Homebuilt Arm and Vest at DVinfo.net

Riley Harmon · June 1st, 2006, 05:55 PM

I am so excited! Ive been working on refining my arm for the past 3 weeks, it's finally welded and setup how i like. Tomorrow I should finish the vest and this weekend paint with auto black. I cannot wait! Stay tuned for pics and vid.

Riley Harmon · June 2nd, 2006, 06:27 PM

bah i give up, im just going to save for a smooth shooter

Charles King · June 3rd, 2006, 10:46 AM

Ha! Ha! I'm sorry, I had to laugh. This was very short lived. Not as easy as it seems uh??? It's good you're saving up for the smooth shooter. Now you know why these things don't come cheap. ;) Good luck with your purchase.

Riley Harmon · June 3rd, 2006, 08:58 PM

no no no that was sarcasm, i am painting it as we speak, im uploading some pics of unpainted

edit:

Its too dark to shoot footage, i will do it in the morning

www.rileyharmon.com/temp/steady-002.jpg

www.rileyharmon.com/temp/steady-004.jpg

www.rileyharmon.com/temp/steady-006.jpg

Tom Wills · June 4th, 2006, 08:50 AM

Ahh, good old sarcasam. It never fails to be lost on the internet.

Nice looking vest and arm. Give it a few nice coats of paint, and that thing will be looking sharp!

Riley Harmon · June 4th, 2006, 01:18 PM

okay heres my problem, the vest and arm are good, they take the weight, the glidecam is good and balanced, but when flying, it has a tendancy to rotates on the horizontal axis, this causes it to sway side to side, how tight a grip should i have on the post?
sorry for the crappy compression i did it quick and gritty
www.rileyharmon.com/temp/steadytest1.mov

Riley Harmon · June 4th, 2006, 09:41 PM

www.rileyharmon.com/temp/steadytest2.mov

Lets hear good and bad comments and how to improve. Need more practice walking.

Cole McDonald · June 4th, 2006, 11:27 PM

That is a nice looking rig! Now I have to look into making one of those...dang it.

Bill Slammon · June 6th, 2006, 10:01 AM

Will you be sharing your design in some fashion?

Riley Harmon · June 8th, 2006, 12:07 PM

Yeah, I will try and get a design out sometime soon. I'm trying to practice more, because it has a tendancy to sail.

Denis Danatzko · June 8th, 2006, 12:09 PM

and I don't mean to demean your enthusiasm. However, since you've invited comments, here's mine: from the photos, and not being able to see the back of your rig, it appears the belt is very snug and may be carrying the brunt of the weight of the unit. (Without seeing the back, it's hard to gauge weight distribution).

I've done a few week-long backpacking trips, sometimes carrying 50 lbs +/-, including tent, bag, food, water, still camera, etc. Backpacks meant to carry such serious loads use 2 padded shoulder straps, a padded belt at the waist, and often a belt around the upper torso. It's clear you've included those in some way, shape, or form. In large backpacks, those combine to spread weight between the shoulders, and the hips below the lower back, making for less overall fatigue. Something even the DVRig Pro with it's belt and single shoulder support doesn't appear to do. (Granted, I'm describing BACK packs, where yours' is more of a FRONT pack, adding difficulty to weight distribution).

It's necessary for the belt to be snug in order to properly support and spread the load. However, the photos hint that the upper portion of your rig seems to place the weight more towards the neck and/or even the collar bone rather than the shoulders. If weight is being supported by the neck rather than being spread between the shoulders and the waist, you may find fatigue - or worse, back pain - setting in after long-term wear, i.e. upwards of an hour.

Best wishes for success.

Riley Harmon · June 8th, 2006, 02:32 PM

yeah, the straps cross in the back so it does put weight on shoulders and collar. but the great thing is. i can also wear it on my back same as front. i'll try both ways and let you know

Bill Slammon · June 9th, 2006, 02:54 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Riley Harmon

Yeah, I will try and get a design out sometime soon. I'm trying to practice more, because it has a tendancy to sail.

Thank you.

Bill

Dave C. Preston · June 9th, 2006, 11:15 PM

Great job, Riley! I applaud your sense of engineering adventurism! I think a lot of the folks here would love to have a crack at working with your design to make a few improvements. Cheers.

Wayne Masters · June 10th, 2006, 12:55 AM

The research I did on stabilizers gave me an idea for a video short where the main subject is attached to the camera as well. I bought all the aluminum in a scrap yard. The bearings weigh more than the arms unless I order special, light alternatives.
For interviewing government officials etc. or a sensitive doc, I am looking for a slick, slim profile stabilizer.
I found that a "Swifer" broom only needs a bracket and a bearing to be a stabilizer.
I recommend spending time checking out home made stabilizers.
Wayne

June 1st, 2006, 05:55 PM	#1
Riley Harmon Major Player Join Date: Jul 2003 Location: Oklahoma Posts: 424	Homebuilt Arm and Vest I am so excited! Ive been working on refining my arm for the past 3 weeks, it's finally welded and setup how i like. Tomorrow I should finish the vest and this weekend paint with auto black. I cannot wait! Stay tuned for pics and vid.

