DIY Steadicam Merlin WSCLATER

Probably one of the most knowledgeable people on the internet in regards to steadicam merlin builds. Watch his videos and be in awe at his steadicam merlin. Of course all the time he spent on this build he could have easily bought a legitimate steadicam merlin. I think that's the trade off if someone could come up with a solution that is simple and elegant and under $1000 dollars that would be the defacto standard when it came to DIY merlins.  The original steadicam merlin costs about $1000 dollars with taxes I presume.

DIY Steadicam Shoulder Rig with Follow Focus PVC

A PVC version of the shoulder rig. Good use of a camera plate to make mounting the camera on the rig easy.

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DIY Steadicam Shoulder Rig with Follow Focus

Another crazy steadicam but shoulder mount to space out the arms with a nice little follow focus. Unless you know woodworking this will be out of your reach. I've seen pvc shoulder mounted rigs that do a similar job. The idea is to get your arms further away and off the camera. This will lead to a much more stable shot but I can imagine it will also make you much more tired.

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DIY Steadicam Monopod

I really like this design how it incorporates a monopod, a sled and a gimbal handle to create an amazing steadicam. Just look at the results near the end of the video. It's pretty amazing. The bicycle clamp was a nice touch. I really liked that.

DIY Steadicam Merlin Chinese Build

It's amazing how quickly this steadicam is put together without much modifications.  Here's the parts list:


All parts can be found in those shop selling camera accessories in Hong Kong. All are made in China therefore quite cheap.

1. The most important stuff, the "U-shaped foldable bracket" - US $30
2. Tripod top plate for ease of fixing and detaching the camera - US $40
3. Mini tripod with swivel ball head as the gimble- US $10
4. Flat bar for holding and adjusting the counter weight by balancing at different length and angle - US $10
5. Counter weight - US $5



How the Steadicams work

A good primer on how Steadicams work and what you need to do to correctly balance your steadicam.

DIY Steadicam Merlin PVC

I like how he's able to use an existing tripod for the head mount and it comes with a bubble level.  I think a real tripod head is necessary because it will allow you to quickly remove your camera/camcorder.  It'll also become universal as you should be able to put any type of camera on top of the steadicam.

DIY Steadicam Balancing Arm

Not sure how it's built but it displays the properties of a good steadicam. What I like about this video is the extension arm he's using to test balance his steadicam and make minute adjustments. I've seen another video where wsclater balances his steadicam on the edge of the table but this looks a lot more safer than the edge of a table.

DIY Steadicam Japanese Build

A japanese build where the gymbal is built out of 3 different pvc rings.  I like the idea but it falls short on aesthetics. I think the idea of DIY is that it should look somewhat decent by the time you're done. Something you wouldn't mind showing other people your build. Still every attempt towards the perfect DIY is appreciated. Hoping I can find the ultimate gymbal made by another japanese guy.

DIY Steadicam Merlin

This build looks like it uses a lot of different parts. One of the things I like when doing builds is minimizing the number of different pieces as possible.  I also like a good balance between form and functionality.  I like that he built it so it could handle just about any camera that you mount on the steadicam.

DIY Steadicam Merlin $35

I like this build but it needs some work on the aesthetics department but a 10 on functionality. I'm still trying to figure out how I would approach a steadicam merlin build as well.