C-Stand model advice

[Rick Mckinney]

Matthews is a staple in the production community. Although Bogen makes a quality C-Stand as well.

Good luck.

[Todd Terry]

I definitely prefer Matthews…

I’d recommend either the Matthews C or C-plus stands. And if you think you might much be using them on unlevel ground (or across steps, or on stairs, or whatever), those with the sliding “Rocky Mountain” legs can be very useful.

T2

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Todd Terry
Creative Director
Fantastic Plastic Entertainment, Inc.
fantasticplastic.com

[Rick Pearl]

What size riser or double riser should I look into? These will not be realistically used on uneven terrain.

Thanks!

[Todd Terry]

Well, that’s hard to say… just depends on your needs. That’s entirely governed by what you want to hold up and more importantly how high you want to hold it.

We have a bunch with 20″ risers, some with 30″, and a couple with 40″. We probably use the 30″ most which goes up to 8′ tall.

Another thing to remember is that C-stand parts are mix-n-match. We have a lot more risers than we have turtle-base stands. Sometimes we need all the bases we have but rarely need all the risers that we have, so it cuts down on lugging unnecessary equipment. And I don’t know about the other manufacturers, but with Matthews you can buy the parts separately.

T2

__________________________________
Todd Terry
Creative Director
Fantastic Plastic Entertainment, Inc.
fantasticplastic.com

[Rick Mckinney]

I agree with Todd. You may not think you’ll ever need a spare turtle, but one day (and it will come I promise you) you’ll need to position a fixture in a place that a beaver board and apple boxes won’t do the trick.

[Todd Terry]

[Rick McKinney] “You may not think you’ll ever need a spare turtle, but one day (and it will come I promise you….)”

And as you put things together you will discover ways to do things that you haven’t thought of, or ways to use equipment that might not be it’s usual intention…

For example… the opening in a Matthews turtle base (though not all brands) is exactly the same size as a junior receiver. Need to mount a big HMI really low?… don’t put it on a stand at all, just stick it in a turtle base. Conversely, because those two sizes are the same, you can stick a C-stand riser in the top of a junior stand and suddenly you have an extremely tall stand (just use lots of sandbags… and I wouldn’t do that with a lighting instrument, maybe with a flag or small tree branch).

The combinations are almost endless….

T2

__________________________________
Todd Terry
Creative Director
Fantastic Plastic Entertainment, Inc.
fantasticplastic.com