Transporting the Letus

[Tim Davison]

What do people use to trasnport the Letus and rack? The hard 'suitcase' that comes with the camera is great because of all the padding etc but is rather too heavy to be carrying any distances

[Bob Hart]

That little suitcase is about at good as it gets for transporting the Letus plus the rest of the kit and not break something or lose something because all the bits and pieces have been scattered in a lighter soft backpack.

The case "directs" you to dismantle and re-pack systematically and you have immediate cues something is missing because there is a vacant hole where it should be at. I added a hole each for the thumbscrew, little allen key and big allen key and dogleg support for the front of the body to enhance this rollcall of parts.

[Mitchell Lewis]

We leave our rig assembled between shoots (we have the whole thing mounted to Zacuto rods).

We bought a Zacuto Storm case. They have the foam cut out to accommodate a variety of cameras with the Letus adaptor installed. In our case, an EX3 with the Ultimate. A little large, but it has wheels so it works well for us. I haul it in the back of our Mini Cooper along with a tripod, light kit and other stuff. Been using it without a hitch since January 2009.

[Dennis Dillon]

Same here. Zacuto rails, case and foam for both EX cameras. I got tired of putting the rig together, but one must check all screws each time. Focus alignment can be off after a TSA experience so check before recording.

[Bob Hart]

I have reservations about shipping an assembled rig. The EX3 camera and current 35mm adaptor combinations secure the cameras at two mechanical points along a single plane, the optical interface and the tripod mount.

There is no robust third bracing axis of mechanical attachment between them. At best, the width of the lens structure or lens mount on the EX3 and the security of clamping screws can be assumed to do the job.

If intending to ship the assembly, my pack would consist of a thin very firm foam or fabric support inside an accurately contoured strong rigid frame, itself supported in softer compliant foam.

The inner contoured support is to prevent mechanical loadings on the tripod mount base on the camera, a known weak point and on the lens mount (direct relay) or filter thread and lens mount (relay via standard lens). The outer softer foam support is to protect against sudden impacts and provide some thermal protection for the optics.

As for checking relay focus, if the camera lens itself is being used for relay, this should be checked after every power cycle. For direct relay or camera lens relay, there should be a check after every transport, after any sudden bump during use and after any period the camera has been unattended by the normal operator.

[David W. Jones]

Storm Case here.