This Clever Slider Challenges How Sliders Are Made

Ok, so I am now officially hooked on ProductTank Youtube Channel. We shared his Super Tripod yesterday, but had to go in and look at more of his work. (Be warned, if you are the DIY type, this is a black hole for your time).

This time, I would like to focus on his slider. Just like with the tripod, ProductTank challenges who a slider is made. Instead of running a cart on two aligned rails, he uses a guided surface to push a cart.

While you may wave this off as too simple, I think it is actually quite clever. The mechanism is built around pressing the cart to the plate on while using a guide that you can slide along. So firstly, you automatically get two (or more) moves; a regular sliding move, and an arched sliding move. Secondly, you get just the right amount of friction to get a smooth motion even if you detach from the guide.

But the real smarts come with the arched side of the slider. It is measured to be at a 1.5 diameter so anything at that distance will remain centered and focused while sliding.

And to avoid having to sand the edges perfectly, he placed a rigid plastic strip over the curve.

Lastly, we are left with this tip: it is recommended to travel the length of your screen every 7 seconds, so you can do a test run and mark a line every screen length and use those lines to guide your sliding speed.

[DIY simple camera slider | producttank]