TINYenormous – Build it up to break it down again

Ever since I have fallen in love with the Canon 7d dslr, I have been fantasizing about making a legit follow focus for a dslr. It allows you to have more control over the focusing, and a smoother camera because your rotation is in a different axis as the lens. (You may hear more of my traditional FF plans in a few) In the meantime I saw a vimeo clip that had this little gem of an idea in it. For quick focus pulls a lever like this can't be beat, and it's dirt cheap as well!

Here are all of the parts from the old home depot. Simple stuff. It totaled around $6, and it's enough to make 2 and have parts left over.

The first step is to cut out a few teeth in order to make room for the bolt.

Slide the bolt through and tighten the nut on.

A bit of electrical tape pushes the image away from HD and towards B&H. It also increases grip and decreases scratches.

Lastly, tape up the bolt and put on the end nut. Don't tighten this more than you need to. It'll hold on without a lot of elbow grease.

Admittedly, this isn't as nice as a red rock micro FF, or anything made out of anodized aluminum. On the other hand it does fit the budget (it is less than 1/100th the price of the red rock!) , and it will help the backyard cinematographer get a new tool to play with.