How do you protect your gear?

[gabi]

For those who use case style sound carts the answer is pretty obvious, just close the the case and load it into the truck. But for those who build their carts around Magliner or PSC style carts (or Chinhda’s, RastOrder and so on) and have very complex setups I don't expect you to uncable and pack everything everyday after wrap (or whenever you have to move to another location). How do you protect your cart and the gear on it when you have to load it into a truck?

I just used a picture of Mr Stasinis cart to illustrate the subject. I hope he doesn't mind.

Gabi

 

[Richard Lightstone, CAS]

With the cart you have shown, the keyboard tray and mixer shelf slide back in within the main frame. This type of cart as well as a magliner, is usually placed with the delicate equipment side against the truck wall. This leaves the cable hook side facing outward into the truck aisle. I've seen some magliner users also put a furniture pad over the whole cart just for some added protection. Strapped in it's all very secure.

RL

[David Waelder]

This type of cart as well as a magliner, is usually placed with the delicate equipment side against the truck wall.

Let me expand just a bit on the layout of Tom Stasinis' cart-

David

[RPSharman]

I designed both of my carts with strapping to trucks (AND stakebeds) specifically in mind, a large flat surface to go against the truck wall or stakebed planks. It was quite a challenge, as a utility guy, to not only safely load most of the carts I worked with into trucks and stakebeds, but to do it in a manner which I felt would allow the cart and cables to last the years required. Everything always seemed "tweaked".

A lot of mixers are present during the loading of the carts, but often miss the truck being opened in the morning to see bits strewn about, camera carts loosely strapped and slamming the sound carts. Total carnage. I was not going to put my gear through that abuse.

Robert

[Zack]

It's been an ongoing change for me learning new and better ways of arranging things on my PSC cart to be ergonomic for myself as well as protected and rugged.  My biggest improvement so far has been my recent change of transportation, I got myself a 2010 HHR vs. my 07 cobalt I was using before.  Now I don't have to collapse everything into the trunk of the car, and can keep the cart built, while being protected in my own car for transportation/company moves.  I've tried as best I could to keep all the cables hidden and tied down safely within the frame work of the cart to prevent any snags, breaks, etc..etc..  I keep around some extra moving blankets for when I feel the need to load it onto a truck. 

It's a fun challenge hehe.

[Jan McL]

I'm a magliner gal, and have designed the cart so there's a flat side that rests against the wall as Richard points out.

Furthermore, cart cabling is designed to leave clear spots for the wide ratchet strap.

Had a seamstress make a padded cover for the mixer, put a fat four-layer, quilted piece over the recorder, then cover the whole thing with a tarp before kissing the truck good night.

I don't use a sound blanket to cover it. Mostly because they're dusty, even if I keep one back and only use it for the cart. Plenty do use a furnie pad as the final touch though.

Before I got foam-filled tires, once had a tire blow in transit, and the cart tipped on its not-flat side. Ow. Remarkably, nothing was broken, everything remained in place. Had spare tires on hand, put the cart up on blocks and replaced between takes. No problem besides the residual adrenaline rush. I highly recommend the foam-filled tires sooner rather than later.

All the gear is bungeed on or bolted to the shelves.

-- Jan

[gabi]

Thanks, everybody!