Greg writes in and shares this newly listed item [thanks Greg]. It's yet another three axis brushless motor gimbal camera stabilizer. I know there's been a few comments about other systems online, and some I think are already up and running. I myself haven't had the time to spend on these types of systems, but the specs on this product state that the gimbal has already been micro adjusted, the system is ready-to-run, supports decent sized cameras like the 5D / D800, and comes complete with the brushless gimbal controllers (BGC) for just under $700 bucks.
3 Axis Brushless Gimbal Camera Stabilizer
Johnny
Just saw that he dropped the price down to $588 did anyone ever gotten one?
J.P. van Popta
@Apexwin: can you give the source where you bought your Tiger 8108?? Your 178USD looks almost the same as that DYS BGM8108-90T version....
J.P. van Popta
Btw, does anybody know what the differences are in 8108 motors??
I find the 'Tiger' version, there is a RC version (which is also still quit expensive - 300USD) and there is a cheaper version, DYS?? https://www.goodluckbuy.com/dys-brushless-gimbal-motor-bgm8108-90t-for-dslr-red-epic-camera-fpv-aerial-photography.html
I find it weird that there such a fluctuation between prices, while almost all are coming from China anyway...
besides, has anybody a version with the 'cheaper' and weaker motors (the 51xx versions) for a 5DmkIII and a rather heavy lens (like a 24-70)??
J.P. van Popta
Weird that producers mention the weight limit dependent of the camera.... as if the lens is no issue... Or do they think we all use light 50mm lenses?
ow, btw the example on Ebay of HiFly, beware that it has 2 motors to tilt the camera... which, as I understood the fori statements correctly is impossible to do, since the controller cannot control 2 motors for the same movement exactly at the same time...
Weirdly,... It all looks a bit like you could build such yourself instead of paying somebody the price of a camera for some tubing and stuff.... If you look at the demo video of AlexMos... he has a demo version simply made out of alu tubing hehe....
Btw, where can I buy those Tiger 8108 motors?? I only knew of the iFlight ones....
KEITH BROWN
I just purchased this unit and it is definitely complicated. I'm not sure how to power the motors. The stabilization is not working. The handles came looking used. There are wires tangled up all over the unit and I'm still struggling on how to get my refund. I sure wish this thing worked like the MOVI or the new Varizoom gimbal. To be fair, i'm new to this technology and I might just not know what i'm doing.
peter
to be fair. I do think, the article is not correct as it states:
"supports decent sized cameras like the 5D / D800"
Nope not exactly, on ebay it says:
Three-axis DSLR Handle Brushless Gimbal Camera Mount Set w/5210 Motor&BGC Controller for 5D2 5D3 D800 Aerial Photography
so it only promise the controller will fit the needs for a 5d-setup not the whole thing.
Gyoz
Jamison any news about your CAME 6000?
Jamison
I have a CAME 6000 showing up any day now. According to the makers, it has a calibration system built in. I not 100% clear how it works, but the basic videos they sent me certainly look interesting. What appealed to me was the fact that you could change cameras, lenes, etc and then calibrate without the need for a computer. I will certainly post some video when I get it.
Tatsuya
@Apextwin ,
Another thing is do you have better recommendation for me to buy one but in afforadable $800 below? My budget is limited..... Thank you
Tatsuya
@Apextwin I would like to know how is your setup with follow focus because I'm interesting to learn more and I'm kinda interesting to get at least similar like yours. Mine setup is quite heavy for my 24mm with D7000 roughly 3.5kg. I'm still new for this product instead to buy a vest arm. Hear from you soon. Thank you
Joe B
@Apextwin,
Thank you so much. I was thinking about just buying the one in post for a 60D anyways and the Tokina 11-16 lens but I think it might be best if I contact the buyer and maybe get more details and find out if in fact that they are 5210 motors (Which I doubt). Nothing less, I am hoping to use this instead of our Steadicam Flyer that my wife fly's for my company. She is certified and is proud of it but after showing her the Besteady video, she was ready to trade her Steadicam Flyer in a heartbeat.
I am a noob at these motors and buying this type of equipment but I can see how much knowledge you have, If I can ask a favor and maybe correspond with you on helping me pick a Rig of this type for my company, that would be awesome.
My email is [email protected]
That is if you don't mind. Thank you again and Thanks Emm for all you do for us here.
