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dvsDave

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Every year, we look forward to USITT and walking the show floor looking for that ONE gadget that has that "Why Didn't I Think Of That?!" simplicity and utility.

This year, the guys over at Stagehand Central delivered. This is the Arbor Rip Clip. Don't you hate those clamps holding those spreader bars up while you load the arbor? (how many of those clips do you replace a year because people keep taking them for other projects?)

Take a look at how easy it is.

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@gafftaper picked some up at the show and he'll be on later for a more detailed report.
 
An interesting idea for the house guy that wants to always have this on them. For that price point if you had a busy road house or somewhere else that did lots of change overs you could almost buy one per line set and store them on the arbor permanently (with the spreader plates properly installed of course).

That is EXACTLY the point. To keep these on the lineset so you never lose them. He's working on a refinement of the idea where it's two of them attached by a paracord, so that they can be attached and kept out of the way, when they aren't being used.

|
| ⟄ top clip
| | <- paracord
| ⟄ bottom clip
|
|
 
It might be slightly more convenient than just having a few spring clamps on the weight rail, but I don't see it being an extra $400 convenient. I can think of a lot better way to spend $400 than that.
 
It might be slightly more convenient than just having a few spring clamps on the weight rail, but I don't see it being an extra $400 convenient. I can think of a lot better way to spend $400 than that.

I'm not saying it would work for every house. After replacing $400 in spring clips that grow legs over the course of a busy season in a road house it might make a lot more sense.
 
I'm not saying it would work for every house. After replacing $400 in spring clips that grow legs over the course of a busy season in a road house it might make a lot more sense.

I've never had an issue with them walking off. We're not a really busy house, but we've had maybe one or two that get kept on the ground walk off in the last 5 years, and none from the loading bridge. And a new spring clip is only 99 cents anyway.
 
Some random thoughts:
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1. This does the same thing and is significantly less expensive. But, being metal, might hurt more if it fell on one's head from the loading bridge. Tieline one to the collar of every arbor and that problem is solved.

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2. As a young college freshman, I impressed my professor by bringing in one of these
for the purpose. We discussed adding them to every arbor, but decided a couple were sufficient. Previously, I had been taught just to "kink" the spreader plate between the tie-rods. It wasn't until much later that I encountered multiple plates; I guess the "two foot" rule hadn't been invented yet.

3. Not having either of the above, it takes two seconds and two cubits of tieline to loop below the spreader plates and to the locking collar. If one wants to be fancy, put a tie-line sunday on every arbor.

4. I've heard some flymen argue that all of the above are bad, in that an arbor can be moved with the plates not in their proper location. Once or twice I've found myself having to say, "Wait, bring me that arbor back." Maybe because of the clip, or because the collars were still locked up. It's a training and procedure issue, not the fault of the tool.

5. Sorry Stagehand Central, but a swing and a miss for me.
 
So, I got four of them at USITT to try out. Yeah @porkchop is correct that buying one for every lineset is a little crazy. But in my theater there are 4 lines that we regularly change the weight on, so I got four of them at a very affordable price. They feel great and clip on nice and secure. The paracord gives a nice hand hold... although the future version with the finger ring would be nice. They work exactly as demonstrated and I'm very happy with them. It reminds me a lot of the "Stage Junk-flat focus tool" which I love to carry. Yes I can do everything it does and more with a crescent wrench. But the flat focus tool is just a little easier, more comfortable, and more convenient for me to carry around. Is the arbor clip a product you can't live with out? Of course not. But it does the job a little nicer, a little cleaner, a little more efficiently than the other options and it's just kind of cool. So although I wouldn't say everyone needs to buy 40 of them. 4, 6, 10... Definitely! I think you'll be very happy to have a few of them around. Below are pictures of them in use in my theater.
IMG_20170315_172920.jpg IMG_20170315_172947.jpg IMG_20170315_173028.jpg
 
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For those looking at a full set, I know that he was running sales on larger quantities. I won't post them here in case they've changed, but he did have a "Spend $X, we'll fit the rest of your sets for $1 each" deal.
 
Since we are also discussing some alternatives, I used to always cut up a hose into small sections and slice up one end so that it looked pretty close to this. I say "used to" because my current theatre does not have a fly loft. It was pretty cheap and we could outfit each lineset with one. I see this as a pretty nice "prettier" version of exactly that. I'd certainly look into this in a house with a fly system.
 
