Spigots and adapters for Decca Tree and Boom

[klaukholm]

I am trying to find a better solution for the connection between a decca tree and a boom.

The Decca has female 5/8 thread and the booms typically take a spigot/light stud.
Booms used are often junior avenger or manfrotto d600

Currently I use a series of adapters woth too many connections causing the tree to twist too easily.


I would like to find something like a 5/8 spigot to 5/8 female mic thread.
ideally it would be bent at a permanent 90 degree angle.

Any liks to good solutions would be very helpful.

[bishopthomas]

Check out MicSupply.com. They have an adapter for this very thing.

[klaukholm]

Thanks for the response

Were you thinking of the Stand fitting w/ 3/8>5/8 adapter?
I have thought about that one, it may do the trick, but I wish it would be female.
I may get one and glue a female coupler to it to avoid torque problems.

The swivel umbrella mount is what I have and it has way to many parts that give a little bit in some direction or another.

Keep the good suggestions coming!

[t_chance]

Are you looking for The "5/8 spigot" to be male, or female. (with a screw to tighten)

[klaukholm]

it would be nice if the spigot is a female receptor.

this one would be perfect it it termintated in a femail 5/8 thread

Avenger | Junior Drop Down Pin | E710 | B&H Photo Video

[fifthcircle]

Hate to say it, but most of my cool adapter pieces have been custom made in metal shops. If you have a good person, it isn't that expensive usually to get exactly what you need.

--Ben

[klaukholm]

Thanks ben,
don't know any here.
I did know a guy back in norway eons ago.
Meanwhile I have two functioning, but not optimal options.
I may well drop you a line asking for the name of your guy.

[fifthcircle]

The guy that made some of the early stuff I got was a friend of a friend and I didn't buy it directly. The later stuff I've done has been with assistance of my father in his small metal shop.

That being said, I can get you the contact info for a great metal machinist here in LA that has done some of the most beautiful metalwork I've ever seen. He's a friend of a friend of mine (who works in the film industry as a production mixer). Don't know what his rates are, though...

--Ben

[Remoteness]

Originally Posted by fifthcircle

Hate to say it, but most of my cool adapter pieces have been custom made in metal shops. If you have a good person, it isn't that expensive usually to get exactly what you need.

--Ben

You're so right.

Believe it or not, your local machine shop can fabricate your custom parts for a lot less than retail, especially when you buy (at least 10 or so) in bulk.

You could buy multiples for what one retail item would cost.

[klaukholm]

I will look for a local metal guy, but with swedish labour costs it may be cheaper to have it machined in the US by someone who knows what I am talking about.

[LX3]

In a pinch, I've found it very effective to join two or more adapters together fairly permanently with a liberal amount of threadlock, so nothing can come unscrewed.

I'm not totally understanding what you need to do, but Manfrotto do make a small adaptor with a female spigot socket on one end (with locking screw) and a 3/8" male thread on the other. In fact, there it is near the bottom of that micsupply.com page.

One of those, a 3/8 to 5/8 adaptor and an Atlas 5/8 threaded coupler (plus some threadlock) and you're there. Spigot socket one end, female 5/8 thread socket the other. No 90 degree bend though. For that I find the manfrotto monopod tilt-top very effective (3/8" in, 3/8" out) and of course, the angle is adjustable.

I love photo gear. Often better constructed than similar audio brackets. I have a case full of Manfrotto bits and pieces.

[klaukholm]

Paul, what you are suggesting is what I am doing right now.
It works, but it is not elegant and not as torque resistant as I would like.

I am simply looking for a single contiguous piece to do what the series of adapters are achieving right now.

[LX3]

Is it that your adapter combination comes unscrewed due to the torque on it? I discovered there are a number of grades of threadlock, some designed to be disassembled fairly easy, others that create a more permanent bond. I find the permanent ones hold hard enough to save things usually.

But if it's the weight and leverage of the tree that causes the boom itself to twist, then wouldn't you have a bit of a problem however solid the adapter is?

