Merlin on the Flyer Arm?? at DVinfo.net

Patrick Moreau · April 23rd, 2007, 01:21 PM

Just curious if I can make this work somehow. I have the Flyer rig but for certain shoots, it would be nice to just use the Merlin and have the arm as an option. As the new Steadicam arm will work with the Marlin, thought there might be a way to get it on the Flyer arm. Thanks for any info.

Patrick

Mikko Wilson · April 23rd, 2007, 02:15 PM

The Merlin does fit onto the Flyer arm. However you'd need to add just over 2lb to the Merlin to fly it on the Flyer arm.

This does mean that a Merlin with a metal gimble, which can take up to 7lbs of camera, should actually be able to fly on the Flyer arm when fully loaded!

Either way, yes it's possible, but it is very limeting in that it doesn't offer a good range of adjustability.

- Mikko

Craig Chartier · April 23rd, 2007, 04:56 PM

this combination was being shown at NAB, The Merlin mounted on a vest and arm. What I was not able to get an answer to was if you could just buy the Merlin and possibly an adapter, and put it on a current flyer vest?

Mikko Wilson · April 23rd, 2007, 06:46 PM

Craig, the system that was beeing shows at NAB was a new Arm and Vest for the Merlin. They are not the same as the Flyer Arm & Vest. (The Merlin Arm is 2/3 the size of the Flyer Arm)

- Mikko

Craig Chartier · April 23rd, 2007, 09:30 PM

Mikko, so yeah it's a whole new system, but since I have a flyer system can I just buy the smaller arm and merlin mount and attach it to my current vest? It looked like the same vest mount.

Charles Papert · April 23rd, 2007, 09:41 PM

Craig:

It wouldn't be too hard to make an adaptor to mount the Merlin on the Flyer arm, and while you are at it you could add a mounting post to add weight at the end of the arm which would help also (the Merlin should be beefed up as much as possible to help make the system more inert, but you still might need a bit more to make the Flyer arm happy).

However, I'm not sure I could think of a situation where this would be preferable to using the Flyer, since it has the built-in monitor, more mass (i.e. more stable) etc. With a small camera you could simply add some weight to the camera platform to get up to the minimum of the Flyer.

What type of shoots were you thinking the Merlin/Flyer arm combo would be preferable?

Craig Chartier · April 23rd, 2007, 10:08 PM

Charles,
I was really thinking more of cost savings and storage. If I can use the same vest for both arms and heads I would hope to save some money on the system. I can only wear one vest at a time.

The Merlin does seem to lend itself toward smaller more confined areas that even the flyer might have trouble with.

What I really want is for my ProVid vest to be able to work with all three arms. It is IMO the best fitting vest.

Mikko Wilson · April 24th, 2007, 09:40 AM

Craig,
The Merlin and Flyer arm both use the same size Socket-Block. So yes, you can use the same vest for both arms.

If you own a Flyer and a Merlin (sled), then it may be worth it to give Tiffen a call and see how much they would want for just the Flyer arm.

AND, though the "Flyer Size" socket-block is smaller than the "Standard" socket block used on the larger vests; the mounting holes used to mount the socket blocks to the bridge plate on the arm are the same. So you could get a 2nd bridge plate for your Pro-vid vest and mount a Flyer socket block on it and use the same vest for everything.

Call Tiffen/Steadicam and see what they can offer you.

- Mikko

April 23rd, 2007, 01:21 PM	#1
Patrick Moreau Still Motion Join Date: Oct 2004 Location: Toronto, Canada Posts: 1,186	Merlin on the Flyer Arm?? Just curious if I can make this work somehow. I have the Flyer rig but for certain shoots, it would be nice to just use the Merlin and have the arm as an option. As the new Steadicam arm will work with the Marlin, thought there might be a way to get it on the Flyer arm. Thanks for any info. Patrick

