Ikan handle for BMCC leaves dents in your camera. at DVinfo.net

Chris Luker · April 3rd, 2013, 11:14 PM

I bought an Ikan setup for my BMCC and was overjoyed when it arrived this week.
But, to my shock and horror (ok, maybe not horror, but still), when I took off the handle to put it all back in it's case, the top of my brand new camera had dents in it from the screws on the bottom of the handle.
Couldn't they have counter-sunk them just a little to avoid damaging a brand-spankin-new camera?
/Ticked off.

Shaun Roemich · April 3rd, 2013, 11:17 PM

Have you screwed a quick release plate to it yet? That leaves marks as well... as near as I can tell, the metal on the bottom of the BMCC marks EXCEPTIONALLY easily...

Chris Luker · April 3rd, 2013, 11:37 PM

I did put the Ikan baseplate on the bottom, but I haven't checked for marks from that. Now I'm going to go check...
The regular tripod plates don't leave marks or dents.

Shaun Roemich · April 4th, 2013, 09:37 AM

The one I use (I'm not an owner) is already heavily scored on the bottom from mounting plates on Manfrotto tripods in a ring pattern.

Chris Luker · April 4th, 2013, 10:54 AM

Here's Ikan's reply:
Judging from your photos, it appears the normal wear and tear that occurs on the aluminum body of the black magic camera.

We have a few of these cameras in our possession, and when we attached anything that is metal(Ikan and non Ikan products), it usually leaves a few scratches/marks.

We’ll still be happy to provide refund for your Ikan purchase, but since this isn’t a fault of the ELE-BMC-HDL, we will have to charge a 15% restocking.

Chris Luker · April 4th, 2013, 10:55 AM

So it's normal that their screws stick out enough to dent your camera.

Chris Luker · April 4th, 2013, 11:45 PM

Fixed it myself.
Just needed to drill out a bit more room for the screws to REALLY be countersunk.

"Ikan: Fix it yourself!*"

*or a 15% restocking fee.

Jim Michael · April 5th, 2013, 07:21 AM

That was a lame response from Ikan and a great way to get off the approved vendor list. "Yes we noticed in testing that our equipment damages the camera. Therefore the camera is poorly designed."

You can order Sorbothane sheets with self-adhesive backing from Amazon. Perhaps install a layer on the bottom of the camera to reduce the risk of damage.

Chris Luker · April 8th, 2013, 11:13 AM

I think I'm going to stop by their booth today at NAB... see what they say in person.

Chris Luker · April 9th, 2013, 01:01 AM

So I stopped by the Ikan booth today and talked with Michael Webb the VP of Product Development...
Seems there was a miscommunication with support. The first few batches had the flange depth right, while the batch that had mine (and the one they had on display at the booth) aren't made to the right tolerances.
Michael is looking into it personally.
Sounds like they will be making it right as soon as possible.
Hopefully no one else gets dents in their camera from an Ikan handle!

Jase Tanner · April 9th, 2013, 03:37 PM

What does making it right mean exactly? That they'll fix their product or will they also address your camera. Maybe the BMCC does mark easily but this has nothing to do with that imo. Marking is one thing, a dent is another.

Their mistake, not yours. I'd be pushing them if it were me. And while remaining polite is always the best way to go, I also wouldn't be mincing any words.

If they refuse I'd be asking them how they justify not doing anything. Given their market share and reputation, is this how they built their business or did they build it though ethical business practices that earn customer loyalty.

Chris Luker · April 10th, 2013, 06:58 PM

Michael said that they will send me one of their cages that they are working on (when they get it done) to make it right.
We'll see in a few months I guess.

Jase Tanner · April 11th, 2013, 12:52 AM

Its a tough situation. At the very least they should be providing you with something of equal value to what the resale value of your camera has gone down by. Hard to say what that is. Good luck!

Tim Gauthier · April 11th, 2013, 03:55 AM

I think that the concern over cosmetic damage is a bit over reactive. I understand the feeling, you just spent a big amount of money for a camera, and these handles shouldn't be cuasing marks etc. However if you are using this camera in a rig on anything outside of a studio for some time you'll definitely see some wear and tear.