Could you add a vertical extension so that you're hanging the tree from the boom rather than supporting it from underneath? (Although maybe I'm not visualising what you're doing properly)... when I run into issues like this I try to work in such a way that the torque will tend to keep the system in place rather than pull it out of position. You know, like booms with counterweights, where even if you totally loosen the pivot it still balances... then all you need is enough friction to stop it moving.

It often requires me to get these things wrong before I figure it out though

[klaukholm]

everything is hanging off a boom. Usually a manfrotto d650 junior boom or the
d600.

I guess threadlock could do the trick.
that will leave only the threads at the connection to the aea tree and the spigot to dead hang connection as this needs to be taken apart after every session.

I am surprised the aea tree does not have an SMP slider option that can receive a spigot directly rather than using their adapter.

[klaukholm]

Originally Posted by LX3

You know, like booms with counterweights, where even if you totally loosen the pivot it still balances... then all you need is enough friction to stop it moving.

It often requires me to get these things wrong before I figure it out though

Occationally moving a big stand like that can still throw off a balanced tree by an inch in some direction.

[matthewd]

There is another solution which is the rather smart DPA D3 / S5 tree. I hate to boast but I got one, mainly because I was in the market for a large number of 4006s anyhow and the S5 kit isn't much of a premium over 5 x 4006s alone and they come in really nice cases and accessories. I have found it great in use all over the place - it can also be slung.

Matt Dilley
:: complete take ::

Originally Posted by klaukholm

I am trying to find a better solution for the connection between a decca tree and a boom.

The Decca has female 5/8 thread and the booms typically take a spigot/light stud.
Booms used are often junior avenger or manfrotto d600

Currently I use a series of adapters woth too many connections causing the tree to twist too easily.


I would like to find something like a 5/8 spigot to 5/8 female mic thread.
ideally it would be bent at a permanent 90 degree angle.

Any liks to good solutions would be very helpful.

[t_chance]

would this work?
6mm or 8mm screw on fat end and 5/8-27 female on the skinny end.

[LX3]

Hey Kjetil

I'm forgetting, something else you might want to look at is the Manfrotto umbrella adaptor. Maybe you know it... it's basically a 1-inch diameter cast-steel tubular bracket with a joint in the middle (so you can bend it to whatever angle and clamp it in position) and sockets for lighting spigots in either end.

One end will go straight on your boom.

Then put a 3/8" female thread spigot in the other end (I think the umbrella bracket comes with one of these), and threadlock a 3/8 male to 5/8" female adaptor to it. (eliminating the Atlas 5/8" coupler which makes it simpler).

In fact... if instead you threadlock the parts to the slider that you're hanging the tree from, giving the slider a permanently-attached lighting spigot connection, I expect that would be even more rigid - the spigot can't unscrew in the umbrella adaptor the way a threaded part can.

Confusing perhaps... I've got all those bits kicking around in a couple of cases (not with me unfortunately), so when I get a chance I'll put it together and take a photo.

I think I see now why you need 5/8" female... Do AEA not make a slider with a female 5/8 or 3/8" socket? Or do they want you to use their floater contraption to hang their tree from?

[klaukholm]

Originally Posted by LX3

Hey Kjetil

I'm forgetting, something else you might want to look at is the Manfrotto umbrella adaptor.

That is one of the two solutions I currently own.
The nice thing about it is it will work with anything.

Originally Posted by LX3

I think I see now why you need 5/8" female... Do AEA not make a slider with a female 5/8 or 3/8" socket? Or do they want you to use their floater contraption to hang their tree from?

the AEA is male and I now use a female coupler with a 5/5 to 3/8 adapter

[LX3]

Originally Posted by klaukholm

the AEA is male and I now use a female coupler with a 5/5 to 3/8 adapter

As I suspected, you're way ahead of me :-)

That's why I was suggesting you get hold of the Manfrotto spigot that has a female threaded 3/8 thread in it. Then put a 5/8 female to 3/8 male adapter into the spigot and you've eliminated one adaptor. Plus those 5/8 to 3/8 adaptors are usually very solid chunks of metal, unlike the 5/8" couplers.