Roostering
- Thread startervitaltheatre
- Start date
Never heard it called roostering, we always called it yoked out. I hate doing, unless it's a permanent position like a catwalk as Mike mentions. Causes all kinds of rigging complications when over stage flying electrics.
Interesting thought Derek. Neither my Altman Zips, nor my ancient L&E Mini-Strips, nor my Altman Ground Cyc's have safety cable attachment points and I can unfortunately state I've never safetied these fixtures nor considered it. Which is odd as I got the GM to purchase a boat load of safety's many years ago for a lot of gear that never had them. We safety EVERY other kind of fixture, but never a strip light. Not sure how I would do it actually.
In this particular case, shouldn't that be yolk? Yuk yuk yuk.
@vitaltheatre , . Do Zip Strips have an integral safety attachment point? I don't see anything among the sheets at https://www.altmanlighting.com/sp_faq/borderlights-micro-strip-r40-zip-strip/ .
Interesting thought Derek. Neither my Altman Zips, nor my ancient L&E Mini-Strips, nor my Altman Ground Cyc's have safety cable attachment points and I can unfortunately state I've never safetied these fixtures nor considered it. Which is odd as I got the GM to purchase a boat load of safety's many years ago for a lot of gear that never had them. We safety EVERY other kind of fixture, but never a strip light. Not sure how I would do it actually.
macsound
Well-Known Member
This is exactly what I'm used to doing.
Clamp the sidearm onto the batten, affix sidearm to lift line to steady batten.
Initially I remember doing this when a designer wanted barndoors on fresnels focused on the second story of a set, which would've made them hang too low. Yoking them out (also never heard of rooster, but I'm in California) gave us the extra height.
I wouldn't yoke out too many fixtures, however, because then all the torque on your pipe is leveraged by your sidearms and however you affixed them to the lift line.
For the record, if it's a fixed pipe, yoke out all you want.
On flown pipes (battens) You can always manufacture a few 3 or 5 foot stiffeners if / when necessary.
Toodleoo!
Ron Hebbard
JonCarter
Well-Known Member
Does (or did) Cleveland count as part of the Midwest?" Never heard of a "rooster" in the '50s-'60s-'70s. (Or is this too far back in pre-history?)
Derek, we always used forged C clamps to hang both "up" & "out," never cast. We used the cast clamps (if we had them) only to hang down. I've used forged clamps on 2' side arms mounted "up" with 2, 2kW lekos mounted "out" from the arm and never had a failure or a bent clamp.In this particular case, shouldn't that be yolk? Yuk yuk yuk.
@vitaltheatre , If I understand what you are doing, sounds acceptable. Some would argue that the clamp's pipebolt should always be on the bottom, but structurally, I don't think it matters. Mike's concern about the pipe rotating may or may not be valid, depending on how it's attached to its moorings. Of course, a safety cable at each end of each strip is mandatory. Do Zip Strips have an integral safety attachment point? I don't see anything among the sheets at https://www.altmanlighting.com/sp_faq/borderlights-micro-strip-r40-zip-strip/ . So two options: 1) thread the loop of the safety cable thru an unused hole in the hanging iron, then around the pipe and clipped to itself, or 2) the safety cable goes around both the pipe and the fixture and isn't actually attached to anything. Neither is great, each is better than nothing.
And BTW, rooster is one of the most vague and least-descriptive pieces of jargon ever to come down the pike. Unless one really means "clamp down, fixture above the pipe", "yoked out" or "yoked up" is clearer.
As a son of the Midwest I am well familiar with the term roostering, but I think just telling your electricians to yoke a fixture out is more common.
If a unit is being hung with the clamp directly underneath it, with the yoke vertical, I would call that unit “perched”.
@MNicolai
Yeah, that's where I learned it a decade ago. First time I heard it was from one of our 30-somethings stagehands who worked a lot with high schoolers and houses of worship. I always got the impression it was a euphemism for "cock it out" to avoid incurring dirty looks and jokes from students, similarly to the creative euphemisms people have come up with to get studen to stop saying "f%@k nut" or "jesus nut" when they're talking about the pan bolt on a c-clamp.
And that Pan bolt isn’t even a bolt, it’s a square head set screw!
If a unit is being hung with the clamp directly underneath it, with the yoke vertical, I would call that unit “perched”.
