Do you spend a lot of time rigging cameras and brushless gimbals to cars? It can take ages to set everything up securely using regular mounting solutions. RigWheels may be about to change all that.
The company make some great magnetic vehicle mounting solutions for cameras and lights which we’ve covered here on Newsshooter in the past. This week they announced a new bit of gear called the Cloud Mount that combines a vibration isolator with their RigMount XL magnetic car mount. It can support gimbals like the DJI Ronin equipped with a RED or C300-sized camera and because the mounting system uses magnets it can be installed in minutes. You can specify either eight or 16-magnet mounting solutions depending on your camera and your application.
The isolator is essentially a bouncy platform that bobs up and down, compensating for the movement of your car as it travels along. When combined with a compatible brushless gimbal the results seem impressive. The strength of the platform can be altered by changing the lengths of wire cable used, and if you already own RigWheels parts then you may be able use some of them to build a Cloud Mount, and not need to buy the whole kit.
The Cloud Mount starts at $499 for the vibration platform and increases as you add parts. For full details visit the RigWheels website.
This from Rigwheels:
The RigWheels Cloud Mount camera vibration isolator system is the most versatile and customizable vibration isolation system for filmmaking available.
Building on our RigMount XL mounting platform, the Cloud Mount adds a vibration isolator to allow your handheld gimbal to work more effectively and with less strain on its motors and bearings. In the same way that Handheld Gimbal Stabilizers have drastically reduced the time required to achieve smooth dynamic camera movement, the Cloud Mount tremendously reduces the amount of time necessary and the complexity involved with mounting a vibration isolator system to a vehicle.
This is a all-in-one solution and usually requires no additional grip and rigging hardware. Other vibration isolator systems rely extensively on third party rigging and hardware which drastically increases the cost of a working system (more than $500.00 for typical four point rigging). The Cloud Mount (when purchased complete with case) can be deployed to its standard configuration and ready for your gimbal in under one minute. With a small reconfiguration you can change to a ‘hostess tray” or “underslung” position.
Our RigMount magnets are the key to the fast and easy setup of the Cloud Mount. 8 Magnets in the DSLR package provide up to 400lb of pulling force. That is a really large number but in real world conditions it is appropriate measure.
Our mid-size package includes 12 magnets (600b) and our pro package 16 magnets (800b). The magnets are cased in rubber so they won’t damage the surface you are mounting to. For some some surfaces suction is necessary and each option includes 8 of our standard suction cups and vacuum suction cups are available for the most demanding applications.
Cloud Mount Camera Vibration Damper Off-Road Test from RigWheels on Vimeo.
As with all RigWheels products, there are many different ways you can configure components depending on the shot you’re trying to achieve. What makes the Cloud Mount markedly unique is the versatility of the parts and the degree of fine-tuning and customization possible. With our patent pending design you can build up the system to accommodate ANY gimbal/camera combination using standard cable “wire rope”.
Standard cable requirement for a Ronin-M with DSLR is 4, 1/4″ sections of cable. 8, 1/4″ sections will support a standard Ronin with a mid to full-size camera. 16, 1/4″ sections will support approximately 125 pounds. The vibration isolator of this system can use up to 24 sections of cable of up to 7/16″ diameter. (we would love to see a photo of a setup that actually requires that capacity) Because you are able to “let in” or “let out” the cable, you can fine-tune the resistance necessary for your setup. You want vibration isolation loose enough to absorb all of the bumps and vibration but strong enough not to fail under the weight of the camera and gimbal. The Clould Mount gives you the ability to find that perfect balance of resistance, not only for the camera and gimbal but also for the terrain on which you will be operating.
