Build your own motorized custom camera slider from scratch for around $75

Camera sliders are one of the easiest ways to add interesting motion to your timelapse and video sequences, but many of the commercial options are still extremely expensive.

This short series of videos on YouTube posted to Instructables documents the construction of a motorized slider that could be easily adapted to handle cameras and rigs of much larger size.

While there is no sound in any of these videos, the photographs and clips detailing its construction and use seem fairly self explanatory.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ft_b3VAEBnw

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8LxsjDs47R4

As well as the two videos of clips above, two more videos show the construction as a series of stills, highlighting the details in the different sections.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ODlARUtB_o0

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OfyiPU1VcF4

A shopping list is included, listing each of the components required to build the slider shown in the video, and while it may not actually be able to handle a DSLR, modifying the built to support such a weight should not be all that difficult.

• 1 pcs Aluminium Alloy 70 mm x 80 mm x 8 mm
• 2 pcs Aluminium Alloy 80 mm x 42 mm x 12 mm
• 2 pcs LMK12UU 12mm flange bearing CNC Flange Linear Bearings Flange Linear Bush
• 1 pcs ID6.35*8mm D19*L25 Aluminium CNC Stepper Motor Flexible Shaft Coupling
• 1 pcs 350 mm 8D 8mm Lead Screw Dia 8mm ,Lead 2mm, Length 350 mm with Copper Nut
• 1 pcs Nema 17 42BYGHW811 0.48N.m(70oz-in) 48mm 2.5A for 3D printer
• 2 pcs 12 mm 12 x 400 mm linear shaft 3d printer cylinder linear rail linear shaft axis

A quick scout around eBay shows that the listed items to build this slider can be picked up for a little under £50 in the UK (about $75), and it could probably be beefed up to offer a more stable platform for DSLRs for about an extra $25 or less.

You will, of course, need a few tools to machine the pieces of aluminium.  Drill bits at the very least and a 1/4″-20 or 3/6″-16 tap set if you want to try and attach this to tripods and get it off the ground.

Throw in an Arduino and you’ve got all the makings of a great timelapse slider with some basic motion control capabilities.

Have you motorised your own DIY slider?  How did you do it?  Let us know in the comments.

[via Instructables]