Anton Bauer Stasis Flex?
 

Anyone is using or tried the new version of Anton Bauer Stasis Flex? How is it?
I wasn't able to find any review online beside this short video from NAB.

http://www.roscor.com/videos/NAB2008/AntonBauer.html

http://antonbauer.com/stasisflex.htm

Wow,
I think I'll get one, thanks for the link

I bought one to go along with my Sony V1u, and at this point, I don't think I like it very much. I think the main reason is that you need to have an A/B Brick mounted to the back to act as a counterweight. Without a battery or weight sitting on the back, I find it very uncomfortable and awkward to work with. Right now, I don't have the budget to pick up a big ol' hytron or something like that, and I haven't been able to find something that I can mount on that back plate.

Also, the heavy plastic links that make up the segments of the flexible arm can be difficult to adjust. The arm's position is "locked" by a tension cable inside that's stretched taut via a large tab at the base of the segmented area. When the tab is in the open position, the entire arm goes limp which allows for you to figure out how to position it so it works. One word of caution is to make sure you don't release the arm while your camera is mounted to the plate, otherwise you will be sorry! When the tab is in the locked position, the entire piece feels like a single, solid unit. However, if your camera is mounted to this thing, don't make sudden movements in an up/down direction, or some of the segments may slip- mainly at the very base of the flex-arm.

It's possible to connect a tripod mounting plate to this thing, which I first thought was a great idea. But, I found that having this thing hanging off of a tripod makes balancing and basic motion more difficult. Also, with me, I can't have it mounted to a tripod while the other end of this thing is over my shoulder. I'm too close to the camera, and movement and flexibility are greatly diminished.

I was rather disappointed by this, because it does seem like a really great piece of equipment. Perhaps my V1u is just too large and heavy for it to work right. I think it would be perfect for mounting something like an hv20/hv30 or a similarly small camera.

Shawn, thanks for the info.

Shawn,

It's really too bad because it seem to be a nice product. Thanks for all the info. You however confirmed what I was thinking, it's not really usable without a battery or some kind of weight at the back. I really doubt the weight of a Firestore and a wireless mic would be enough to balance that thing and I don't have extra 500-600 to go with the gold plate and the bauer batteries.

thanks again

J

You're absolutely right. I already tried my wireless mic receiver and then my DR60 hard drive, but there's nowhere near enough weight to equalize my 4.5 pound V1u.

Oh well, I'll keep my eyes open for something else and keep using the ol' tripod in the meantime!