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Make a $30 Steadicam

video Make a $30 Steadicam

Learn how to make a $30 steadicam with parts you can get at the local sporting goods, and hardware store.

23 comments

Mar 26, 2010. 7:27 PMstruckbyanarrow says:

The Galvanized steel pipes, in my experience, are very greasy, and grease does not mix with expensive camera equipment, what did you do to take the grease off?

Nov 15, 2011. 8:54 PM

Mr. Noack says:

I used break cleaner, and then painted the pipes.

Sep 20, 2011. 8:06 PMprojectbronco says:

Thanks for the awesome Instructable! I changed a few things (24" long bottom, grips, etc.) and also used copper.

Mar 19, 2010. 10:16 AM

kerri2357 says:

Great tutorial, you make this look so simple.

Jan 1, 2010. 3:20 PM

botronics says:

Usually (I believe) the best place to hold the mount is at the center of balance along the pipe. With a camera like you show, this would be just below the tee. I have a Zi8 that only weighs 4 ounces. This will shift the COG down further. have you tried this rig with light weight cams? Is there a sweet spot in holding the rig?

Feb 2, 2010. 2:02 PMpacowarabi says:

I've found that with lightweight cameras, you can build something similar with PVC. Check out the links on this Instructable to see some different PVC equipment designed with small cameras like yours in mind.

Sep 10, 2009. 12:03 PMjackierulesall says:

Nice work! This tutorial is pretty good, too... and pretty damn entertaining! http://bit.ly/3FpaxM

Jul 29, 2009. 2:17 PMwibrle says:

Its funny how $30 can make amateur videos look professional. Cool tutorial :)

Aug 6, 2009. 9:53 PMChappyShowcase (author) says:

Yeah....makes a big difference

Jul 29, 2009. 1:33 PM

greeenpro says:

This video simplifies everything. I've been thinking about rigging something up like this. Now I'm just going to use this tutorial. Thanks for uploading.

Aug 6, 2009. 9:53 PMChappyShowcase (author) says:

Sounds good...post a video after you use it

Jul 28, 2009. 10:12 PMgagfilms says:

Fantastic tutorial...this will come in handy!

Aug 6, 2009. 9:53 PMChappyShowcase (author) says:

Great Dane

Jul 28, 2009. 9:54 PMsorinescu says:

awesome idea, great result.

Aug 6, 2009. 9:53 PMChappyShowcase (author) says:

thanks

Jul 28, 2009. 9:16 PMNextraker says:

talk about instructional... Nice, Cheap and Easy!

Aug 6, 2009. 9:52 PMChappyShowcase (author) says:

Guerilla style

Jul 28, 2009. 7:08 PM

Frivolous Engineering says:

Well done! I'm going to try this.

Aug 6, 2009. 9:52 PMChappyShowcase (author) says:

let me know how it goes

Jul 28, 2009. 9:11 AM

The Ideanator says:

http://hackaday.com/2009/07/15/gimbal-camera-stabilizer/
its roughly the same idea. good work there, more heavyduty then if made with pvc

Jul 28, 2009. 5:45 PMChappyShowcase (author) says:

No doubt. It is a very sturdy design and works pretty well compared to PVC which is too flimsy.

Jul 28, 2009. 4:53 PMOroka says:

http://steadycam.org/
exactly the same idea, part for part.

Jul 28, 2009. 5:44 PMChappyShowcase (author) says:

Just to put things straight. I learned about this design nearly 10 years ago and was not even aware that steadycam.org has something similiar. The design is very ubiquitous and I'm not suprised you saw it somewhere else. I'm also sure that there is no patent holder on the design because all the parts are from the hardware store. Thanks for the comment.