June 3rd, 2006, 10:46 AM	#3
Charles King Major Player Join Date: Mar 2003 Location: sweden Posts: 795	Ha! Ha! I'm sorry, I had to laugh. This was very short lived. Not as easy as it seems uh??? It's good you're saving up for the smooth shooter. Now you know why these things don't come cheap. ;) Good luck with your purchase. __________________ Charles 'What we perceive to be may not be what we believe to be.'

June 4th, 2006, 11:27 PM	#8
Cole McDonald Trustee Join Date: Nov 2005 Location: Sauk Rapids, MN, USA Posts: 1,675	That is a nice looking rig! Now I have to look into making one of those...dang it. __________________ Web Youtube Facebook

June 6th, 2006, 10:01 AM	#9
Bill Slammon New Boot Join Date: May 2006 Location: Westmoreland, New Hampshire Posts: 20	Very nice Will you be sharing your design in some fashion?

June 8th, 2006, 12:09 PM	#11
Denis Danatzko Major Player Join Date: Mar 2006 Location: NYC Metro area Posts: 579	Riley, you've obviously put a lot of work into this, and I don't mean to demean your enthusiasm. However, since you've invited comments, here's mine: from the photos, and not being able to see the back of your rig, it appears the belt is very snug and may be carrying the brunt of the weight of the unit. (Without seeing the back, it's hard to gauge weight distribution). I've done a few week-long backpacking trips, sometimes carrying 50 lbs +/-, including tent, bag, food, water, still camera, etc. Backpacks meant to carry such serious loads use 2 padded shoulder straps, a padded belt at the waist, and often a belt around the upper torso. It's clear you've included those in some way, shape, or form. In large backpacks, those combine to spread weight between the shoulders, and the hips below the lower back, making for less overall fatigue. Something even the DVRig Pro with it's belt and single shoulder support doesn't appear to do. (Granted, I'm describing BACK packs, where yours' is more of a FRONT pack, adding difficulty to weight distribution). It's necessary for the belt to be snug in order to properly support and spread the load. However, the photos hint that the upper portion of your rig seems to place the weight more towards the neck and/or even the collar bone rather than the shoulders. If weight is being supported by the neck rather than being spread between the shoulders and the waist, you may find fatigue - or worse, back pain - setting in after long-term wear, i.e. upwards of an hour. Best wishes for success.

June 2nd, 2006, 06:27 PM	#2
Riley Harmon Major Player Join Date: Jul 2003 Location: Oklahoma Posts: 424	bah i give up, im just going to save for a smooth shooter

June 3rd, 2006, 08:58 PM	#4
Riley Harmon Major Player Join Date: Jul 2003 Location: Oklahoma Posts: 424	no no no that was sarcasm, i am painting it as we speak, im uploading some pics of unpainted edit: Its too dark to shoot footage, i will do it in the morning www.rileyharmon.com/temp/steady-002.jpg www.rileyharmon.com/temp/steady-004.jpg www.rileyharmon.com/temp/steady-006.jpg

June 4th, 2006, 08:50 AM	#5
Tom Wills Major Player Join Date: May 2005 Location: Philadelphia, PA Posts: 326	Ahh, good old sarcasam. It never fails to be lost on the internet. Nice looking vest and arm. Give it a few nice coats of paint, and that thing will be looking sharp!

June 4th, 2006, 01:18 PM	#6
Riley Harmon Major Player Join Date: Jul 2003 Location: Oklahoma Posts: 424	okay heres my problem, the vest and arm are good, they take the weight, the glidecam is good and balanced, but when flying, it has a tendancy to rotates on the horizontal axis, this causes it to sway side to side, how tight a grip should i have on the post? sorry for the crappy compression i did it quick and gritty www.rileyharmon.com/temp/steadytest1.mov

June 4th, 2006, 09:41 PM	#7
Riley Harmon Major Player Join Date: Jul 2003 Location: Oklahoma Posts: 424	www.rileyharmon.com/temp/steadytest2.mov Lets hear good and bad comments and how to improve. Need more practice walking.

June 8th, 2006, 12:07 PM	#10
Riley Harmon Major Player Join Date: Jul 2003 Location: Oklahoma Posts: 424	Yeah, I will try and get a design out sometime soon. I'm trying to practice more, because it has a tendancy to sail.

June 8th, 2006, 02:32 PM	#12
Riley Harmon Major Player Join Date: Jul 2003 Location: Oklahoma Posts: 424	yeah, the straps cross in the back so it does put weight on shoulders and collar. but the great thing is. i can also wear it on my back same as front. i'll try both ways and let you know

June 9th, 2006, 11:15 PM	#14
Dave C. Preston Regular Crew Join Date: Jun 2005 Location: Los Angeles, CA Posts: 38	Great job, Riley! I applaud your sense of engineering adventurism! I think a lot of the folks here would love to have a crack at working with your design to make a few improvements. Cheers.

June 10th, 2006, 12:55 AM	#15
Wayne Masters New Boot Join Date: Jun 2005 Posts: 8	Stabilizer research The research I did on stabilizers gave me an idea for a video short where the main subject is attached to the camera as well. I bought all the aluminum in a scrap yard. The bearings weigh more than the arms unless I order special, light alternatives. For interviewing government officials etc. or a sensitive doc, I am looking for a slick, slim profile stabilizer. I found that a "Swifer" broom only needs a bracket and a bearing to be a stabilizer. I recommend spending time checking out home made stabilizers. Wayne