Gum….lots of gum.That's gonna take more than duct tape and bailing wire.
Maybe some cable ties tooThat's gonna take more than duct tape and bailing wire.
This frame of mind is still so prevalent in many places. I worked a venue on the house crew where multiple line sets had "rough spots" as the staff called them, followed by "but it's just a little bit. Pull through carefully and you're good." I spent 6 months arguing in favor of a full inspection and then had to walk away when the Parks Department supervisor decided it wasn't necessary. Hello Whittier Center Theater homies! Hope you're all well!
" I worked a venue on the house crew where multiple line sets had "rough spots" as the staff called them, followed by 'but it's just a little bit. Pull through carefully and you're good.' "
WhatRigger, rather than ask someone else to come and inspect, why didn't you just climb up to the grid and watch the head block, loft blocks and lines as one of your crew moved the offending line set through the "rough spots"? Maybe you'd find something you could just fix easily, or get or make a part and then fix easily. Seems like too many people nowadays complain about problems instead of just going and fixing them.
I wish I knew the conditions this block was used in. Was this a grand drape that was always used guillotine style or what??? To saw through a shieve like this requires a LOT of repetitions and a lift line under a VERY heavy load. Under even extreme conditions, a failure like this takes a considerable length of time. I would venture to guess several YEARS! Even with the obvious lack of even a halfway skilled rigger running this line set, it would seem that even a total F#*%*# could feel/hear/sense “something” wrong! THIS IS A PERFECT EXAMPLE of WHY regular, annual Rigging Inspections are an absolute necessity.Here's another one. It's here in my office if any of you want to play with it.
I concur with Tim's stance here, to this extent:If you touch it, you own it. At least until someone else "touches it".
I'll do some audio fixing but I won't tell anyone. Things like repairing the connector to the intercom biscuit on the fly rail so they can hear the SM... Halleluja, it's a miracle! Stuff that makes my show happen, I'll try to fix so it works next month, too.
But counterweight systems? Uh... seems kind of promiscuous; we need some kind of relationship established before putting hands or wrench to the theater's intimate bits. Electrical, hyraulics and automation get the same consideration.
I don’t charge THAT much!!!I concur with Tim's stance here, to this extent:
I'm fine with "go up and look at it in the problem spot", and nowadays, you can even *shoot video without any prep*.
Just don't try to actually fix it; you do *not* have accidental death and dismemberment liability coverage.
Why do you think professional rigging consultants cost so much?
@JonCarter" I worked a venue on the house crew where multiple line sets had "rough spots" as the staff called them, followed by 'but it's just a little bit. Pull through carefully and you're good.' "
WhatRigger, rather than ask someone else to come and inspect, why didn't you just climb up to the grid and watch the head block, loft blocks and lines as one of your crew moved the offending line set through the "rough spots"? Maybe you'd find something you could just fix easily, or get or make a part and then fix easily. Seems like too many people nowadays complain about problems instead of just going and fixing them.
Excellent answer!@JonCarter
Because at the time, 23 years ago, (1999? 1998? I remember I was listening to a lot of Fear Factory, and Buffy the Vampire Slayer was my favorite TV show) I wasn't yet skilled or qualified to make repairs or the majority of adjustments to a counterweight system. I would have been guessing as to whether or not I got it right.
*Knowing my limits and not being ego driven enough to exceed them is a legitimate course of action.
*Asking for actual, qualified, third party professionals is a completely legitimate course of action. It's why those entities exist.
*Walking away from an unsafe situation, or even a perception of an unsafe situation, especially after calls to fix the problem are declined/ignored, is a legitimate course of action. This has been echoed by many people here in this forum alone, and a majority of them are smarter and more skilled than me.
"Make a part" myself, to fix a problem on a designed system? No. Not then. Not now. Not ever. No. There's no way to go through the proper process of testing and knowing that a home made fix won't have a ripple effect through the entire system. So, again, no.
If you're suggesting that I would just rather complain than try to fix something- well, try again. And thanks for playing. I stand by my actions in this situation, no problem.
Those of you in need of a rigging inspection out there in the world (or maybe just the U.S.), a great place to start for your 3rd party inspection is found through the homies at USITT. I wish this would have been a thing back at the time frame I reference here.
Rigging Safety Initiative
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