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Roller stands

gazwas

Active member
What is the consensus on good quality roller stand?

I'm looking for a stand that will primarily be used to support a big softbox like 120 x 180cm, a Para 133 (and in the future a Para 177) or used with a boom arm. I don't need one of the very tall overhead types and want to take it out on location shoots so size and weight is a consideration. I was looking at the junior stands that extends to around 3m that seem to offer a good mix of strength, stability and are practicle enough to transport in the car.

Avenger, Kupo and Matthews spring to mind but nowhere locally stocks these for me to look at so will have to buy blind so some recommdnations would be much appreciated.
 
I can highly recommend the Matthews Hollywood Baby Jr. Triple Riser Stands. The wheels roll smoothly, can lock in place, and the stand are extremely sturdy, though a tad heavy. I would NOT recommend the Matthews Light Heavy Duty Triple Riser Aluminum Kit Stands with the wheel kit. The stands themselves are nice, but the wheel kit is a cheap add-on and they do not roll smoothly, nor do they lock. Very unlike Matthews. In the USA you can get Matthews products from most of the major dealers like B&H Photo in NYC.
 

gazwas

Active member
I can highly recommend the Matthews Hollywood Baby Jr. Triple Riser Stands.
Thanks for the recommendation, I've seen these stands mentioned quite a bit and how good they are. I'm in the UK and the few major photo dealers there are left are pretty much all based in London so not easy to pop in for a play with this type of kit.
 

stmpjmpr

New member
I use the Kupo Junior Roller Stand, and it's great. I use it primarily with the Baby Boom Arm, also from Kupo, and they're both high quality and easy to use. No affiliation, just a customer. That said, they aren't light. I have taken them to a client a few times now, and it's worth lugging it.
 

aztwang

Member
I have the Avenger 5036cs. I love this stand in the studio it's robust wheels are good and overall heavy duty good Quality, however this is one big beast to take out a location and it's a little bit of overkill with the soft box or a para 133.... perfect for the 177 or 222. A comment on Kupo, Great quality they're big handle grip heads and extension arms with the big handle are amazing I won't use anything else. Matthews 386022 junior double riser is good, still comes in at 27lbs. I would like to try the Kupo high roller..looks nice.
 

gazwas

Active member
Appreciate the input - the Matthews Baby Jr double riser is looking most favourable at the moment (nobody stocks the triple riser?) least it now seems the only one that doesn't have an 8 week delivery! I thought buying a stand would be easy? :confused:
 

fotografz

Well-known member
If you are going to boom a head/modifier take care in selecting the open diameter of the legs (i.e., "footprint").

We are using a number of Matthews stands with boom arms on each (or the Avenger knock offs), including the Matthews baby stand with double riser which has a 33" or so footprint. This is NOT a very stable stand for use with boomed mono heads and medium sized modifiers. We use it for a kicker because the smaller footprint allows closer placement ... but even with a smaller gridded hair light, it needs a fair amount of counter-weight to balance it out.

I've never seen a Matthews triple riser baby roller, I think the third riser would be to thin anyway.

The Kupo Junior Roller has a 41" footprint and may be a better compromise between stability and weight.

Our largest Matthews has a 5' diameter footprint, and a Profoto D1 with a 33.5" Mola Beamm or 7' Plume Wafer needs ever bit of that stability when boomed and balanced.

- Marc
 

gazwas

Active member
Thanks Marc, great advise. This sort of stuff is impossible to know when buying blind and looking at specs on manufacturers websites. The Matthews baby jr roller triple has a wider footprint and greater 18kg load than the double version (14kg) but no UK sellers list the triple?

The over head stands look the best spec but their minimum height is too much for what I want........ Frustrating!
 
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