Apextwin
@ pepeprod
I have had really good experiences with the Tiger 8108 motors. Great quality, and lower price than the comparable iFlight 8017 ($170 vs. $250-ish). The only problem is that it's larger than the motors most of the sub-$1000 rigs are built for. So you either have to go with something like a $1500+ rig on eBay, or jerry-rig something like I did.
The 5208 motors aren't bad, but I'm not confident they'd be able to handle a BMCC, especially if you have a heavy lens.
Apextwin
@Joe - about upgrading the motors yourself... I'm not sure you'd be able to do it with the rig in this post. I bought the exact frame on eBay and initially used 5208 motors - which weren't strong enough for my GH3 + Nokton lens.
I then went with the Tiger 8108 motors, which run about $180 each (vs. around $60 for a 5208 T180). They're strong enough to handle my setup at minimal power settings.
The only problem is that the motors are substantially larger than the 5208s - which this rig is built for.
Basically, the pitch mount (right next to the camera) works fine. The roll mount at the back can be made to work - though you have to displace the mount a bit in order to get the screw-holes to fit the motor (though it won't affect the rig's operation).
The tricky part is the yaw mount above the camera, right underneath the top handle (which unfortunately is also the axis that needs the most powerful motor, since it has to handle the entire load of the gimbal). The original mounting plate is too small, and there's absolutely no way to fit the larger motor.
I just got lucky because my rig was missing some screws for the roll mount, and the seller sent me the replacement with an additional mounting plate that I then used to replace the yaw plate.
If you look around on eBay, though, there are some pretty decent rigs that do have the 8108 motors and allegedly an Alexmos control board (though that sometimes means they just applied the Alexmos operating system to a generic board, which won't take firmware upgrades when new functionality becomes available).
Here's an example:
https://www.ebay.com/itm/Hifly-Hand-3-Axis-Red-SCARLET-EPIC-Gimbal-Brushless-Stabilization-Power-Alexmos-/251354862025
The only downside is that this kind of rig runs you about $1700, and you apparently still have to solder connectors on the control board. Not a big deal, but inconvenient if you don't have the necessary equipment.
Overall, it seems like most of these relatively bargain-priced rigs (as compared to something like a Movi) cut various corners in order to bring the price down. And oftentimes they word their specs in ways that you won't realize what those corners are until you actually have the rig.
Apextwin
The "5210" might be a typo. It's not listed on the manufacturer's site, and the pictures of the rig show a 5208 motor.
The Maximus site advertises their rig as RED capable, but if you read through their description, they also say that an upgrade to 4114 motors will be needed for bigger cameras (i.e. RED).
Joe B
Here is one with the 5208 motors but says it will carry even the Red Cameras.
https://www.maximus-racing.com/fr/maxicopters/muvistar_brushless_gimbal.html
I am a noob and a little confused here, So the 5210 is a non existing motor?
pepeprod
@apextwin
Could you tell me which motor should I buy to build a Brushless Gimbal for a Blackmagic Cinema Camera (more than 2kg) ?
Thank you !
Joe B
@apextwin
You seem to really know a lot on the motors. Are you saying that the ebay item above that states that they are using a 5210 motor that probably does not exist? Can I replace the motors if the motor can not properly power that rig? I am really thinking of buying the rig and just selling my Steadicam Flyer since these look like the new generation stabilizers. But I would like some guidance before doing that.
Emm
Post author@Patrick - There is also cheaper versions, but if you read carefully the cheaper ones don't come with the controllers. That's not a ready-to-run system.
Patrick
Here, it seems to be the same from goodluckbuy but cheaper
https://www.goodluckbuy.com/three-axis-dslr-handle-brushless-gimbal-camera-mount-set-w-5208-motor-for-5d2-5d3-d800-aerial-photography.html
lolicht
I do not believe in the "already adjusted" assumption, I know that those system are very sensitive and you have to fine tune it by yourself, depending on your dslr and lens configuration ... The way you use it, walking, running, concrete or off-track etc ... So it's important to know witch controller the maker use and the usb port accessibility , because you'll have to deal with a graphic interface to fine tune the PID ... That's why the CAME that was featured here is not a good choice on my point of view ...
