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John David Miller

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About John David Miller

  • Birthday May 16

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  • Occupation
    Grip
  • Location
    Los Angeles
  • Specialties
    I love my job!

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  1. Try ACF-50, its expensive but good. I wouldnt use an abrasive the would scratch the crome. Quick drying car wax works well to keep your risers feeling like butter.
  2. Why not just put the light on the top pipe, get rid of everything else, and use the risers on the stands to lower it all together just out of your frame? They also make stirrups or drop-downs that make lowering a light from a pipe grid fairly quick.
  3. In addition, cover the dolly seat with a plastic bag. This way if does stop raining and the operator takes off his rain pants he doesn't sit in a wet seat. ?
  4. I don't know of a stand that goes 30' in the air. If you are near a Home Depot, see if they have a "Towable 30' Boom Lift." This will probably be cheaper than renting and delivering a tall stand that won't get you the height you are looking for without scaffold.
  5. Last time I used a diffusion balloon was in Hawaii. The wind got a hold of it and snapped the tabs on the balloon that the lines were tied to. As it sailed off out over the Pacific I felt compelled to call the FAA to warn local air traffic of the object. Helium is pricey these days. The cost and the limitations of the balloon make it a very situational piece of equipment. Working somewhere you aren't allowed to rig for example. "Hey we want to diffuse the light spilling through the oculus of the Pantheon..."
  6. I also use a rolling pipe organ cart. The pipe organ goes from 5.5 ft-1ft in 6" increments and holds 18 of each size. The cart also holds 6 milk crates for speedrail fittings and a toolbox on top. The idea being mobile and still fits through normal doorways. I mark the size with a black marker on each side of the cut pipe. You can slip fit your 1" pipe inside the 1-1/4" pipe for storage. For longer pipe I store in the lumber rack on my truck. The ends are painted for easy recognition. 12' = red, 10' green, 8' black, and 6' yellow. These colors carry over to the 1" square tubing used for overhead frames and for the actual bags the overheads are stowed in. So, for example, a 12x grid cloth will be in a marked red bag and take 4 red pipe, and a set of corners and ears. Hope this helps.
  7. Just because you can afford it and the OP has a pretty reel doesn't make it best... Knowing what your trying to accomplish is a good first step...a dolly/jib on circle track may be best.
  8. While the Flighthead is not great for a Techno, it should've handled a simple move like that. My guess is operator error. Perhaps he had the pan locked off on the fulcrum since you were just pulling straight back. Doing this will make things worse. The cable drives within the crane could've been going bad.
  9. I agree with Samjay on this. If your looking to the internet for a how to on Car Rigs you're asking for trouble. I'm not too concerned with your camera but more the innocent people that my get hurt by it flying off. Even at a professional level things can quickly go wrong with car mounts...so many variables. The only camera Id trust with a rig solely off suctions cups on a freeway is a Gopro. We use suction cups, sparingly, as brace points. Even so I've had many cups come off. If you can't get someone with expierence to do this for you, make sure its safe. Use several suction cups and a camera safety.
  10. That sounds like an expensive time-lapse shot. Your best bet would be a repeatable Techno. Lookup Pacific Motion or Technodolly.
  11. I just get coarse thread wood screws for 3/4" and smaller. Most dry wall is 1/2"-5/8" thick which doesn't leave much purchase for a screw thats 3/4" long. This makes a "drywall screw" at a length of 3/4" a rare item to find.
  12. The key is to make sure you get casters that easily handle the max weight of your cart and the punishment your crew will put it through. I don't really care for foam filled casters, they make a heavy cart tougher to push and maneuver and they get flat spots if your cart sits for a few weeks. I like an overbuilt caster with a high PSI in the tires. http://m.grainger.com/mobile/product/HAMILTON-Swivel-Pneumatic-Caster-WP98267/_/N-ir4?fromPidp=true You only have to pay for quality once...
  13. I usually get about 50 sheets of 1/2" CDX plywood and lay a path for carts and video village. Its cheap and light weight. If this costs too much you can always get less and leap frog your way out there (this takes time/$$$ as well). For heavy vehicles I'll lay down rolls of chain link fence which gives the tires traction in the sand.
  14. And remember to safety off that camera!! I've seen them fall...
  15. Build a goal post with pipe and put a ball leveler on it, or a cheese plate with a dovetail. If they get a periscope you can get even closer to the ceiling.
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