I use to specify - another firm - spreader plates with a spring metal clip that held the plate at any point along the rods. Lift up and spring was flat against spreader plate. Lower and the spring - round or eliptical hole in the spring metal - would grab the rod. Press it flat to release.
 
I've never had an issue with them walking off. We're not a really busy house, but we've had maybe one or two that get kept on the ground walk off in the last 5 years, and none from the loading bridge. And a new spring clip is only 99 cents anyway.
Some random thoughts:
proxy.php

1. This does the same thing and is significantly less expensive. But, being metal, might hurt more if it fell on one's head from the loading bridge. Tieline one to the collar of every arbor and that problem is solved.

proxy.php

2. As a young college freshman, I impressed my professor by bringing in one of these
for the purpose. We discussed adding them to every arbor, but decided a couple were sufficient. Previously, I had been taught just to "kink" the spreader plate between the tie-rods. It wasn't until much later that I encountered multiple plates; I guess the "two foot" rule hadn't been invented yet.

3. Not having either of the above, it takes two seconds and two cubits of tieline to loop below the spreader plates and to the locking collar. If one wants to be fancy, put a tie-line sunday on every arbor.

4. I've heard some flymen argue that all of the above are bad, in that an arbor can be moved with the plates not in their proper location. Once or twice I've found myself having to say, "Wait, bring me that arbor back." Maybe because of the clip, or because the collars were still locked up. It's a training and procedure issue, not the fault of the tool.

5. Sorry Stagehand Central, but a swing and a miss for me.

No worries here. It's not going to be for everyone. I realize people are set in their ways and may take opposition to new products. The one thing that people can't deny is that the ARC simply works as intended. Well, maybe there are a few things that people can't deny. 2) It's lighter than Spring clips. Weighing fractions of an ounce. 3) It's just as fast, if not faster. 4) They can live on the arbor without being "tied" off. 5) It's safer even if you tie your spring clips off. 6) Educational Institutions, Dealers and Intallers are outfitting their systems, adding them to their online stores and offering them as part of their install packages.

I say all of this to say that ARC is functional and has been well received by those who have a need for it. You wouldn't believe the amount of safety concerns people have for spring clips, especially in academia. The ARC curbs those concerns. And it's still pretty cool!!
 
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I am sure they are a fine product. I think any new install or rigging rebuild should consider providing something like this. But for a fella like me I can buy binding clips from the school central stores and have them in hand the next day. For me (an old stick in the mud) I long ago invested in a large number of clips to have handy for any number of reasons. Was it a joke? Yes and No, for me it is a very workable solution.
 
For those of us who work with enterprise procurement policies and processes, getting a new supplier into the system is painful.
Ordering something out of a pre approved office supplies catalogue is not.

Sometimes there are layers of reasons why the "best" solution is not always that way in a different context...
 
I talked to the owner for a bit at USITT. Debating with myself on whether we needed a full set for our theatre, it must have looked like I was really hard-up for cash. He offered me one for free, no strings attached.
I did end up buying a few, and I know a couple of people I've shown them to went and purchased a couple of their own.

I'll agree with those above- I don't know that you need one on every lineset (though I can see the appeal of having them fixed to a set), but I'd certainly recommend that each person up on the loading bridge have one to work with.

... a $300+ purchase when $10 worth of spring clips have done the job perfectly fine for the last 20+ years.
You're comparing the cost of 100 ARC's to just a few spring clips. You can get a few like I did and move them around like you do now.
 
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Many thanks for getting innovations such as this out there and on the market. Even an old stick in the mud like me looks at such a product and thinks it is a good idea.
 
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That's enough, this thread is closed. Snarky posts and mentions of those posts have all been removed. If you have any questions about the product start a private conversation with Stage Hand Central, maker of the ARC. I've traded emails with the owner and a had a great conversation with him at USITT. He seemed like a good guy to me. I like the product and am using it in my theater as I described above. Although the IP address of the person who was posting in this thread when it got off track does come from the same city as Stagehand Central (St. Louis), I do not believe the person is connected to Stagehand Central.
 
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