew Join Date: Oct 2004 Posts: 98	still no pics.... been busy shooting. havent used the crane yet, I need to make a dolly so I can move the crane around. Thats one downside to the whole rig, its pretty set in place. I'll make a pneumatic tire dolly so I can put the crane set up on it, and just pull it around.

June 1st, 2005, 10:39 AM	#14
Eric Holloway Regular Crew Join Date: Apr 2005 Location: Santa Clarita, CA Posts: 173	I purchased the 8' kessler crane and i'm pretty happy with it. It would be nice to be able to lock it in position so you don't have to hold it in any one position, so i think i might mod it a little bit. The handle for the manual tilt is just a metal bar and very uncomfortable. I might try to but some sort of soft rubber grip on it. I also bought a bescor motorized pan/tilt head and I was surprised on how nice it was for the price. I bought a lanc extension cable, video extension cable, and the bescor extension cable. I still need to get a monitor but for now i'll just use my laptop to see the video. I doubt I'll be using it at weddings but maybe for the establishing shots. Eric

June 1st, 2005, 11:30 AM	#15
Michael Best Major Player Join Date: Apr 2004 Location: Oceanside Harbor, CA Posts: 446	Eric - what camera are you using? Is your Bescor plastic or metal? I purchased a motorized pan/tilt from another company but it's not sturdy enough and I'm worried about a metal pan/tilt and the camera being too much weight. A while back to get by, I bought one of those 5" crt's from K-mart I think it was, black & white, can velcro it to anything, built a shroud out of galvanized to block the sun and it actually worked quite well for framing, critical focus no, but really not that bad, better than most lcd's and it cost $29. I need the long LANC cable, where did you get that or is it standard cabling? Thanks!