25Mar $20.00 DIY offset Shoulder Rig for DSLR – CheesyRig
I was bored, collected a few parts from Home Depot and decided to hack up a quick DIY Offset Shoulder rig. Since DSLR’s don’t have the flip out LCD option, placement of the ViewFinder needs to be offset. I also added some weights to the rear to help balance things out and it won’t feel so heavy on the hands. With the 5D and that Lens it takes a few weights, but for a Canon 550D or T2i you’d probably need a lot less.
Too bad I didn’t have time to grab some rubber bike handles. It’s no RedRock and yes some say Cheesy (hence the name CheesyRig), but all metal construction, it’s pretty solid for something around $20.00 dollars. Hope this gives some ideas on how to make a DIY offset DSLR shoulder rig for us low budget guys. Enjoy and leave comments.
A few bolts are too long, I need to replace them or cut them down. Shown is the Canon 5D Mark II with LCDVF and 85mm F/1.2 . I was using the Canon 7D with Tamron 18-270mm to record this video.
Hey if you’re not a DIY guy, check out the cheap Shoulder Rig from eBay.
Here’s the product.
You can find the shoulder support from eBay by clicking this link, or the image below.
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March 25th, 2010 at 8:23 am
nicely done!!
great blog btw!!!
April 6th, 2010 at 4:09 pm
wow tht really turned out great! how is the functionality of it? and could you provide a more details on the parts and specifications of the build?
April 22nd, 2010 at 5:15 am
Hey good job! I’m building a version of my own inspired by this. I’ll let you know how it turns out.
However, impossible to find those “foundation bearings” you have though. They seem to be perfect for counterweigts. You don’t know if they go by another name do you?
April 24th, 2010 at 4:51 pm
yea i would really like to see some footage of this with the t2i if you had time. and maybe a little more detailed instructions. thanks for showin it
April 26th, 2010 at 7:49 am
Hey this looks freaking AMAZING for 20 bucks. I would LOVE to know more specs on the parts you bought from home depot. I want to make one later today.
April 26th, 2010 at 12:42 pm
Those “foundation bearings” are actually called bearing plates, and you can only find them online or a commercial construction supply co.. Home depot and lowes both DO NOT CARRY THEM.
April 26th, 2010 at 12:59 pm
I purchase them from Home Depot all the time. They have a whole aisle dedicated to them. You can see i’ve used them in some of my other videos over 8 months ago. They have them readily available every time I’ve walked into a Home Depot.
April 26th, 2010 at 3:11 pm
Thats odd, because they can’t be ordered found on Home Depot’s website. And the people at lowes looked at my like i was insane when I asked them for one.
Anyway, I ordered some from a construction supply co. and they are on the way.
THANK YOU for inspiring me to do this instead of selling my self to make enough money to afford one of those pricey rigs from zacuto. You are a true DSLR Hero! Im going to try to fashion some sort of shoulder pad to put on mine as well. CHEESY RIGS FOR LIFE
April 27th, 2010 at 6:01 am
I’ll be looking out for them. Haven’t found any yet, plus I live in France so I can’t go around saying “foundation bearings” or “bearing plates” to people !
I’m looking for other solutions as I go along, aswell as thinking up how I could innovate on you design base. Again thanks a lot for the idea, now I just need time to get my DIY on!
April 28th, 2010 at 12:18 pm
This is not as easy as I thought.
You really need a drill press to make these. I need to start over because all the holes I made are uneven and all over the place. =(
Oh yeah, the “foundation bearings” were exactly where emmagination said they were… in the same aisle with the bolts and washers. I went to Home Depot and were able to find everything in the video without a problem.
April 28th, 2010 at 12:33 pm
Don’t get discouraged. Just takes practice to drill anything, and I did not use a drill press. A clamp would be helpful though.
May 2nd, 2010 at 3:29 pm
Is there some instructions for making this rig on the site here? Would be really useful. Thank you!
May 12th, 2010 at 5:09 am
Hey!
Just thought I’d share my WIP Rig… inspired from both your DIY shoulder rigs. Still some work to do, including cutting the end off, painting, adding counter weights, and adding a detachable second handle. Was trying to go for something like the Redrock eyespy, and I’m pretty happy the way it turned out. Will keep you posed on evolutions if your interested.
http://tuperhero.com/tuper-blog/wp-content/uploads/2010/05/rig01.jpg
http://tuperhero.com/tuper-blog/wp-content/uploads/2010/05/rig03.jpg
http://tuperhero.com/tuper-blog/wp-content/uploads/2010/05/rig05.jpg
August 17th, 2010 at 11:43 pm
Great rig…..LOVE your website. The best out there! I had to watch this like 3 times…”Pink Cookies” kept distracting me! LOL Keep up the good work!
Terry
August 18th, 2010 at 6:22 am
Hahah, I don’t know why I chose that.
December 15th, 2010 at 12:04 am
Can someone post specific materials, measurements, and directions? It’s like everyone seems to know what they’re doing but it’s not as easy as they think
February 17th, 2011 at 3:28 pm
I am inspired to make one of these as soon as I purchase my T2i or T3i.
Is this heavy?
How well does this stabilize video?
By the way, thanks a lot for the video, this will save me quite a bit of money
February 17th, 2011 at 4:42 pm
Also, what are you mounting the camera on the rig with?
February 17th, 2011 at 6:17 pm
@Daniel – Just a bolt through the bottom.
June 24th, 2011 at 6:14 pm
Do you think you could post some video shot with your rig….. ?
June 30th, 2011 at 9:11 am
Been scouring the net for a good lesson on mounting the camera to the rig. This one is made for a very small camera, but to go on a bicycle–so my guess is it would work well on a shoulder rig.
http://vimeo.com/10429262
June 30th, 2011 at 11:10 am
@Arthur – The problem is that standard rigs only use 15mm OD rails. Those bike mounts are too big. If you are interested in Bike Mounts, you should check out the long list of ready made mounts that could be a better fit. The more expensive ones are better, but they are all generally pretty cheap. Found here: Bike HandleBar Camera Mounts
August 1st, 2011 at 7:41 pm
I made mine out of 1″ square dowel rods and 1/4″ nuts and bolts. I call it the Smooth Criminal.
http://arthurktripp.tumblr.com/post/7858355944/just-built-an-offset-shoulder-rig-to-stabilize-my
September 8th, 2011 at 11:34 am
Hey i like this idea im gonna run down to homedepot right now! haha also, what song do you have playing in the background?
September 22nd, 2011 at 9:41 pm
If those “foundation bearings” are made from lead, don’t handle them to much yo.
June 9th, 2013 at 3:01 am
V2.0