easy to make diy follow focus at DVinfo.net

Ron Wilber · December 26th, 2007, 09:35 PM

http://i273.photobucket.com/albums/j...4quads/ff1.jpg

My aim was to create an off the shelf solution. In other words, parts that can be easily found and put together. Because of this, the total cost came to be about 130 bucks. Slightly more than you'd expect for a DIY project, but it will save you time, waste, and the headaches found in the usual DIY project.

what you need:

1. Home Depot - $29USD - Right angle drive(chuck): http://www.vermontamerican.com/Produ...190988&I=70740
http://i273.photobucket.com/albums/j...7171_VA_pd.jpg
At home depot they have the same one but black in color. That's the one I got. IT has a hole at the elbow that I used for mounting. I also used the included screws to mount the gears and focus knob.

2. Redrock Micro - $60USD - focus gear: http://shopping.netsuite.com/s.nl/c....it.A/id.182/.f
Believe me, it is better to buy this pre-built one than trying to make your own. It's easy and quick to mount and remove, also it’s thick and can fit a wide range of 35mm lenses.

3: Guitar Center(music store) ~$30USD - 1 drum/cymbol clamp/l-rod clamp. This will be used to hold the unit to your rails. There are tons of options here, I went to the local Guitar Center and looked at what they had available. The range is about 30 bucks. However, I would choose one that has adjustablilty for aligning the gears... just like the one I am using. or something like this: http://i273.photobucket.com/albums/j.../227076jpg.jpg

4. Home Depot ~ $4USD - Bolts: One 3/8 carriage bolt, one lock washer and 2 nuts.

5. Amazon - $6USD two 32p gears: Two 32p 66tooth or smaller gears, the number of teeth is really up to personal pref, but I would recommend not going with smaller metal pinions because the mounting holes are small and you won't be able to use the screws that come with the right angle chuck: http://www.amazon.com/32P-Spur-Gear-...8451426&sr=8-2

Two gears so you can stack them to create a thicker gear..you can use only one if you want to though.

http://i273.photobucket.com/albums/j...4quads/ff4.jpg

http://i273.photobucket.com/albums/j...4quads/ff5.jpg

For the knob I just used an extra rear lens cap I had laying around. I just drilled a hole through it and used the included bolt to mount it. Eventually I'll find something better.

There you go, an easy off the shelf diy solution. Requires no cutting, glueing, or welding. Everything can easily be found online or in the stores... I hope you find this useful!

http://i273.photobucket.com/albums/j...4quads/ff8.jpg
http://i273.photobucket.com/albums/j...4quads/ff7.jpg

Roger Rosales · December 30th, 2007, 09:49 PM

That's pretty cool man! I'll have to build this soon. Have you tried this set up on an XL2?

Terry Lee · December 31st, 2007, 12:33 AM

Now that is neat!

But does it work as well as a Chrosziel...?

Ron Wilber · January 2nd, 2008, 01:54 PM

hey, I haven't tried it on the xl2. I use it on my canon hv20 with brevis 35mm adapter.

Chrosziel? It's probably not as good or as light as any ready made one. DIY after all :)

Andrew McMillan · January 5th, 2008, 08:55 PM

OMG !!!! dude I just bought that same right angle gearbox and I'm trying to do the same thing. No way dude thats crazy! I am actualy tring to do my own rods too.

Ron Wilber · January 8th, 2008, 01:55 AM

cool, it would be neat to see how you do yours!

Andrew McMillan · January 12th, 2008, 09:12 AM

check it out

http://img183.imageshack.us/my.php?i...sc00189dx5.jpg

http://img184.imageshack.us/my.php?i...sc00191gk5.jpg

Alright so it doesn't realy work, but it was worth a try.

Ron Wilber · January 14th, 2008, 05:39 PM

yeah almost. You definitely need some gears.

Ron Wilber · January 24th, 2008, 02:10 AM

UpDATE!

Better mounting solution, easier adjustment, but requires some fabrication.
price will end up being about the same. Requires standard size rail/rod system.

http://i273.photobucket.com/albums/j...ds/mounted.jpg

updated items to purchase:
cinevate's rail block: $33.66 http://www.cinevate.com/catalog/prod...products_id=68
this will replace the cymbol clamp.

