So several months ago, after stewing on Patrick's request all summer, there was a 4 am ephiphany followed by 3D CAD drawings within 36 hours and CNC machined parts 48 hours later. The rest of the story is littered with a pile of discarded parts, bearings, designs and many long hours tweaking. What you see is the result of all that craziness. So what is it?
1. At the inexpensive end is a kit that will complement existing Proteus rails systems. In other words, the "trucks" and 100mm spaced rails blocks that convert a Proteus rails system to a 45cm or 60cm slider rig. This same rig will also accept a "Proteus" 100mm bowl as you see in picture 4. Run the trucks flat with provided O-ring "tires" and you've got a super simple table top dolly. This system will come in about around $300.
2. The next step up from that basic kit is just adding our new 100cm (36in) solid carbon rods to the kit. This provides for a super-light kit that breaks down with no tools. It is designed to fit in a backpack and be assembled in seconds. The entire kit weighs in at around 2lbs!
The above two variations are best suited for camera loads under 10lbs. Regardless, every moving part uses actual ball bearings for super-slick movement. It works sideways, upside down and becasue it uses our Proteus links, features a ton of variable mounting setups. For heavier rigs, read on!
3. That same system features interchangeable "tires" to allow running the system on cables. Unbolting the bearring/tire assemblies and replacing them with the cable wheels takes about 5 minutes. Expect a complete mounting system and remote motorized drive system for the cable system. The last three pics show our camera tests with the inverted rig. That rig was about 30lbs.
4. Finally, the crowning jewel of the Pegasus system is the "heavy lifter", referred to by the machinists as the Millenium Falcon
This unit runs on hardened/chromed steel 5/8" rods that will be sold in various lengths..the standard being 1 metre (36 inches). It uses highly specialized (and interchangeable) bearings at four corners and will accept our 100mm bowl, or a flat plate for direct mounting of a tripod head. The bowl allows you to do shots including side facing "escalator" movements and because it uses our Proteus links, can be mounted at crazy angles for virtually any shot. Again, it can run sideways, upside down and everything in between. The complete Pegasus heavy lifter system with 100mm bowl will run about $850!Finally, the entire system uses mounting/support blocks at both ends similar to our universal rails blocks, but 100mm spaced. They are removable in seconds and use new "high torque" toolless fasteners. Each block can accept a 5/8" standard grip spud so you can support one end on tripod, and use a C-stand, 2nd tripod, or whatever else you have on hand to support. In other words, near infinite mounting heights and options.
We're expecting to have the entire system available in 10 days for shipping
is a great addition, do you have more details on how the wires are tensioned.
