Boom arm?

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vaizki

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I need a boom arm, something that will hold a monolight + softbox overhead. It doesn't need to be ultra portable but has to collapse down for easy storage.

Been looking at Manfrotto 420 CSU (steel version),

http://www.manfrotto.com/combi-boom-stand-hd

but it's a bit expensive for the load capacity but the versatility sounds good.. but then again I don't want a flimsy one as I'm pretty sure it'll be closer to 3kg hanging on the end there. Manfrotto pro booms on the other hand are huge and eyewateringly expensive.

Lencarta doesn't deliver outside the UK (I'm in Finland) so any other ideas? I don't have very sturdy light stands right now so I can't just get a boom part without also splashing out for a new stand.
 
vaizki said:
I need a boom arm, something that will hold a monolight + softbox overhead. It doesn't need to be ultra portable but has to collapse down for easy storage.

Been looking at Manfrotto 420 CSU (steel version),

http://www.manfrotto.com/combi-boom-stand-hd

but it's a bit expensive for the load capacity but the versatility sounds good.. but then again I don't want a flimsy one as I'm pretty sure it'll be closer to 3kg hanging on the end there. Manfrotto pro booms on the other hand are huge and eyewateringly expensive.

Lencarta doesn't deliver outside the UK (I'm in Finland) so any other ideas? I don't have very sturdy light stands right now so I can't just get a boom part without also splashing out for a new stand.
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That's not right, Lencarta delivers worldwide. Currently, it's free delivery within the UK, £24 within the EU and actual cost outside the EU.

You are right though when you say that you don't want a flimsy one. There are boom arms that fit onto ordinary light stands but TBH I feel that they're a bit of a compromise, and I don't think that it's a good idea to compromise safety by by putting a boom arm onto a stand that has actually been designed for a studio head - the stands that come with boom arms (Lencarta and others) are much heavier duty than the average light stand. They also have a larger section and a larger footprint, and the pro models are also fitted with castors, which is another big help.
 
vaizki said:
I need a boom arm, something that will hold a monolight + softbox overhead. It doesn't need to be ultra portable but has to collapse down for easy storage.

Been looking at Manfrotto 420 CSU (steel version),

http://www.manfrotto.com/combi-boom-stand-hd

but it's a bit expensive for the load capacity but the versatility sounds good.. but then again I don't want a flimsy one as I'm pretty sure it'll be closer to 3kg hanging on the end there. Manfrotto pro booms on the other hand are huge and eyewateringly expensive.

Lencarta doesn't deliver outside the UK (I'm in Finland) so any other ideas? I don't have very sturdy light stands right now so I can't just get a boom part without also splashing out for a new stand.
Click to expand...

Saw this one on amazon and with the price drop looked like great value, unfortunately too slow clicking the button. Hoping they will get more stock ...
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Photxpro-Pr...=UTF8&coliid=IF18C2RUQZ4J4&colid=7BAN8N89S28R
Was down to £40. Most I would have on the end is a flash, trigger and modifier so looked just the ticket.
 
Garry Edwards said:
That's not right, Lencarta delivers worldwide. Currently, it's free delivery within the UK, £24 within the EU and actual cost outside the EU.
Click to expand...


Really?? This is what I saw on the web page:

Please note that because of the size, this boom arm is only suitable for large studios. We can only deliver it to addresses within the UK and we cannot accept returns unless the item is faulty.
Click to expand...

This was the heavyweight boom arm and the pro parallogram one..

So is that £24 per order for delivery if I get a load of stuff? :suspect:
 
vaizki said:
Really?? This is what I saw on the web page:



This was the heavyweight boom arm and the pro parallogram one..

So is that £24 per order for delivery if I get a load of stuff? :suspect:
Click to expand...

Yes, those exceptions apply to just the heaviest and largest items, the 2 pro boom arms and the JumboPara. The Home Studio Boom Arm can be sent abroad, although it's out of stock right now. The charge is per order, so the more you buy the less it costs per item.
 
Ok... well as said, I don't want a flimsy one so would have preferred the heavyweight, didn't even look at the home studio version tbh. I'm sure it's not flimsy but not sure how much weight it could handle at a long extension..

I would probably get a 120cm profold on an elinca speedring to go with it and use a smaller d-lite flash on the end of the boom. Up to what kind of extension could I get the crossbar with that kind of load (about 3kg I think for flash head + softbox total)?
 
The Home Studio Boom Arm is solid and safe. I've used it with a beauty dish on the end of a mono head many times, it's perfectly OK. It's limitation, compared to the pro models, is that it doesn't go as high, although it has more than enough height for a normal home, even with the crossbar straight.

The trick with using boom arms safely is common sense. Just make sure that the counterweight is properly balanced with the head, don't have the thing out of balance, relying on the locking clamp to stop the thing tilting - it should be balanced so that it doesn't tilt BEFORE it's locked.
 
I've happily used my home studio boom arm with a 70x140 softbox and ElitePro head extended about 1.5-2m. As Garry said, the trick is to make sure the thing is balanced by the counterweight.

Solid as a rock.
 
arad85 said:
I've happily used my home studio boom arm with a 70x140 softbox and ElitePro head extended about 1.5-2m. As Garry said, the trick is to make sure the thing is balanced by the counterweight.

Solid as a rock.
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Sorry to thread Hijack saves making a new one :).

Whats the weight of the Elite pro as I keep looking at the £99 Lencarta boom but not sure if it'll support my Gemini Pro as its pretty damn heavy and a BD so maybe 5KGs at a guess.
 
The Lencarta ElitePro 300 weighs 2.57kg ready to use. The 70cm beauty dish weighs 2.31kg without a honeycomb or 4.07kg with a honeycomb

Edit: Probably 2.7kg with the lead, I didn't weigh the lead:)
 
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LOL.. I didn't take off the protective cover and I rounded up from 2.66kg.... I didn't weigh the lead either ;)
 
Garry Edwards said:
The Lencarta ElitePro 300 weighs 2.57kg ready to use. The 70cm beauty dish weighs 2.31kg without a honeycomb or 4.07kg with a honeycomb

Edit: Probably 2.7kg with the lead, I didn't weigh the lead:)
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So would the £99 boom arm support my Pro500 weighing 3.5kgs + the 70cm 2.31kg so thats 5.7kgs total would it be ok do you think I'm not talking full extension only wanting to reach maybe 2' out from the side of the light stand.
 
kiteninja said:
So would the £99 boom arm support my Pro500 weighing 3.5kgs + the 70cm 2.31kg so thats 5.7kgs total would it be ok do you think I'm not talking full extension only wanting to reach maybe 2' out from the side of the light stand.
Click to expand...

Yes, I'm sure it will be fine. It's a solidly made bit of kit.
 
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