1/2 in aluminum strip from hardware store: couple bucks

http://i273.photobucket.com/albums/j...alumnstrip.jpg

cut strip to about 5 inches. Drill hole for right angle chuck mounting bolt. Drill slot for adjustment and attacment points for the cinevate rail block.

http://i273.photobucket.com/albums/j...s/hardware.jpg

paint black and assemble.

http://i273.photobucket.com/albums/j...s/assembly.jpg

The Speed Crank:

3/8" INSERT rachet
http://www.rockler.com/product.cfm?page=1575
you screw this onto the the double side thread screw that came with the right angle chuck. The threads don't match but by forcing it the crank gets nicely stuck to the screw.

http://i273.photobucket.com/albums/j...uads/crank.jpg

the cool thing about this rachet is that by pushing the the button on the crank you can unlock it and manually set your zero point(six o'clock position) without having to disengage the gears.

Alex Raskin · April 3rd, 2008, 11:25 AM

Ron, how about DIY matte box? :)

John Stakes · December 30th, 2008, 01:37 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Alex Raskin

Ron, how about DIY matte box? :)

in case you haven't found it by now...look here

Ron, many thanks for sharing. Just the project I was looking for.

JS

Lee Roberts · March 3rd, 2009, 07:05 PM

Okay, I can handle being a laughing stock.....

For an uber-cheap racking "mechanism", I attach either one very long or a couple of shorter plastic wire ties together and secure them to the focus ring (it's rubber, so it never slips). After about 60 seconds of practice, one learns to flex the plastic the right amount for whatever speed is necessary. No matter how the camera is mounted (or not mounted), there is never any unwanted camera movement because the amount of pressure required to move the lens is minimal, and the plastic is very easy to access.

Cost? Hmm...I think I got about 1000 of these things for 10 bucks, so.....

December 26th, 2007, 09:35 PM	#1
Ron Wilber Regular Crew Join Date: Nov 2007 Location: San Diego, CA Posts: 98	easy to make diy follow focus http://i273.photobucket.com/albums/j...4quads/ff1.jpg My aim was to create an off the shelf solution. In other words, parts that can be easily found and put together. Because of this, the total cost came to be about 130 bucks. Slightly more than you'd expect for a DIY project, but it will save you time, waste, and the headaches found in the usual DIY project. what you need: 1. Home Depot - $29USD - Right angle drive(chuck): http://www.vermontamerican.com/Produ...190988&I=70740 http://i273.photobucket.com/albums/j...7171_VA_pd.jpg At home depot they have the same one but black in color. That's the one I got. IT has a hole at the elbow that I used for mounting. I also used the included screws to mount the gears and focus knob. 2. Redrock Micro - $60USD - focus gear: http://shopping.netsuite.com/s.nl/c....it.A/id.182/.f Believe me, it is better to buy this pre-built one than trying to make your own. It's easy and quick to mount and remove, also it’s thick and can fit a wide range of 35mm lenses. 3: Guitar Center(music store) ~$30USD - 1 drum/cymbol clamp/l-rod clamp. This will be used to hold the unit to your rails. There are tons of options here, I went to the local Guitar Center and looked at what they had available. The range is about 30 bucks. However, I would choose one that has adjustablilty for aligning the gears... just like the one I am using. or something like this: http://i273.photobucket.com/albums/j.../227076jpg.jpg 4. Home Depot ~ $4USD - Bolts: One 3/8 carriage bolt, one lock washer and 2 nuts. 5. Amazon - $6USD two 32p gears: Two 32p 66tooth or smaller gears, the number of teeth is really up to personal pref, but I would recommend not going with smaller metal pinions because the mounting holes are small and you won't be able to use the screws that come with the right angle chuck: http://www.amazon.com/32P-Spur-Gear-...8451426&sr=8-2 Two gears so you can stack them to create a thicker gear..you can use only one if you want to though. http://i273.photobucket.com/albums/j...4quads/ff4.jpg http://i273.photobucket.com/albums/j...4quads/ff5.jpg For the knob I just used an extra rear lens cap I had laying around. I just drilled a hole through it and used the included bolt to mount it. Eventually I'll find something better. There you go, an easy off the shelf diy solution. Requires no cutting, glueing, or welding. Everything can easily be found online or in the stores... I hope you find this useful! http://i273.photobucket.com/albums/j...4quads/ff8.jpg http://i273.photobucket.com/albums/j...4quads/ff7.jpg