Apextwin
Assuming the motor is indeed a custom-wound 5208 motor, I ran the numbers on what it would cost to build this rig yourself:
Frame = $250
iFlight 5208 180T Motors (haven't seen 200T anywhere yet) = 3 x $50
Generic 3- Axis Controller = $60
So if you wanted to, you could probably build a similar rig yourself for under $400 with readily available parts.
Apextwin
Huh... I actually tried to check out the iFlight 5210 motor - and couldn't find it on the manufacturer's website ( https://www.iflight-rc.com/product/iPower-Brushless-Motor.html )
Then I looked at the eBay auction, and the pictures actually show an iFlight 5208 150T motor on the rig - the same one that I tried, and which was definitely underpowered for my GH3 + lens.
The only other option would be that they have a typo in their description and are really using a 5208 motor that has been re-wound to 200T (which means they have taken the original wires out, which turned 150 times around each pole, and done their own wiring with 200 turns. This increases resistance and thereby adds torque).
Apextwin
It's too bad there are no actual weight limits listed for the rig. I have the same frame (cost $250 on eBay), but custom-build the rest of the system.
Initially I tried iFlight 5208 motors, which and couldn't quite handle my GH3 (550 grams / 19.4 oz) + Nokton lens (400 grams / 14.5 oz), which weighed in at around 2 lbs.
The 5210 motors on this rig seem to be a bit stronger, having a higher winding count on each pole (T200 vs. T180 on my 5208s), which adds torque. But I'm still not sure if they could comfortably handle something like my setup.
And if you are thinking about adding something like a follow focus, you're probably out of luck.
Also, the iFlight motors tend to have some quality control issues. I heard about 25% of their units have problems with stators rubbing up against the magnets.
What I ended up buying were Tiger 8108 motors, which I'm loving. Great quality, cheaper than the comparable iFlight 8017, and no problem handling my setup. Including follow focus. In fact, they're used on some RED cam rigs.
The problem is... I'm not sure it's possible to mount those motors on this rig. They have a bigger diameter, and so their mounting holes might be too far apart to fit the brackets. On my rig, I had to do some creative engineering to make it happen.
Another thing to consider: You don't know what kind of controller is installed. Sometimes they use generic boards that run hacked Alexmos software, which is fine - until it's time to upgrade the firmware, which you oftentimes can't do. So you'll might be missing out on extra features that will be introduced in the future. A recent one was "follow mode", which is the similar to "majestic mode" on the Freefly Movi system.
Also, there's no LiPo battery and charger included. So that's another $100 you have to add.
And you'll probably want a frame to hold the gimbal, as otherwise you'll have one hell of a time fine-tuning it. But those can be had for about $30, so not that much more money.
On the other hand, this system is cheap. The cost of my rig, which was custom-built with the best commercially available parts (except for the frame itself, which I had to jerry-rig a bit) was:
Frame: $250
Motors: 3 x Tiger 8108 @ $178 = $534
Alexmos 3-Axis Controller = $250
LiFe PO4 battery (safer than LiPo) = $40
LiPo charger = $50
So I spent just under $1200 all-in, vs. around $800 for this rig (adding in the battery and charger).
But again... I'm not sure it could comfortably handle any setup over 1.5 lbs., which you'll get to pretty fast with a decent camera and lens.
Michael G.
The seller sent me a video... https://pan.baidu.com/s/1moyVM?qq-pf-to=pcqq.c2c Won't be purchasing until I see a product review or at least more details of it.
scottrellwi
With that many moving parts, I would be skeptical this early on in production of these products. Seems too good to be true. Someone's got to test one first.
Emm
Post author@bob- I think a more reasonable system to help carry the load would be the EasyRig (seen here). I know the guys on River Monsters use this for their heavy camera setups as well.
Guillaume
Use ebay.com, i can see the item on firefox with english settings. There a lot of info about how to get blocked content on ebay from France.
Owen
No sample videos in the eBay listing? Boo!
If there were some demos available and it looked tidy, I'd grab 2 of them right now!!
bob
Would it make any sense to mate one of these to a steadicam vest and arm? Seems like it would allow you to film all day.
pepeprod
Unfortunately, this item is locked for France... I can't see it ! :/
Mitch
Would love to see a comparison review of all these sytems, to see how they mock up to the Movi.
Paweł Czerski
There's another one just entering the market: https://www.besteady.pro/