I'd say it is cosmetic and does not affect the performance or use of the camera.

Maybe I'm just too hard on my stuff.

Shaun Roemich · April 16th, 2013, 06:29 PM

There is a waiting list of thousands of people (at last count) who would be MORE than happy to take your BMCC at the price you paid for it while you wait in line for a brand new one.

(That was a tongue in cheek response to the discussion of what a camera depreciates by having minor scuffs BTW)

April 3rd, 2013, 11:14 PM	#1
Chris Luker Major Player Join Date: Oct 2005 Location: Woods Cross, Utah Posts: 310	Ikan handle for BMCC leaves dents in your camera. I bought an Ikan setup for my BMCC and was overjoyed when it arrived this week. But, to my shock and horror (ok, maybe not horror, but still), when I took off the handle to put it all back in it's case, the top of my brand new camera had dents in it from the screws on the bottom of the handle. Couldn't they have counter-sunk them just a little to avoid damaging a brand-spankin-new camera? /Ticked off. Attached Thumbnails

April 3rd, 2013, 11:17 PM	#2
Shaun Roemich Inner Circle Join Date: Sep 2002 Location: Vancouver, British Columbia (formerly Winnipeg, Manitoba) Canada Posts: 4,088	Re: Ikan handle for BMCC leaves dents in your camera. Have you screwed a quick release plate to it yet? That leaves marks as well... as near as I can tell, the metal on the bottom of the BMCC marks EXCEPTIONALLY easily... __________________ Shaun C. Roemich Road Dog Media - Vancouver, BC - Videographer - Webcaster www.roaddogmedia.ca Blog: http://roaddogmedia.wordpress.com/

April 3rd, 2013, 11:37 PM	#3
Chris Luker Major Player Join Date: Oct 2005 Location: Woods Cross, Utah Posts: 310	Re: Ikan handle for BMCC leaves dents in your camera. I did put the Ikan baseplate on the bottom, but I haven't checked for marks from that. Now I'm going to go check... The regular tripod plates don't leave marks or dents.

April 4th, 2013, 09:37 AM	#4
Shaun Roemich Inner Circle Join Date: Sep 2002 Location: Vancouver, British Columbia (formerly Winnipeg, Manitoba) Canada Posts: 4,088	Re: Ikan handle for BMCC leaves dents in your camera. The one I use (I'm not an owner) is already heavily scored on the bottom from mounting plates on Manfrotto tripods in a ring pattern. __________________ Shaun C. Roemich Road Dog Media - Vancouver, BC - Videographer - Webcaster www.roaddogmedia.ca Blog: http://roaddogmedia.wordpress.com/

April 4th, 2013, 10:54 AM	#5
Chris Luker Major Player Join Date: Oct 2005 Location: Woods Cross, Utah Posts: 310	Re: Ikan handle for BMCC leaves dents in your camera. Here's Ikan's reply: Judging from your photos, it appears the normal wear and tear that occurs on the aluminum body of the black magic camera. We have a few of these cameras in our possession, and when we attached anything that is metal(Ikan and non Ikan products), it usually leaves a few scratches/marks. We’ll still be happy to provide refund for your Ikan purchase, but since this isn’t a fault of the ELE-BMC-HDL, we will have to charge a 15% restocking.

April 4th, 2013, 10:55 AM	#6
Chris Luker Major Player Join Date: Oct 2005 Location: Woods Cross, Utah Posts: 310	Re: Ikan handle for BMCC leaves dents in your camera. So it's normal that their screws stick out enough to dent your camera.