December 30th, 2007, 09:49 PM	#2
Roger Rosales Major Player Join Date: Aug 2003 Location: Los Angeles, CA Posts: 254	That's pretty cool man! I'll have to build this soon. Have you tried this set up on an XL2? __________________ -Roger Rosales www.rogerrosales.com

December 31st, 2007, 12:33 AM	#3
Terry Lee Major Player Join Date: Apr 2007 Location: Louisville, KY Posts: 691	Now that is neat! But does it work as well as a Chrosziel...? __________________ https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=38313004

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January 2nd, 2008, 01:54 PM	#4
Ron Wilber Regular Crew Join Date: Nov 2007 Location: San Diego, CA Posts: 98	hey, I haven't tried it on the xl2. I use it on my canon hv20 with brevis 35mm adapter. Chrosziel? It's probably not as good or as light as any ready made one. DIY after all :)

January 5th, 2008, 08:55 PM	#5
Andrew McMillan Regular Crew Join Date: Sep 2007 Location: Colombia Posts: 153	OMG !!!! dude I just bought that same right angle gearbox and I'm trying to do the same thing. No way dude thats crazy! I am actualy tring to do my own rods too.

January 8th, 2008, 01:55 AM	#6
Ron Wilber Regular Crew Join Date: Nov 2007 Location: San Diego, CA Posts: 98	cool, it would be neat to see how you do yours!

January 12th, 2008, 09:12 AM	#7
Andrew McMillan Regular Crew Join Date: Sep 2007 Location: Colombia Posts: 153	check it out http://img183.imageshack.us/my.php?i...sc00189dx5.jpg http://img184.imageshack.us/my.php?i...sc00191gk5.jpg Alright so it doesn't realy work, but it was worth a try.

January 14th, 2008, 05:39 PM	#8
Ron Wilber Regular Crew Join Date: Nov 2007 Location: San Diego, CA Posts: 98	yeah almost. You definitely need some gears.

January 24th, 2008, 02:10 AM	#9
Ron Wilber Regular Crew Join Date: Nov 2007 Location: San Diego, CA Posts: 98	UpDATE! Better mounting solution, easier adjustment, but requires some fabrication. price will end up being about the same. Requires standard size rail/rod system. http://i273.photobucket.com/albums/j...ds/mounted.jpg updated items to purchase: cinevate's rail block: $33.66 http://www.cinevate.com/catalog/prod...products_id=68 this will replace the cymbol clamp. 1/2 in aluminum strip from hardware store: couple bucks http://i273.photobucket.com/albums/j...alumnstrip.jpg cut strip to about 5 inches. Drill hole for right angle chuck mounting bolt. Drill slot for adjustment and attacment points for the cinevate rail block. http://i273.photobucket.com/albums/j...s/hardware.jpg paint black and assemble. http://i273.photobucket.com/albums/j...s/assembly.jpg The Speed Crank: 3/8" INSERT rachet http://www.rockler.com/product.cfm?page=1575 you screw this onto the the double side thread screw that came with the right angle chuck. The threads don't match but by forcing it the crank gets nicely stuck to the screw. http://i273.photobucket.com/albums/j...uads/crank.jpg the cool thing about this rachet is that by pushing the the button on the crank you can unlock it and manually set your zero point(six o'clock position) without having to disengage the gears.

April 3rd, 2008, 11:25 AM	#10
Alex Raskin Trustee Join Date: Sep 2003 Posts: 1,435	Ron, how about DIY matte box? :)

March 3rd, 2009, 07:05 PM	#12
Lee Roberts Regular Crew Join Date: Dec 2005 Location: Memphis Area, SoCal, Jax, and Princeton Posts: 63	Okay, I can handle being a laughing stock..... For an uber-cheap racking "mechanism", I attach either one very long or a couple of shorter plastic wire ties together and secure them to the focus ring (it's rubber, so it never slips). After about 60 seconds of practice, one learns to flex the plastic the right amount for whatever speed is necessary. No matter how the camera is mounted (or not mounted), there is never any unwanted camera movement because the amount of pressure required to move the lens is minimal, and the plastic is very easy to access. Cost? Hmm...I think I got about 1000 of these things for 10 bucks, so.....