Bottom pully release for traveler
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Category: Producing Theater
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Topic: Bottom pully release for traveler
Posted By: David McCall
Subject: Bottom pully release for traveler
Date Posted: 1/30/09 at 1:54pm
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We have a traveler that is on a line set and would like to be able to raise and lower it, as well as a traveler.
I've seen quick release plates that allow you to disconnect the pulley from the floor very easily.
Does anyone know what I'm talking about?
Do you know where to get them or even the right name for it? |
Replies:
Posted By: Mr. Lowell
Date Posted: 1/31/09 at 2:03pm
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Hi David,
I have a mid-stage black velour (phoenix) traveler that I open horizontally with the black cord as well as guillotine vertically with the counterweight fly system. The traveler cord comes down to a pulley about 18" off the floor. A 10 lb. sandbag hangs from the eye at the bottom of the pulley. The sandbag is necessary to keep the cords tight. This tension also keeps the pulley from swinging about and fowling on neighboring scenic elements. With this 10 lb. bag in place, there is really no need to anchor the pulley to the stage floor. But the two 25' high cords running up to the traveler track will invariably twist around and around themselves as the sandbag swings in the breeze. So in the chaos of a live show, in the dark, the poor fly crew would have to untwist the cords first before pulling open the traveler. (Maintenance might need to be done on the cord that runs through the traveler track in order to stretch out the unwanted twists). But the quick-fix is to go ahead and anchor the system to the floor as you mentioned. First, drill out a hole in the flooring so you can recess a http://www.tradeessentials.com.au/goods.php?id=305190 - TRAP DOOR RING , so there will be nothing for actors to trip on when the traveler is flown out. Then add a heavy duty http://www.a1toolstore.net/servlet/the-497/Double-end-bolt-snap/Detail - DOUBLE-END SNAP HOOK that your crew can quickly unsnap seconds before flying out the traveler. In my case, I also need a 1' length of chain with a QUICKLINK in order span past my sandbag. Thus by locking the traveler cord and pulley to the floor, the cord won't twist and the pulley won't swing back and forth as your crew bumps it with wagons. (Although a drawback is that when a dancer rushes on from the wings and trips on an anchored pulley, then there will be no "give" in the line and she'll trip face-first onto the stage...or even worse, she'll rip your hardware out of the floor!) Now, if your question is referring to some high-tech, automated, quick-release gadget that the crew can release while standing over at the fly rail...then sorry, I can't help you. (In fact, if you find out about such a thing, then let me know!) By the way, if you can't find the perfect solution to this problem, then you might call my brother. He's president of a http://www.stagedec.com/ - company that manufactures stage curtains for Rosebrand, Secoa, Barbizon, and the rest. They take pride in answering every call in person, (weekdays). Eric is America's "Geordi La Forge" of stage rigging, so if he doesn't have the exact parts and "diagnostics" for you, then he certainly has buddies in the industry who do. Good luck with this project! -Dana ------------- Mr. Lowell, Lighting/Set Designer & Tech Director, for the Linda Sloan Theatre, in the Davison Center for the Arts, at Greensboro Day School |
Posted By: David McCall
Date Posted: 1/31/09 at 2:53pm
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Your brother does some pretty classy work. Thanks I don't know that we would ever need to do both at in the same show so it doesn't have to be very fancy. A school near here has it, but nobody seems to know anything about who did it. I'm thinking it was probably Clancy. They do a lot of the rigging around here. I don't know if I can describe it in words. If I recall correctly, there is a steel plate built into the floor that has key keyhole shaped slots and another steel plate attached to the pulley assembly that has raised disks that fit into the keyholes.
There are a some things to like about your idea of using a small sand bag;
I wonder if you could attach a stiff piece of plastic to the pulley assembly that could be clipped to the curtain to keep it from twisting?
David
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Posted By: Mr. Lowell
Date Posted: 2/07/09 at 10:35am
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Hi David, my brother came by to fix the curtain track in my black box for me, and I asked him about your question. He said what you have is not a homemade oddity but a legitimate piece of old theatrical hardware called a "DFB". (Not to be confused with a "PFD", which is a lifejacket, or a "BFD" which is a "Big F@&%ing Deal").
A DFB is a "Detachable Floor Bag". A pulley hangs from your sash cord. A 5 lb. or 10 lb. sandbag hangs under that. A steel plate with several pins on the bottom also hangs from the pulley. These pins mate with slots in the floor plate and the pins have heads to hold them in place. Apparently the stagehand could just give the hanging plate a swift kick in the proper direction and tug up on the lines. Then the rig was clear to be flown out. I asked him, "but what about when we fly the traveler back in - that heavy plate could hit an actor on the head?" His response was, "Yeah, don't stand there". He said that the traditional industry solution for this safety issue is to use a "Floor Pulley Bag", (which I wonder, would it be called a "FPB"?!) This bag is merely an empty sandbag clipped to the bottom of the pulley as well. When the stagehand kicks the plate out of the floor, he tucks the plate into the heavy-duty canvas sandbag, and flies the traveler out. Then when the line comes back in, there is less chance for actors to get bloody head wounds; less chance for the dangling plate to fowl on something; and less clanking noise. In my opinion, this operation is not something I would want my crew fiddling with in the dark during a 3 second scene change!...so it's not ideal. But if you don't guillotine and travel your drape in the same show, then it should be OK. But I would still worry about any line that is pinned to the floor. Because it could cause an actor to trip during a rapid exit or a wagon to jam during a sloppy set change. So for the most part, I'm going to stick with just a swinging sandbag on my traveler. Well, thanks for the interesting question and good luck with it, Dana ------------- Mr. Lowell, Lighting/Set Designer & Tech Director, for the Linda Sloan Theatre, in the Davison Center for the Arts, at Greensboro Day School |
Posted By: David McCall
Date Posted: 2/07/09 at 11:58am
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Thanks for the follow up and thanks to your brother too.
I did some googling and didn't find anything for "detachable floor bag". This is in a theater that is only 2 years old so there must be yet another name for it. I'll pass on the information about the empty bag to hold the pulley while it is detached. That sounds like a good idea.
I'm tending to agree with you that a sandbag is probably a better solution. I might like to try connecting the pulley to the bottom of the curtain with some form of stiffener to keep it from twisting.
Thanks again.
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Posted By: David McCall
Date Posted: 2/13/09 at 1:06pm
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http://www.stage-n-studio.com/cat_main.htm -
http://www.stage-n-studio.com/cat_main.htm
I found it
 look at the lower right hand corner.There is also a nifty sandbag version.
David
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Posted By: Mr. Lowell
Date Posted: 2/13/09 at 4:37pm
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I had to click on page 11 in their catalog to find it. Yes, that looks exactly like the unit you were describing.
And their pulley with the sandbag that is pictured is interesting. Because their sandbag is actually married to the base of the pulley unit. That means there is less hardware to clank around and less dangling, and less chance for hardware to tangle on other scenery. So it's a much more streamlined arrangement than my bag and pulley. Plus, their way of attaching the bag under the pulley seems like you have a much safer object to clunk an actor in the head with!...it's kind of like a boxing glove.
When I use a sandbag on my traveler, I try to make the bag hang an inch or two lower than the bottom of the drape. That way the bag sits firmly on the floor every time, so that the sash cords don't have an opportunity to spin and tangle.
Good luck, Dana
------------- Mr. Lowell, Lighting/Set Designer & Tech Director, for the Linda Sloan Theatre, in the Davison Center for the Arts, at Greensboro Day School |