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OpenRail camera slider?

Discussion in 'OpenBuilds Projects' started by tonkajeep34, Jul 24, 2013.

  1. tonkajeep34

    tonkajeep34 New Member

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    Hey Guys, been listening to the crashcast for a while and have had my eye on a phlat printer... one of these days i will jump into CNC and will probably start with that. In the meantime i've had a small project in my head and looking for more information or things to look out for before i build it.

    I want to make a motorized camera slider for panning timelapse videos. I like to go camping in Big Bend National Park and i think it would be some awesome footage. Needless to say for this i don't want to spend a ton of money for something that won't be used very often. Which is where the open rail and v-slot comes in. Looks like i can build the slider part for <$50

    I saw one on the kickstarter page but it doesn't look like the open build community is live yet. Is there any place here (or maybe this is it) that focuses on more information on this?

    I was thinking of the following parts and maybe a gear motor brushed esc with timing belts and pulleys to move the gantry.

    V-Slot 20 x 20mm
    OpenRail Gantry Plate (Universal Mount)
    OpenBuilds Dual V Wheel Kit - Delrin
    Eccentric Spacers

    It almost seems too simple... am i missing something? or would this really build a function camera slider for a gopro or other lightweight camera?

    Thanks!
    Mike
     
  2. kram242

    kram242 Administrator Staff Member

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    Hi Mike everything looks good with the exception of the OpenRail Gantry Plate (Universal Mount)
    You will want to use the VSlot universal plate because you are using Vslot
    You will need 4 of the wheels kits and 2 eccentric spacers
    Sounds like a cool project and hope that you will be willing to post your build to OpenBuilds once its up and running :)
    Mark and Trish
     
  3. tonkajeep34

    tonkajeep34 New Member

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    Awesome! Thanks.

    Yep I've been checking every couple weeks to see when openbuilds is live. Once it is i'll be sure to show up there. In the meantime i think i'll go ahead and get these parts and at least have the slider built and move to the next step of making it move automagically.
     
  4. tonkajeep34

    tonkajeep34 New Member

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    Just put in the order. went ahead and got the belt and some parts for that. I have some ideas for legs that will level so we will see how it works.

    Once it's here i'll figure out how to motorize it
     
  5. rcflyboynj

    rcflyboynj Member

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    Let me know how it turns out! I was thinking the exact same thing the other day!!!

    ~ Nathan
     
  6. kram242

    kram242 Administrator Staff Member

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    Thank you for the support :good:
    Looking for to seeing how this works
    Mark and Trish
     
  7. tonkajeep34

    tonkajeep34 New Member

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    I have to say this is some of the coolest stuff for builders. I really can't wait to see all the projects that are made by people.

    For the legs i was going to make a crossbar with some thumb screws on rods to level the legs... then a buddy of mine said why don't you use your tripod on each end. Well it just makes too much sense not to... but i think i'm going to go one step further and use a gorilla pod at each end. I just need to figure out a good way to attach the tripod to the ends of the v-slot. Do ya'll have any suggestions? Maybe a 3 hole joining strip plate with the last hole drilled out to 1/4" and use a nut for the camera mount? or maybe a couple of these

    Also another question is servocity.com the best place to get motors and motor controllers?

    Thanks guys
     
  8. tonkajeep34

    tonkajeep34 New Member

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    Figured i'd show progress so far. It's all done except for the motor setup

    Just used a flat piece bolted to v-slot and a 1/4" nut JBwelded to it. Makes a very simple tripod mount. I picked up the heavy duty Gorillapods off ebay for $6 each. So even if i put my DSLR on i don't have to worry about it.

    2013-08-26 06.10.39.jpg 2013-08-26 06.10.32.jpg 2013-08-26 06.09.53.jpg
     
  9. kram242

    kram242 Administrator Staff Member

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    WOW nice job @tonkajeep34! Love the way you mounted the legs. This is going to make some super smooth video.
    I was looking at the legs and had the thought of since a stander ed tripod fold on it self what about using two of them with a custom plate that allows for a hinged mount. That way the whole assembly could be folded and carried anywhere pretty quickly. Not trying to side track your project just trowing out some ideas that I hope will help. Keep up the great work and looking forward to seeing some video along the V-Slot! :doubleup:
     
  10. tonkajeep34

    tonkajeep34 New Member

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    That's a good idea... was trying to stay in that same line of thought. These will unscrew quickly so it's portable. Needs to fit in/on a backpack for hiking up into the mountains. But i like the idea of folding... hmm.

    Got it almost finished... well enough to test it. Still need a project box to put the electronics in. But it works so this weekend i should be able to test it outside and get a video. I did one inside but it's pretty boring.

    I used a piece of lexan to test out the motor mount and it actually works well enough i might just leave it. Otherwise i'm going to try and get something a little thicker.

    Found the motor and variable speed controller on amazon cheap so all in, i'm still under $100 and i have a fully automatic slider that should take right at an hour to move 1000mm. :D

    2013-09-03 23.37.55.jpg 2013-09-03 23.38.00.jpg 2013-09-03 23.38.06.jpg
     
  11. kram242

    kram242 Administrator Staff Member

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    Cool, looking forward to seeing how it works out for you.
    You may want to try Garolite. I use this at time to prototype plates.
    http://www.mcmaster.com/#garolite/=odj2vj
    Hope this helps, good luck with the testing and have fun :)
     
  12. tonkajeep34

    tonkajeep34 New Member

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    Well here's a quick test of the slider. Just 30 minute at 5 second intervals quick test with the slider at about half speed. (read very short clip)



    I did another test later at 2 second and the slider set about as slow as it will go. Worked great but there where no clouds in the sky so the video was VERY boring. Still need to pick up the project box to put the electronics in, but otherwise it works great!

    2013-09-07 07.27.49.jpg
     
  13. thunder hawk

    thunder hawk Member

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    That is one cool camera slider. :doubleup:

    GHB:)
     
  14. tonkajeep34

    tonkajeep34 New Member

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    Thanks Thunder Hawk. Still haven't had a good chance to try it out. But i have some ideas that i think will be cool.

    Next project will be a small CNC but i'm going to have to watch someone else do that first.
     
  15. tonkajeep34

    tonkajeep34 New Member

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    Playing around with setting/setup not exactly what i was going for, but it's close!

     
  16. Charles

    Charles New Member

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    Hey Tonkajeep, nice slider! I'm building one for a DSLR and I'm looking for a motor I can control with a simple variable speed control... I know you got one off Amazon, what kind of spec/speed should I be looking for? cheers!
     
  17. rcav8r

    rcav8r Moderator Staff Member

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  18. tonkajeep34

    tonkajeep34 New Member

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    Hey Charles sorry for the delay in responding. What i did was measure the pinion i had (16mm circumference) and how long i wanted the camera to slide from one end to the other. For this one it would take about an hour at 1rpm to go the length of the slider. I wanted to be able to speed it up a little more than that so i got the 3rpm and use the variable speed to slow it down. It takes about 20 minutes at full speed to go from one end to the other. Before i go out camping i'll probably get a slower motor too.

    Also as far as weight look at the specs of the motor and get one that has more torque than the weight of the dolly portion and your camera gear and you should be fine.

    That triggertrap looks nice... too bad my dslr is not supported.
     

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