Commonly used toblerone truss?

[Onno Perdijk]

Hello All,

 

Before I start redesigning my TrussDolly I am wondering what the brands you are using or which are available from the rental houses?

 

Is triangle a commonly used truss? or mostly square?

 

Is 1ft, 1ft, 1ft a commonly used dimension?

 

Do you carry them as a standard item in the griptrucks?

 

 

 

Thanks for any reply,

 

Onno

[Daniel Wallens]

Hey Onno,

 

Good to see you around on the boards, buddy :)

 

 

Before I answer as best I can, I should say that I am speaking from a north-east United States point of view. Here in New York may be different than what they use predominantly in LA, and also what they use in parts of Europe. I really have no idea what is available where you are in Holland. That being said, New York and the northeast DOES see a lot of production, and we have some very knowledgeable and skilled technicians here. What we use here gets the job done (most of the time) and, for the most part, it is tried and tested to a point we all know and trust.

 

Now, onto the specifics:

 

Yes, triangle truss is commonly used. However, it is used more for smaller/lighter applications, (of course) and is generally a more mobile option. Many grip trucks on larger productions will carry triangle trussmakers (pipe truss brackets) as part of the package, which enable triangle truss to be created with 1.25" or 1.5" schedule 40 speedrail. These are made by Modern Studio, and will create 12" triangle truss (if memory serves). Black steel pipe can also be used. This sort of setup is great for a throwing-a-12K-up-on-a-goal-post-real-quick-during-a-music-video kind of thing.

 

Otherwise, you will mostly see 12" (fabricated) triangle truss, or sometimes 18" or 20.5" triangle truss. But usually, when they go that big, people just opt for box truss, which is typically stronger, and gives you slightly more options in terms of rigging. Box truss is generally not carried on grip trucks as part of a standard package along with the rest of the gear. When a show comes into a stage for a longer run (a feature or TV series, usually), it will generally be rigged with 12" or 15" box truss, and for larger applications, 20.5" box truss (and I’ve only very rarely seen 20.5"x30" truss). I feel like these last two (particularly 20.5x30) are used mostly for large arena situations. My work is generally in film and television and commercials/industrials, so I can’t speak to stadium/event/permanent applications.

 

1'x1'x1' is an extremely commonly used dimension. It is used for corners on box truss. It allows you to change the direction of the truss.

 

As for brands, James Thomas exists here, and their SuperTruss is excellent. They use 6061-T6 alloy for most of their stuff. So does KR StageTruss. I have not used JTE’s general purpose truss, but knowing the company, I am sure it is very good too.

 

Tomcat is also a very large truss manufacturer that is widely used here (they also make hoists). I’m not 100% what they use for their material, but I'd guess that they use 6061 as well.

 

Total Fabrications is another one, and I believe they are based in Europe, but we see their stuff here too.

Interesting about TF, they own a company called New Wave, which makes some very fancy, customized truss. You can get the main chords in all different patterns, finishes and colors – even a type of hybrid "fabric" on the outside. But, even more interesting is the material. They combine an aluminum alloy with carbon fiber, which results in an extremely light and tough material. I have never used New Wave trussing, but I'd like to see it at some point.

 

Prolyte is another one (I think they are Danish??). They use 6082-T6 alloy on most of their trusses (X-30, H-30, H-40, S-36, etc), and 6060 on their E20 series, which is a general/multipurpose truss. I’m far from a metal expert, but my understanding is that 6082 is quite similar to 6061 (-82 might be slightly harder/stronger). Their heavy duty trussing uses bigger chords, I believe than what is standard. I don't see Prolyte as much on the east coast, except for one or two jobs I've done.

 

Generally, but with some variation, box truss 12" and over comes with 2" OD main chords, with 50.8mm walls, and slightly varying inside/diagonal chords, depending on brand and model. I’m not sure if this will affect the manufacture of your TrussDolly system.

 

 

-DW