I've been looking for not only a rail mount system for my DSLR but a shoulder mount. I found this rig and fell in love with it! Not only is the price awesome but this rig is sturdy and amazing! The awesome universal rail system lets you mount a ton of my gear on there like the follow focus and matte box. The rails are long to so you can adjust it as much as you can. The best part is under the shoulder mount there is a place to put a tri pod shoe. It fits the one for my 501 perfectly! I can go from tri pod to running around in just seconds! Great deal!
The unit seems to be "inspired" by the Red Rock Micro, which is a much more expensive rig. That is a very good thing. The rails, shoulder pad, and handles are excellent. The shoulder pad has a tripod mount at the front (like the Red Rock) and is sturdy and comfortable. The front handles are mounted on fixed asymmetrical rods and they're comfy and attractive. The entire unit is very solid feeling, which is what you want in a rig. The 15mm rails themselves feel smooth, strong, and uniform. I also think the main rails are the perfect length for this type of rig, long enough for lots of customization options.
My major gripe with the unit is with the camera mount. I like that the mount sits low to the rails, since it lets me use a battery grip on my DSLR and still mount a follow focus. Like the rest of the kit, it seems nice and sturdy. However, the mount attaches using an allen wrench and does not hold the camera well at all. It's just absurdly inconvenient. I'm used to having to pull out a quarter to tighten a screw, but needing to keep track of an allen wrench during a shoot is too much. To top it off, even after tightening the screw as much as I dared, I could not get the mount to hold my camera tightly. I think the rubber pads on the mount may actually do more harm than good my camera slides around on them easily.
If you mount a quick release or other plate to the camera mount, you should be able to avoid this problem. I'm replacing the mount entirely, with the low-profile "Barely Mount" from Hondo Garage. I will probably use the original camera mount either with a digital recorder or to rig up a counterweight.
As an aside, I also think the orange wingnuts are rather ugly. The front handles are actually anodized red under the foam, which clashes quite horribly with the orange (it's not visible in the photos, but definitely is on the unit itself). I like that they're metal and chunky, but the color just looks a bit cheap. I may replace them with black ones.
Also, Opteka made a counterweight specifically for this unit (the CBW-2), but it seems to be out of production and is very difficult to find online. I don't mind rigging up my own counterweight system, but keep it in mind.
Despite my complaints, I do highly recommend this rig. A well-made dual rail system with good handles and an excellent shoulder pad usually goes for much more. With a different camera mount, this would be a five star rating from me for sure.
UPDATE: I've done a bit of customization to the rig and am very pleased with the results. I did replace the camera mount with the "Barely Mount" by Hondo Garage (look them up, they're great). This allows me to use the original mount to hold my digital recorder behind the camera. Since the Hondo mount has holes for tripod mounting on the bottom (unlike the original), I am also able to flip the shoulder pad around. I find this 1) more comfortable and 2) an extremely convenient way to mount a counterweight, since the shoulder support is drilled with 1/4" and 3/8" holes on the bottom. I was unable to replace the wingnuts, since they are not the M5 wingnuts usually used on stabilizing rigs. (Possibly M7? Not sure.) I spray painted them black instead and I think the result is much sleeker looking than the orange.
I still think this is a 4/5 star product and I still recommend it highly. For the price, you are getting a very nice set of high-quality components. If you are willing to do a little customizing particularly with the camera mount I think this rig will serve you very well....this is a useful and customisable inline shoulder support that can be used for DSLR as well as HDV cameras... Its design is highly remiscent of a familiar blue accent themed line of gear at a FRACTION of the cost...an excellent and proper price for all that you get...let's face it, the price of the established companies' DSLR rod gear is masochistically overpriced and a complete wallet-rape... Reps from the companies go on about how machining processes and customisation of individual parts are costly, but this is proof that it is not...
This is good, solid [slightly weighty (which is good for stabilising a superlight DSLR)], infinitely adjustable, and affordable... with the multitude of affordable add ons out there, this is a GREAT foundation from which to build up.
I have shot a couple of conventions, several walk n talk segments, a wedding, and assisted with 3 short films with this device...
if you can find it...GET IT!
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