DanMerc Posted February 3, 2009 Share Posted February 3, 2009 Hi all, I hope you're sitting down for this one... I got phoned by my old high school to come and help them set up the new portable lighting system. One of the problems is they do not know how to attach the dimmer pack to the lighting stand. The dimmer pack is as illustrated: http://images7.thomann.de/pics/prod/171187.jpg My first question was, wheres the box and the brackets/fixings that came with it? Apparently, there wasn't any... so that left me stumped. At risk of feeling like a loser for not thinking outside of the box (no pun intended), how do you attach it to the lighting stand? :) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smalljoshua Posted February 3, 2009 Share Posted February 3, 2009 Put a hook clamp onto it and hang it over the bar along with the lights? Phone the company who sold you the new system and ask them? Josh Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
david.elsbury Posted February 3, 2009 Share Posted February 3, 2009 Use a couple of safety bonds to hang it over the bar at the top? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
c0astman Posted February 3, 2009 Share Posted February 3, 2009 Cable ties? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DanMerc Posted February 3, 2009 Author Share Posted February 3, 2009 Don't forget, it is a school and they're high up on the whole Health & Safety thing, so it has to be done properly... There will be primary school children sat at an arm's length from it... I did manage to hang it up with very thin safety bond, but it wasn't deemed safe enough. Phone the company who sold you the new system and ask them? I have told the teacher to, she is going to try to find the catalogue she bought them from... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
niclights Posted February 3, 2009 Share Posted February 3, 2009 What's wrong with fitting a couple of hook clamps as originally suggested? If the existing holes aren't large enough for bolts either drill them out or attach a secondary plate using these and fix clamps to that. Attach clamps with nylock nuts. Make use of any remaining hole (or drill a third) to attach a safety bond. Significantly safer than the stand it will be hanging from! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paul Joines Posted February 3, 2009 Share Posted February 3, 2009 definately hook clamps and chains if poss, but 2 cable ties solid as a rock! ps I've worked in FE college for 8 years so I understand about worrying about H+S - ask school for risk assessment to help protect yourself.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
david.elsbury Posted February 3, 2009 Share Posted February 3, 2009 The problem with nylon cable ties is that they will fail when exposed to heat. Now, wether that heat comes from the lanterns, or a fire... it'll fall eventually. Thus the use of cable ties is probably even more likely to fail a RA than the "thin safety bond" mentioned above. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
musht Posted February 3, 2009 Share Posted February 3, 2009 Unscrew the backplate and flip it round, there is nothing mounted to it , presume they`re shipped that way for space economy. A concurrent post has been automatically merged from this point on. Cable ties? This ain`t Maplin`s ;-) (Of course that was before Mplains decided to actually use the hook clamps they sell anyway) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sleah Posted February 4, 2009 Share Posted February 4, 2009 That one is intended to be slid along a Tee bar. Obviously you would need to put it on before the lanterns :P They are only really intended for disco/rock'n'roll systems, hence the IEC sockets :D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hounsome Posted February 4, 2009 Share Posted February 4, 2009 CABLE TIES SHOULD NEVER BE USED TO HOLD GEAR UP. IF THIS WAS TO HAPPEN ON A GIG I WAS IN CAHARGE OF I WOULD BE TAKING THE PERSON DOING IT TO ONE SIDE AND TELLING HIM SO. USE HOOK CLAMPS AND SAFTY STEELS. Colin :D :P end of rant Moderation: Quality Control: Although your point is entirely valid, many people will ignore what you say because you've chosen to type with your caps lock on. I imagine you did this because you thought it added emphasis but the reality it that it just offends and annoys many people. Posting this way is discouraged in the Blue Room. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
c0astman Posted February 4, 2009 Share Posted February 4, 2009 CABLE TIES SHOULD NEVER BE USED TO HOLD GEAR UP. IF THIS WAS TO HAPPEN ON A GIG I WAS IN CAHARGE OF I WOULD BE TAKING THE PERSON DOING IT TO ONE SIDE AND TELLING HIM SO. USE HOOK CLAMPS AND SAFTY STEELS. Colin :D :P end of rant Fair point which I accept. Just thought, why do they have to be at the top of the stand? Could they go on the floor and connect IEC extension leads to the fixtures. It might look better and it might improve the RA. (You could use the cable ties to secure the cables to the stand). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
norty303 Posted February 4, 2009 Share Posted February 4, 2009 Those units have pre-drilled holes on the top of the correct size to accept a regular 50mm hook clamp, and leave enough holes to secure a safety bond. They don't come with a mounting bracket (hook clamp) as standard in the same way that every other piece of lighting equipment I've ever bought hasn't come with a hook clamp - because you may wish to use something else like a trigger clamp or soft cheese...... Personally I'd use Blu-tak and be done with it.... :P Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ianknight Posted February 4, 2009 Share Posted February 4, 2009 Yeah - use a Hook clamp for round tube Tee bars - the centre hole is drilled to take an M10 from memory - or use a spare way on a flat tee bar. Check the fuses too before you put them into use, we have encountered some of these that leave the factory with Glass not ceramic fuses and the glass fuses don't blow quickly enough when a lamp fails. It would also be worth checking that all the channels are set to Dim - sometimes odd channels come set for Non-Dim. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RumbleO Posted February 4, 2009 Share Posted February 4, 2009 <snip>The dimmer pack is as illustrated: http://images7.thomann.de/pics/prod/171187.jpg At risk of feeling like a loser for not thinking outside of the box (no pun intended), how do you attach it to the lighting stand? :D Hi, Undo the back plate (4 screws) and re-attach it reversed (so that the box at the top sticks out the back,) you can hang it over the bar and insert an M10 bolt down through the back-plate-hook and the bar, Alternatively, attach a hook (G-clamp) as suggested here, or...slide the dimmer along the bar to where there's a horizontal hole and attach with an M10 bolt and nut through the back plate. It is a bit fiddly inserting the bolt. (Correction, it was fiddly holding washers between the backplate and the bar inside it when inserting the bolt. :P ) OwenEdit: when I remembered what was fiddly. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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