@MNicolai
Yeah, that's where I learned it a decade ago. First time I heard it was from one of our 30-somethings stagehands who worked a lot with high schoolers and houses of worship. I always got the impression it was a euphemism for "cock it out" to avoid incurring dirty looks and jokes from students, similarly to the creative euphemisms people have come up with to get studen to stop saying "f%@k nut" or "jesus nut" when they're talking about the pan bolt on a c-clamp.
And that Pan bolt isn’t even a bolt, it’s a square head set screw!
Cleveland 100% counts
How does one tell the difference between a forged clamp vs. a cast clamp? I thought all traditional clamps were cast? Did certain manufacturers make forged clamps?
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Yeah, My entire catwalk needs to be roostered out to avoid the safety chain.... It is pretty rare that I feel the need to do this on an batten, but when I do I try to incorporate a matching fixture on the opposite side to help balance the torque.
That sounds like what we call "overslinging" so the unit is overslung. Can just about get away with doing that with a hook clamp if the fixture isn't too heavy, but better to use a properly rated half coupler or trigger clamp.
I learned that "underslung" was a bastardization, slightly derogatory of "underhung" when speaking of counterweight fly systems.
What's the difference between "overslinging, overslung" and "overhanging, overhung"?
Quick googling tells me "overslung" has to do with vehicle suspensions and whether the axle is above or below the leaf springs.
kicknargel
Well-Known Member
Overslinging? Now thats a new one for me!
JonCarter
Well-Known Member
As a son of the Midwest I am well familiar with the term roostering, but I think just telling your electricians to yoke a fixture out is more common.
Well, 60 years ago the clamps I dealt with were made by (or at least, branded) "Century NYC" and were forged. Most of the ones that were cast were in a definite "C" shape (as opposed to the relatively "square" ones) with the instrument mounting point threaded 1/2"IPS. with the instrument mounting point threaded 1/2"IPS. Capitols were notorious. View attachment 22446 (We (Didn't like Capitol instruments, either--stuck with Century or Klieg.) (The above from my RGOAS.)
Ted jones
Well-Known Member
Growing up near Baltimore and starting stage work for money in 1972 (at 16), I was taught the term "rooster the light out", to "rooster it", etc. So not as confined to the midwest as y'all think. When I came to Chicago in '79, it was a term we all used.
Of course, I still use the term "X-ray" for strip lights, but only verbally. I don't put it in inspection letters.
Interesting discussions about the safe to rooster question. Every caution is correct. Like so many things, its good to learn what the load ratings are, how to derate for the leverage involved, methods to keep the pipe from rotating if needed, etc. In other words, cast an educated and/or jaundiced eye upon the pipe that we are now asking to do some things it may not have been designed for. Also, knowing the weight of the fixtures, complete with Clamp, may give you some idea of what you are doing. If nothing else, look at the assembly as you are loading it and see if there is visible deflection in the pipe, it's hangers and whatever the mounting is attached to.
There's a huge difference between a pipe supported 4' OC v 10'OC. When you get down to it, the 1.9" OD with .145 wall tube that we call 1 1/2" sched 40 pipe is a fairly small section so best to look closely when your supports are more than 6' apart.
Of course, I still use the term "X-ray" for strip lights, but only verbally. I don't put it in inspection letters.
Interesting discussions about the safe to rooster question. Every caution is correct. Like so many things, its good to learn what the load ratings are, how to derate for the leverage involved, methods to keep the pipe from rotating if needed, etc. In other words, cast an educated and/or jaundiced eye upon the pipe that we are now asking to do some things it may not have been designed for. Also, knowing the weight of the fixtures, complete with Clamp, may give you some idea of what you are doing. If nothing else, look at the assembly as you are loading it and see if there is visible deflection in the pipe, it's hangers and whatever the mounting is attached to.
There's a huge difference between a pipe supported 4' OC v 10'OC. When you get down to it, the 1.9" OD with .145 wall tube that we call 1 1/2" sched 40 pipe is a fairly small section so best to look closely when your supports are more than 6' apart.
ETCFIELDENG
Lin Wheeler ETC, Inc.
I thought I’d throw this out there as talk about C clamps keeps coming up. Also in my 45+ years in the business I’ve never heard the term roostering.
support.etcconnect.com
Lin
Load Rating for Source Four C Clamps
support.etcconnect.com
Lin
Easy. Henceforth, instead of "6-inch" frames, they shall now be known as "6-ish" frames.
I learned it in Bowling Green in college about a decade ago, so maybe that side of Ohio is just west enough for the midwest.
