OK, I bought the Spiderbrace.... at DVinfo.net

Bruce Marusich · June 10th, 2005, 07:12 PM

Hello All:

Based on a thread here I shelled out $75.00+shipping for a spiderbrace I
http://www.spiderbrace.com . I tried it out on my XL1S with a couple of tapes. Here's my .05cents...

Pros:
It was shipped quickly, and the company answered my emails quickly.

It does make walking around w/ the XL1S easier.

It does seem to stabilize the camera pretty well. I shot 2 rolls of tape without my hands going numb. Panning with the unit was very even and natural, as the camera moved in unison with my head and upper troso. I got better result with the Spiderbrace when walking forward than if I simply held the camera by hand using the default shoulder support.

It balances the camera nicely.

Two screws were provided to attach the camera, to allow for different attachment positions, one in front of the other.

Cons:
It does not appear to me to be all that durable. It is made out of 1" thinwall plastic pipe, thin sticky foam,a plastic electrical conduit box, and some bicycle handlebar end plugs. You can see where the pipe was evidently heated with a torch. The unit I purchased had appeared to have a a melted hole covered with a thin piece of sticky foam on one of the handles. All ends of pipe are capped with the handlebar plugs.
There were also 2 glue drips on my particular unit., although the paint job hid it pretty well. With care however, the unit could last some time.

The only other concern I have is that every time I reached for a control on the XL1S, the unit became unbalanced. I could probably learn to compenstae for that, but it might take a little while. If the 2 handles were extended by a few inches, then a zoom/remote for the lanc could probably be attached with good results.

My major disappointment was that I assumed that the unit would be made of metal, and was supriised when I unpacked it and found it to be made of plastic. The design itself is ingenious and works very well, I'd be willing to pay more for a tubular metal model, but I don't know about another $75 for the plastic model.

I think the makers of this product have a really good idea in the Spiderbrace.

Investing in a tubing bender and an upgrade in materials would make it a great idea.

Just my opinion...

Bruce

Prismatic Air Video

K. Forman · June 10th, 2005, 08:03 PM

The way I see it, if it improves your results and makes it easier to shoot, it's woth every penny you paid. Unlike the $30 tele lens I bought for my GL1.

Patrick Jenkins · June 10th, 2005, 10:32 PM

Quote:

Investing in a tubing bender and an upgrade in materials would make it a great idea.

Would also bump the price a bit beyond $75.

I've got 2 Spiderbrace 2s. I love em.

Pete Wilie · June 26th, 2005, 03:24 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bruce Marusich

Cons:
It does not appear to me to be all that durable. It is made out of 1" thinwall plastic pipe, thin sticky foam,a plastic electrical conduit box, and some bicycle handlebar end plugs.

My major disappointment was that I assumed that the unit would be made of metal, and was supriised when I unpacked it and found it to be made of plastic. The design itself is ingenious and works very well, I'd be willing to pay more for a tubular metal model, but I don't know about another $75 for the plastic model.

Actually it's made out of PVC pipe, which is very durable, and VERY light. If it was made out of metal (aluminum?), it would be more subject to dents and bending than the PVC, and considerably heavier.

The fact that it uses inexpensive, off-the-shelf parts enables it to be sold for a very low price ($59) compared with most other shoulder support systems I've seen (most start at around $200).

Quote:

The only other concern I have is that every time I reached for a control on the XL1S, the unit became unbalanced. I could probably learn to compenstae for that, but it might take a little while. If the 2 handles were extended by a few inches, then a zoom/remote for the lanc could probably be attached with good results.

I have a SpiderBrace 2 that I use with PD170, and it works quite well. I had no problem attaching and using a Varizoom StealthZoom lens controller. I found it worked best on the left handle.

June 10th, 2005, 07:12 PM	#1
Bruce Marusich New Boot Join Date: Apr 2005 Location: Mount Airy, MD Posts: 19	OK, I bought the Spiderbrace.... Hello All: Based on a thread here I shelled out $75.00+shipping for a spiderbrace I http://www.spiderbrace.com . I tried it out on my XL1S with a couple of tapes. Here's my .05cents... Pros: It was shipped quickly, and the company answered my emails quickly. It does make walking around w/ the XL1S easier. It does seem to stabilize the camera pretty well. I shot 2 rolls of tape without my hands going numb. Panning with the unit was very even and natural, as the camera moved in unison with my head and upper troso. I got better result with the Spiderbrace when walking forward than if I simply held the camera by hand using the default shoulder support. It balances the camera nicely. Two screws were provided to attach the camera, to allow for different attachment positions, one in front of the other. Cons: It does not appear to me to be all that durable. It is made out of 1" thinwall plastic pipe, thin sticky foam,a plastic electrical conduit box, and some bicycle handlebar end plugs. You can see where the pipe was evidently heated with a torch. The unit I purchased had appeared to have a a melted hole covered with a thin piece of sticky foam on one of the handles. All ends of pipe are capped with the handlebar plugs. There were also 2 glue drips on my particular unit., although the paint job hid it pretty well. With care however, the unit could last some time. The only other concern I have is that every time I reached for a control on the XL1S, the unit became unbalanced. I could probably learn to compenstae for that, but it might take a little while. If the 2 handles were extended by a few inches, then a zoom/remote for the lanc could probably be attached with good results. My major disappointment was that I assumed that the unit would be made of metal, and was supriised when I unpacked it and found it to be made of plastic. The design itself is ingenious and works very well, I'd be willing to pay more for a tubular metal model, but I don't know about another $75 for the plastic model. I think the makers of this product have a really good idea in the Spiderbrace. Investing in a tubing bender and an upgrade in materials would make it a great idea. Just my opinion... Bruce Prismatic Air Video

June 10th, 2005, 08:03 PM	#2
K. Forman Capt. Quirk Join Date: Apr 2002 Location: Middle of the woods in Georgia Posts: 3,596	The way I see it, if it improves your results and makes it easier to shoot, it's woth every penny you paid. Unlike the $30 tele lens I bought for my GL1. __________________ www.SmokeWagonLeather.us