Cloths

[magictech]

Every day we have had off this panto we have been asked to pull all cloths half way onto the stage to let them "rest" <_<

 

Is it just me that thinks this is rubbish and does it go against any fire regulations?

 

Many Thanks

[landy]

This is a new one one me, Let them hang after they have been delivered I have heard of. As for fire regs, they should be compliant before they enter that particular venue and they aren't blocking any exits so I don't se there is an angle there.

[TeeJay]

The only thing I can think of is that it helps stop the creasing that can happen to some painted cloths if they are kept tight together for prolonged periods of time.

 

But this is something I would expect to happen with a cloth that was stored folded, not one that is hanging. It would not say much of the quality of the cloths to worry about them when in normal usage.

 

Any other opinions out there, or are the pre-New Year hangovers slowing us down? <_<

[andy_s]

this is also new to me - and I can't really see what good it would do. If you overhaul the bar (assuming you are in a counterweight house), some of the load will be supported by the stage floor, not the counterweight bar, and the system will then be out of balance - cradle heavy. This is not a particularly good thing to be, although with relatively lightweight cloths, it's probably not too disastrous:- the brake should allow for a certain percentage of slippage, as it's pretty difficult to get a perfectly balanced system, as counterweights tend to come in quite big chunks.

 

However, I have "floated" cloths and drapes (i.e. left them hanging with the bottom edge clear of the stage floor, to allow the cloth to stretch creases out using its own weight.

 

maybe it's different in a hemp house? although I've never come across this there either.

[gareth]

Every day we have had off this panto we have been asked to pull all cloths half way onto the stage to let them "rest" :huh:

Sounds like a load of b*ll*cks to me ...

 

it's pretty difficult to get a perfectly balanced system, as counterweights tend to come in quite big chunks

Even if you could precisely match the weight of the flown piece to the weight in the cradle, the system would only be exactly in balance at one point over the course of its entire travel - when the bar is fully gridded, the weight of a fairly large proportion of the steels is on the cradle side of the header pulley, but when the bar is in, that weight goes onto the bar side of the grid pulleys, so you've always got the shifting weight of the steel ropes to contend with. If you consider a typical counterweight bar hung on four lines in a 20m grid, this means the weight of 80m of steel wire rope shifting from one side of the system to the other - quite a considerable factor.

[TeeJay]

Before y'all get to fixated on the idea of counterweight balancing, the cloths in question are in a winch house.

 

Think that we are all in agreement that this particular idea was told to the person in question right before being asked for the tartan paint :huh:

[richard]

Just a question, but by 'pull them all halfway on to the stage' do you actually mean that they are on a tab track (which you might - saying they are whinched) Otherwise I don't know quite what you mean.

 

If they are on a track then I can see the point as a painted cloth wouldn't much like being kept bundled tight in the wings for long periods.