Sweatin bullets with my Steadicam Pilot

[Steven Davis]

Well, I recently upgraded from flying a Sony V1u to a Canon XF300. When I loaded the Canon, with just an extra mic and a light on top, I had to start pulling off weights, and had to keep the arm cranked all the way up just to keep the arm from failing. I'm wondering if over the past several years, the arm's springs have given out. The pilot is rated for 12lbs, which I checked before I bought the Canon, but there's no way this arm can take 12lbs now.

I'll have to call Steadicam in the a.m. and see what I can do.

[Zexun Tan]

This might be a silly question to ask, but were you able to adjust your pilot arm so that it's at it's max tension and try it out?

[Steven Davis]

Originally Posted by Zexun Tan

This might be a silly question to ask, but were you able to adjust your pilot arm so that it's at it's max tension and try it out?

Hi Zexun,

Yeah, I was running at max tension, and the camera itself is dropping to my waist. I also tested another arm and it appears my arm has weakened significantly. Time to send it in.

[Zexun Tan]

Hi Steven,

There shouldn't be a "weaking" of any arms. I believe it should be either broken entirely or actually still working. Consider the payload and how it feels at max tension. Now back that tension all the way down... does it feel different? If it doesn't, it's the tension control that's broken. Just trying to isolate the problem before you send it in. Good luck.

[Steven Davis]

Originally Posted by Zexun Tan

Hi Steven,

There shouldn't be a "weaking" of any arms. I believe it should be either broken entirely or actually still working. Consider the payload and how it feels at max tension. Now back that tension all the way down... does it feel different? If it doesn't, it's the tension control that's broken. Just trying to isolate the problem before you send it in. Good luck.

Thanks, I'll keep you updated.

[Steven Davis]

Status update.

Well after consulting with the great guys at Steadicam, I will probably be getting a Steadicam Scout. They tightened up my springs, but with the extra mic, frezzi light, I'm pushing the balance/weight of my pilot arm. My springs/arm was actually stronger than the new springs they were going to install. So they just tightened up my arm instead of replacing the springs.

So the next challenge I had to over come was the hd-sdi connection that my Canon XF300 does not have. So I plan to get this http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/964935-REG/atomos_atomh2s002_1xh2s_converter_1_2600mah.html and mount it somewhere and then I can purchase the Steadicam Scout HD, and connect the XF300 to it with this box.

The guy at Steadicam reminded me that it's impossible to future proof everything. He's so right.