George Odell

Actually it's Phillip Covell, his son, who works on them. Thanks to his help I'm well on my way to restoring this old girl.

Hello to all. Picked up an Elemack Spyder dolly on Saturday from a local production house. Has not been used in some time and, unfortunately, has been stored for a few years in the dank basement of a house. Needless to say, I have my restorative work cut out for me before I can use it. However, I'm up to the task and eager to put this baby back to it's original glory. But... I can use some help and advice from anyone out there who either owns one or has some experience using it. Here are my questions: 1) When you pump up the column, which one should raise up first? 2) There is a black plastic knob atop the "oil tank". I assume this is the fill port (?). Should this unscrew easily? Mine is on way too tight and I'm afraid it will snap off. Did they make a better replacement for this at some point? 3) Can anyone recommend the type/brand of hydraulic oil it uses? 4) This one has only the studio wheels. Do you recommend I search for the OEM bogey wheels or go with a skateboard arrangement. Replacing the wheels seems like a much harder/time consuming operation IMHO. What's the real deal with the oil leak reputation the Spyder has? Where does it leak and how bad is it? I was told most leaks are from the operator continuing to pump after the column is fully extended thereby causing pressure to build up and pop a seal. Comments, please. Thanks for any help you can provide.

The Film Group has moved their site to this address as of early 2009: http://www.webtfg.com Click on Film Group Products on the left

Please let me clarify a few things if I may. Cameras: While we do suggest you test your camera BEFORE having it modified this is a wise thing to do anyway before you shoot an entire film and find out you have a problem. These cameras are all now quite old and while many are still in great condition... inside and out... many are not. Test them first... then go shoot. Price: Actually, the cost of the S8mm crystal and mod is about what it was 20 years ago. That's a long time to hold the price for anything. We began making them in 1976. Given the fact that a camera conversion can take up to a day to complete PLUS the time it takes to manufacture and test each electronic control unit (CCU) and cable set "to order" for each customer, we feel the price we charge is very fair. BTW #1: Since you no longer have to have a specialized tape recorder (like the Nagra 1/4" sync recorder of years past or even one of our modified Sony cassette decks) your cost for getting into true lip-sync filmmaking is way less than it was before we had, DAT, Mini Disc and digital memory recorders Size: In order for us to keep the cost where it is we found it best to make a single control unit that could be adjusted for the given camera model rather than make a specific smaller module for every camera. There are some 35+ models currently on our conversion list. The unit is also self powered with a 9v. cell and that takes a bit of room. All in all we have had few, if any, complaints over the years about the size of the unit. We provide a coiled connecting cable so you can place the CCU in your shirt or pants pocket. Some users Velcro it to the top or side of the camera. BTW #2: One advantage to having the CCU separate from the camera is you always maintain the option of using it with another camera (or even another model of camera with a slight mod charge) should the original one get damaged or stop working. That would not be the case if it was installed inside the camera. This has happened many times to our clients over the years. Sync: If you have ever called us... at least since the days of NLE systems... you will have found we almost always recommend you test your camera to see how well it may maintain relative sync. Sliding the audio around on the timeline is one way to adjust drifting sync as is adding a cutaway now and then or reverse angle if it involves dialog between two people. Some cameras are very stable even if they are not running at precisely 24fps. Those who opt for getting a crystal/conversion do so to eliminate the issues of drifting sync so they can concentrate on making the best film they can. George Odell The Film Group

When you say the 1400 can output any way you need to are you saying that during the initial capture of the tapes to the NLE they can select 30P from my 60P and capture all in one shot as if it WAS 60P? That is, no added expense or time necessary to fix it?

Shot something at 60P (59.94) instead of 30P (29.97) with HDX-900. Is there any way to convert the tapes to 30P either deck to deck or in NLE software and how difficult (i.e expensive) is it to do? Thanks for the help on this. :(

sorry... posted to wrong forum