Stage curtains - economical motorised system

[sunray]

I've never understood why there seems to be some trepidation when it comes to roping track.

 

Certainly no trepidation here - I've re-roped track before, although it's a fiddly job (and it took me a while to pluck up the courage!).

I think you may have hit the nail on the head there, it's probably a lot easier than people expect.

 

 

However, the physical removal of existing track, and the installation of new track is a different matter (especially for \a bunch of 60- and 70-year olds :)).

64 y/o here, 2 years ago I was involved at that same school to strip out for re-use the lighting system prior to demolition. Once everything that was required had been removed, I had the opportunity to remove anything that was left.

 

It took 2 hours without assistance to remove the following and load it into my car:

Velvet main tabs 4m high x 6m wide each and valance (folding them took longer than derigging),

Similar size felt cyc.

2 sets of track, total of 4 17ft tracks with all fittings, wires, pullies, winders, hanging brackets,

2 borders complete with mounting pipes and brackets,

4 side legs and 6 swivel bars to suit with their fittings,

4 sets of pullies and ropes for back drops,

6 14ft ali scaff tubes and hanging brackets.

 

The following day it was all dropped off at my local church hall.

Several months later while setting up for a play we decided to hang tracks (with cord and weighted pullies) for the cyc and and a traveller just behind the main, and 4 leg swivel bars including cutting them to length. it took myself and a very elderly guy who I guess is in or near his 80's under an hour.

The following week it took 2 hours for his wife and me to shorten the felt cyc and legs and for me to hang them.

So no it is nothing to be scared of but I find it usually gets outsourced.

As for running the steel rope through a ceiling to the back of the hall, there's no ceiling as such - it's a very high vaulted roof, shared by stage and hall.

I understood the operator would come from a door upstage, could the steels (or cord) run through holes in the rear wall and be operated from the back room?

 

 

 

I'm going to put the project on hold for a while and perhaps look at a DIY motorising of the existing (single) track.

I will agree with the other commentators about the complications of motors stalling due to the unreliability of end stops (especially the cams on motors), over the years I have fitted several switches to tracks for working lights (which is a different operational requirement) and struggled to make them successful.

 

 

Thanks for all the comments - they've been very useful.

 

Good luck with it.