Stage Braces

[pmiller056]

Hi

 

After a long break from amateur theatre, I'm now involved with a local community theatre doing scenery making and other stage related work. One of the frustrating ascpects of this theatre is that they have no stage braces at all and even less money to buy any. It is likely for a forthcoming production I'm going to need some to hold up the scenery. I have plenty of steel flatbar, steel rod and suitable wood and I also have access to suitable cutting, bending, drilling and welding equipment. Can someone point me in the direction of a dimensioned drawing of the metalwork used in a stage brace. Alternatively can some kind person post some good photos with a ruler in the background of the ends of a typical stage brace. I've lost touch with relevant people, so I can't even find one to borrow and copy. Sandbags and bricks will do for the weights until sufficient money can be found for the correct items in the (very) long run.

 

Thanks in anticipation,

 

Peter

[Ynot]

Why build, or even buy, if it's not a full time need?

 

Black Light, for example, hire 2m braces at the paltry sum of £2.00 and £1.10 for a weight.

 

(Page 24 of their catalogue)

 

I'm sure there will be Glasgow based suppliers with similar options.

[jonathanhill]

Personally, if I had access to supplies of wood, I would make up French braces from 3" x 1".

 

Made well, these could be kept as stock items. If you were feeling fancy, you could use pin hinges on the braces, each hinge in the same position on all braces, with matching gender hinges on the stock flattage.

[pmiller056]

Hi

 

I appreciate Ynot's sentiment and in a commercial/professional setting there is no way I would consider making stage braces. Note that the cost of delivery and collection would probably treble the cost of the hire of such heavy, low-value goods.

 

Jonathanhill is correct - Stage braces are invaluable as stock items, particularly when you have none to start with, hence my willingness to make some. Unfortunately the woodworking skills of our flat-makers is not precise enough to use pin-hinges, so it will be a sash-cord and cleats job.

 

I have had an off-topic offer of a loan brace to copy, so when I get the job done I'll post a drawing here that others can use.

 

Thanks

 

Peter

[TeeJay]

Hi,

 

if you get chance, it may be worth making up a couple in different sizes.

 

We've got a couple of braces that are made as one would expect but wouldn't exceed a metre - very handy for those times when you have long, thin but not especially tall flattage (something like a terrace wall or hedge). All but useless the rest of time but invaluable if you use scenery that's shorter than the case.

 

I know we had some made up a few years backbut can't find any plans in our files so a drawing would be most appreciated, if you wouldn't mind

 

Cheers

[gyro_gearloose]

Plans for a brace? Its just a right-angle triangle made out of wood, with plates of ply/mdf/hardboard to strengthen the joints. Use the 3:4:5 triangle principle to keep everything square. Its way more accurate than trying to square everything with a tiny tri-square.

[Andrew C]

I thought we were talking about these?

 

Which would not be easy to make as you need a casting for the slidy lock bit. Hmmm... Suppose it could be made from a bit of box section steel with a nut welded on...

[pmiller056]

Hi

 

TeeJay - your comments are noted, I was going to do that anyway.

 

Gyro - Yes we have been doing that, but this method generally only useful with a standing set that is unchanged during the run of a show. For a forthcoming show we need to be able to substantially alter the set during the interval.

 

Andrew C is correct - that's exactly where I'm going. The interior dimensions of standard sizes of box-section steel are not helpful when trying to get wood to slide in it (Lots of wood has to be sawn/planed off standard timber sizes to get it to fit). The internal finish of some box-section steel can be pretty horrible, so I'm going to use flat-bar bent to shape to make the slidy bits. Once I have the bending machine set up (the hard part) I'll make up some spare metalwork so as time/needs permit I can make up some more braces.

 

Plain steel 6" nails with the heads cut off are just a nice length/diameter to make the 'cows horns' from.......

 

Peter

[alistermorton]

I thought we were talking about these?

 

Yes, that's what I immediately though of, too - the "remote focussing tool".

 

 

 

[gyro_gearloose]

For a forthcoming show we need to be able to substantially alter the set during the interval.

Easily solved. Just attach the brace to the flat with hinges along one edge only. That way you just have to take the weights of the brace and fold it flat against the, erm, flat to move it. That's how we've made our black masking flats.

[the kid]

I recall someone complaining somewhere (here or irl) "why don't people know how to lash flats any more"

 

I know, kinda, and that might be the right answer, learn how to lash flats.

 

* it might not be called lashing flats.

[librarian28]

Easily solved. Just attach the brace to the flat with hinges along one edge only. That way you just have to take the weights of the brace and fold it flat against the, erm, flat to move it. That's how we've made our black masking flats.

In olden times, we used to call triangular, fold-flattable things 'French Braces'. It's probably not allowed these days - political correctness gone mad. A selection of various sized such braces can be kept and easily pin-hinged to future flattage. I'm not really wanting to start a poll, but I feel that they can often be a little safer than extendable braces with less need for 'training' in their use and 2 chaps can safely run a flat into position and open the brace without needing to wait for a third person to get an extendable brace, attach it and add weights.

 

I suppose it could be that extenable braces were only made to be extendable because no-one could agree to put all the screw eyes at the same height - now that would be a good use of a European Directive. Peter could then just chop a load of 1x1 into, say, 1 metre and 2 metre lengths (if different flats required different sizes) without the need to make the fiddly thumbscrew bits.

[DanSteely]

Not strictly stage braces but these chaps are very handy for building, during fit-ups as well as general bracing needs on stage..

 

http://www.screwfix.com/p/forge-steel-extension-support-rod-pack-of-2/78272#

 

I purchased ours from SF when they were cheaper.. you might find the same thing cheaper elsewhere.