I just ordered a Magiqcam!!

[Scott Balkum]

http://www.magiqcam.com is not locked. Works fine.

[Carlos E. Martinez]

<<<-- Originally posted by Scott Balkum : http://www.magiqcam.com is not locked. Works fine. -->>>

That URL may not be locked, but is not working as we speak. Tried both with IE and Opera.


Carlos

[Scott Balkum]

I just connected successfully on 2 different network connections through 2 different providers. Try cleaning your cache.

[Ed Liew]

i would advice john to hire more staff to boost up it production before updating his site. at least, he would be able to meet dateline. my 2 cents worth.

ed

[Thomas Gay]

I ordered my Magiqcam 7-16-04 and recieved it 8-24-04. It also helped that I only live about 150 miles from them. Since I've had it I've grown quite fond of it as it is really light and handles very well. Once you have it balanced out (which will take you awhile) it will get you some really great shots.

I bought the series IIa and I'm running a Canon GL2 on it so I had to add a little more weight to the stage as the IIa is made for heavier cameras. The vest, arm and sled are very well put toghether. I recieved mine with a transport case and a docking station. The docking station is a nice item as you use it to balance the sled on one side of it or set in the cradle on the opposite side for longer times of non-use. There are two rubber covered metal rods on reach side to hang the arm and vest from, very handy!!!

So far I've only had one problem and that was the mounting peg on the sled and the mounting peg on the arm sticking and not wanting to slide freely. This was solved with a little 3in1 oil (just a light coat).

Up until now I was flying a homemade rig, which the vest and arm alone weights more than the entire Magiqcam including transport case.

So needless to say, I'm a very happy customer! And I recommend Animagique to anyone looking for a steay-cam style rig.

Thanks,
Thomas

[Tim Langston]

How did you add the weight to the stage, or I guess I should ask what did you use?

[Scott Balkum]

Thomas,

I have the exact same problem you do with the peg sticking. Oil does help, but I can't figure out the main reason, I think the peg is machined strange at the end as I can pull it up, just not out. Very strange.

[Thomas Gay]

For the first question of the weights, I used steel plate of various thickness starting at 1/8" 1/4" and 1/2". My plates are 3.5 wide by 5.5 long. What I did is take off the sliding plate mount, took out the two allen head screws from the 3" x 4 3/4" aluminum plate and centered the (aluminum) plate onto my steel plates and marked out and drilled the holes. You then just install the steel plate inbetween the mounting plate (aluminum) and the stage plate. Note: you may need to install longer allen head screws depending on what thickness of plate you use. For my GL2 I needed a half inch thick plate and a 1/8" thick plate. This works very well.

As for the question regarding the pegs, I had to ask John about this as well at first. He suggested the oil. Since the pegs are at such close tolarances you may have to use a little emery paper to sand down any burrs on the metal and then use the oil. This helps out a lot. If you still have problems with the pegs binding contact John to see if there is something else that may need to be done.

When Mine first stuck on me we where out in the hot sun for quite awhile and I believe that since the rig is painted black that the metals heated and expanded. I had to take the rig off as a whole and set it in the shade to cool. The pegs were able to slide out part way but not all the way. We had to pry them apart the rest of the way. This is when I noticed a fair amount of burrs on the pegs and went to work using emery paper to smooth out the pegs and then with a little light oil they now slide smoothly.

I have not flown the rig out in the hot sun since then but I'm sure this took care of the problem. As it has still been quite hot in the areas that I have been shooting.

Hope this helps,
Thomas

[Peter Jefferson]

hmm.. interesting thread and its changed my outlook on stadycams.. i used to see them as overproced bits of kit which hobbyists have tried to make a quick buck form, but the magiqcam seems to do the trick.. based on the vide ive seen and the promotional clip i saw (some dude walkin into a museum.. tracking shot around him follow him upstairs etc )

one steadycam shot i rememebr distinctly, was in the movie 15 Minutes.. they actually talk about it in the "making of" part, i think it runs for 7 minutes or so.. but its a brilliant piece with chaos reigning supreme and its jsut the one long shot..

hmm... pete looks into his wallet as the moths fly out.. maybe one day.......

[Greg Boston]

Thomas and Scott,

A friend of mine bought the Magicam awhile back and he had the same problem with the pegs sticking. I had to take a Scotchbrite pad to the peg. It seems as though it's not machined perfectly round. His rig also had the burrs that were close to the base of the peg. I had to really work to get those smooth enough for the peg to sit all the way down and still come back out without sticking. Good idea about the oil. Will have to try that during the next practice session.

Thanks and regards,

[Thomas Gay]

Well I just finished a shoot this weekend in northern California, At a Music Festival. We used the Magiqcam on stage shooting for over a half hour and then another half hour getting crowd reactions and interviews.

(We didn't have any problems with the pegs sticking, so the emery paper and a little oil did the trick).

And I have one thing to say "Thank God the Magiqcam is light". It handled very well and really didn't have any problems at all. The Band we shot for got the master DV tapes today as they are doing the editing for a DVD. And the bands leader reviewed the shots and was very impressed with the footage we got.

We also had the pleasure of meeting with John and his wife (the owners of Animagique) as they came in to see us in action with there product. What a great couple, they answerd questions that we had about the rig. And stated again that if we have any problems with it to contact them and they will take care of it. They also handed out broshiers on the magiqcam to anyone interested there at the festival. They defenitly stand behind there product 100% as that is there livelyhood.

The one change that I'm making to my rig is a lighter battery for the monitor, as I'm using a brick style battery. I'm thinking of switching to a lithium ion to lighten the lower part of the sled. This should make balancing more easier.

Anyway, thought I would share.

Thomas

[Ed Liew]

good for you thomas. maybe you can do me a favour and get john to answer my mail. i still cann't fly my rig and this mean, no income from it.
anyway, glad to know that this rig is a good investment after all.

ed

[Thomas Gay]

<<<-- Originally posted by Ed Liew : good for you thomas. maybe you can do me a favour and get john to answer my mail. i still cann't fly my rig and this mean, no income from it.
anyway, glad to know that this rig is a good investment after all.

ed -->>>


Hi Ed,

What problem are you having with the rig? If it is balancing, it will take you a little time and a lot of patience to get it to the sweet spot. To be honest it took me about 5 hours to get my rig balanced out. But I'm using a GL2 which is a very light camera to be using on the IIa rig. So I had to add weight here and take away weight there. I'm also changing out my monitor battery to eleminate excess weight from the lower part of the sled.

If it is a mechanical problem then you should either call Animagique or email them. And if you are not recieving there email check your cookie settings on your computer. I corrispond with john via email offten with no problems. They usually respond in a day or two, as they are very busy with getting orders out.

And yes, The Magiqcam was the best investment that we have ever made for our business!

Thomas

[Ed Liew]

hi thomas,
i've got 2 major problem with the rig.
1. i've got a "bad bearing", according to john. this is the bearing between the handle and the gimbal. it make a cracking sound when i check for drop time and the whole thing would fly in all angles.
2. one of the bearing on the "u" shape bracket came loose. i manage to push it back to position but it keep coming off.
i've not fly the rig for more then 2 weeks now. and sad to say is that john only replied was, his compuserve is down. i've send him 4 or 5 mail now with photos of my problem and no reply yet.
i'm only hoping for the best now.

ed

[Thomas Gay]

Hi Ed, I just tried to send you an email regarding the magiqcam. Did you get it? If not, send me and email and I will respond back to you.

Thomas