April 23rd, 2007, 02:15 PM	#2
Mikko Wilson Major Player Join Date: Jul 2004 Location: Juneau, Alaska, USA Posts: 624	The Merlin does fit onto the Flyer arm. However you'd need to add just over 2lb to the Merlin to fly it on the Flyer arm. This does mean that a Merlin with a metal gimble, which can take up to 7lbs of camera, should actually be able to fly on the Flyer arm when fully loaded! Either way, yes it's possible, but it is very limeting in that it doesn't offer a good range of adjustability. - Mikko __________________ Mikko Wilson - Steadicam Owner / Operator - Juneau, Alaska, USA +1 (907) 321-8387 - mikkowilson@hotmail.com - www.mikkowilson.com

April 23rd, 2007, 06:46 PM	#4
Mikko Wilson Major Player Join Date: Jul 2004 Location: Juneau, Alaska, USA Posts: 624	Craig, the system that was beeing shows at NAB was a new Arm and Vest for the Merlin. They are not the same as the Flyer Arm & Vest. (The Merlin Arm is 2/3 the size of the Flyer Arm) - Mikko __________________ Mikko Wilson - Steadicam Owner / Operator - Juneau, Alaska, USA +1 (907) 321-8387 - mikkowilson@hotmail.com - www.mikkowilson.com

April 23rd, 2007, 09:41 PM	#6
Charles Papert Wrangler Join Date: Jan 2002 Location: Los Angeles, CA Posts: 6,810	Craig: It wouldn't be too hard to make an adaptor to mount the Merlin on the Flyer arm, and while you are at it you could add a mounting post to add weight at the end of the arm which would help also (the Merlin should be beefed up as much as possible to help make the system more inert, but you still might need a bit more to make the Flyer arm happy). However, I'm not sure I could think of a situation where this would be preferable to using the Flyer, since it has the built-in monitor, more mass (i.e. more stable) etc. With a small camera you could simply add some weight to the camera platform to get up to the minimum of the Flyer. What type of shoots were you thinking the Merlin/Flyer arm combo would be preferable? __________________ Charles Papert www.charlespapert.com

April 24th, 2007, 09:40 AM	#8
Mikko Wilson Major Player Join Date: Jul 2004 Location: Juneau, Alaska, USA Posts: 624	Craig, The Merlin and Flyer arm both use the same size Socket-Block. So yes, you can use the same vest for both arms. If you own a Flyer and a Merlin (sled), then it may be worth it to give Tiffen a call and see how much they would want for just the Flyer arm. AND, though the "Flyer Size" socket-block is smaller than the "Standard" socket block used on the larger vests; the mounting holes used to mount the socket blocks to the bridge plate on the arm are the same. So you could get a 2nd bridge plate for your Pro-vid vest and mount a Flyer socket block on it and use the same vest for everything. Call Tiffen/Steadicam and see what they can offer you. - Mikko __________________ Mikko Wilson - Steadicam Owner / Operator - Juneau, Alaska, USA +1 (907) 321-8387 - mikkowilson@hotmail.com - www.mikkowilson.com

April 23rd, 2007, 04:56 PM	#3
Craig Chartier DVi Contributor Join Date: Mar 2006 Location: Austin Texas Posts: 374	this combination was being shown at NAB, The Merlin mounted on a vest and arm. What I was not able to get an answer to was if you could just buy the Merlin and possibly an adapter, and put it on a current flyer vest?

April 23rd, 2007, 09:30 PM	#5
Craig Chartier DVi Contributor Join Date: Mar 2006 Location: Austin Texas Posts: 374	Mikko, so yeah it's a whole new system, but since I have a flyer system can I just buy the smaller arm and merlin mount and attach it to my current vest? It looked like the same vest mount.

April 23rd, 2007, 10:08 PM	#7
Craig Chartier DVi Contributor Join Date: Mar 2006 Location: Austin Texas Posts: 374	Charles, I was really thinking more of cost savings and storage. If I can use the same vest for both arms and heads I would hope to save some money on the system. I can only wear one vest at a time. The Merlin does seem to lend itself toward smaller more confined areas that even the flyer might have trouble with. What I really want is for my ProVid vest to be able to work with all three arms. It is IMO the best fitting vest.