April 4th, 2013, 11:45 PM	#7
Chris Luker Major Player Join Date: Oct 2005 Location: Woods Cross, Utah Posts: 310	Re: Ikan handle for BMCC leaves dents in your camera. Fixed it myself. Just needed to drill out a bit more room for the screws to REALLY be countersunk. "Ikan: Fix it yourself!" or a 15% restocking fee. Attached Thumbnails

April 5th, 2013, 07:21 AM	#8
Jim Michael Major Player Join Date: Dec 2005 Posts: 895	Re: Ikan handle for BMCC leaves dents in your camera. That was a lame response from Ikan and a great way to get off the approved vendor list. "Yes we noticed in testing that our equipment damages the camera. Therefore the camera is poorly designed." You can order Sorbothane sheets with self-adhesive backing from Amazon. Perhaps install a layer on the bottom of the camera to reduce the risk of damage.

April 8th, 2013, 11:13 AM	#9
Chris Luker Major Player Join Date: Oct 2005 Location: Woods Cross, Utah Posts: 310	Re: Ikan handle for BMCC leaves dents in your camera. I think I'm going to stop by their booth today at NAB... see what they say in person.

April 9th, 2013, 01:01 AM	#10
Chris Luker Major Player Join Date: Oct 2005 Location: Woods Cross, Utah Posts: 310	Re: Ikan handle for BMCC leaves dents in your camera. So I stopped by the Ikan booth today and talked with Michael Webb the VP of Product Development... Seems there was a miscommunication with support. The first few batches had the flange depth right, while the batch that had mine (and the one they had on display at the booth) aren't made to the right tolerances. Michael is looking into it personally. Sounds like they will be making it right as soon as possible. Hopefully no one else gets dents in their camera from an Ikan handle!

April 9th, 2013, 03:37 PM	#11
Jase Tanner Major Player Join Date: Feb 2007 Location: Vancouver, Canada Posts: 346	Re: Ikan handle for BMCC leaves dents in your camera. What does making it right mean exactly? That they'll fix their product or will they also address your camera. Maybe the BMCC does mark easily but this has nothing to do with that imo. Marking is one thing, a dent is another. Their mistake, not yours. I'd be pushing them if it were me. And while remaining polite is always the best way to go, I also wouldn't be mincing any words. If they refuse I'd be asking them how they justify not doing anything. Given their market share and reputation, is this how they built their business or did they build it though ethical business practices that earn customer loyalty.

April 10th, 2013, 06:58 PM	#12
Chris Luker Major Player Join Date: Oct 2005 Location: Woods Cross, Utah Posts: 310	Re: Ikan handle for BMCC leaves dents in your camera. Michael said that they will send me one of their cages that they are working on (when they get it done) to make it right. We'll see in a few months I guess.

April 11th, 2013, 12:52 AM	#13
Jase Tanner Major Player Join Date: Feb 2007 Location: Vancouver, Canada Posts: 346	Re: Ikan handle for BMCC leaves dents in your camera. Its a tough situation. At the very least they should be providing you with something of equal value to what the resale value of your camera has gone down by. Hard to say what that is. Good luck!

April 11th, 2013, 03:55 AM	#14
Tim Gauthier Regular Crew Join Date: Jan 2013 Location: Edmonton Alberta. Kona Hawaii, Erfurt Germany. Posts: 32	Re: Ikan handle for BMCC leaves dents in your camera. I think that the concern over cosmetic damage is a bit over reactive. I understand the feeling, you just spent a big amount of money for a camera, and these handles shouldn't be cuasing marks etc. However if you are using this camera in a rig on anything outside of a studio for some time you'll definitely see some wear and tear. I'd say it is cosmetic and does not affect the performance or use of the camera. Maybe I'm just too hard on my stuff.

April 16th, 2013, 06:29 PM	#15
Shaun Roemich Inner Circle Join Date: Sep 2002 Location: Vancouver, British Columbia (formerly Winnipeg, Manitoba) Canada Posts: 4,088	Re: Ikan handle for BMCC leaves dents in your camera. There is a waiting list of thousands of people (at last count) who would be MORE than happy to take your BMCC at the price you paid for it while you wait in line for a brand new one. (That was a tongue in cheek response to the discussion of what a camera depreciates by having minor scuffs BTW) __________________ Shaun C. Roemich Road Dog Media - Vancouver, BC - Videographer - Webcaster www.roaddogmedia.ca Blog: http://roaddogmedia.wordpress.com/