My new favorite clip

How about a photo and how to of the homemade boom crane?

The boom is made from a car wash brush handle. ( pvc with wood core didn't work). Next choice was a 16 foot retractable pruning saw handle. The car washer is 6' and retractable.

The swivel is a caster wheel that was 3 or 4 inches before cutting it off.

The boom arm had a rivet in it that had to be removed to put the PVC t fitting on that required no glue, fits very tight.

The thing that holds the cradle, I just had and don't know what it is. It is not really required but two skateboard bearings fit in it perfectly. I did put some foam next to the bearing to dampen the swinging.

Below the cradle there are two arms, one with a weight on a wire to help dampen swinging and to balance angle of camera aim. The second arm is to attach a lever arm onto to raise and lower camera direction. It also helps when the wind is blowing to stabilize camera movement. This piece of flat aluminum is 4' by 1/2" and is loosely attached at the cradle and rests on an arm not shown.

The big lead balls are 1lb. My camera is 2.8 lbs I think. The lead in the back is adjusted to balance the camera. For a smooth slow pan I find that keeping my hands off except for a little push is very good. Controlling the movement of the camera is most easily done from the white PVC fitting.

The long bolt with the wing nut is where I attach the camera. The long bolt is easier to handle than a short one. There are some extra screws with wing nuts in some of the holes. I tend to forget or lose things so I always carry extras.

Neat. If you could find a way to make the lead weights attach firmly to each end of the boom - but still allow them to be moved to balance the boom - you might be able to cut out some of the oscilation.

I think the movement is improved by going opposite and equal the other way. It was a windy location . The 4' rod also dampens movement but I didn't have it with me when clip made. I need some practice but I like the size. I will keep working on it until it's perfect.

I believe this "boom" discussion is in the wrong thread.

My Flash did not load for the Boom Crane video. Error message Indicates boom-1 file video is not online.
Maybe the Tech Forum is more appropriate so zr_media will approve ?

zr_media avatar
zr_media says:
I believe this "boom" discussion is in the wrong thread.

Posted on 2009-09-13 18:53
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I agree with you

I wasn't trying to be a jerk, just trying to keep things organized properly...

Accepted and noted... Dont read more into it than intended :)
We took it off line also.

I like candy