Ideas to transport large format equipment

I seem to have developed some more serious problems with my back which

somewhat limit my mobility in outings to use my Toho FC-45X camera. I

have been using a Baby Jogger to carry everything, and it works well,

even over rough ground, but I find I can't lean my weight on it since

the front wheel just comes up. I think I could go further and hurt

less if I used something I could lean on, sort of a walker with

wheels, so to speak. A large shopping cart is one possibility, at

least around town, but it wouldn't be much good on rougher terrain.

I think I may also need something to sit on, or just lean my weight

on, since standing while focusing and making adjustments is very tiring.

 

Does anyone have any suggestions? I'm also better off if I don't have

to bend too much.

Leonard,

 

Could your jogger be fitted with some kind of strut to keep the handlebar from descending when the front wheel goes up? Maybe a piece of electrical conduit or schedule 40 PVC pipe?

Find, see, and follow the advice of a good chiropractor.

Dude, find yourself an assistant that can carry all the heavy stuff and if needed haul you up the hill.

John had a good idea. Maybe you could rig up a set of "wheelie bars" similar to what the top fuel funny cars need to keep the front wheels in place. Two small casters which extend back a bit on flat stock of some sort might work.

 

Otherwise, a small set of bicycle tires (20"?) and some sort of frame might be what you need. A made to order cart out of scraps and bike parts sounds like the ticket here. One fellow had posted a picture of one he adapted to work, but I don't know the thread. Perhaps he is listening.

I've had years of back problems myself. My sympathies. Really.

 

I take it that a wagon is out of the question because you would be pulling it with one hand which would torque your back some. And, you couldn't lean on it. A push cart has the problem you've mentioned. If you lean on it you make it do a "wheelie."

 

The problem is your feet. They have to put the wheels pretty far forward so you can walk without kicking the cart with your feet. The typical answer to this to build the push bar for your hands behind the rear wheels, so that if you push down on the push bar you rotate the cart around the rear wheels.

 

What you need is a cart where the push bar directly over the rear wheel axle, or in front of the axle. In order for you to walk, this implies that the spacing between the rear wheels be fairly wide and the bottom of the cart be fairly high.

 

I've been trying to think while I type (yes, I know how dangerous that is ;-) about where I've seen a cart like that. I'm thinking it might have been some sort of garden cart - for pushing azaleas and mulch around the yard.

 

If you can't find exactly what you are looking for, you might find a metal garden cart that is close, and have a machine shop fabricate and install some brackets to move the rear wheels farther back and a little wider. I say metal because it's much easier to modify a metal cart that a plastic one if you are the machinist looking to do the work.

 

You might also want to look for a "lab cart" which are used in labs and manufacturing to move stuff from one process to the next. Lab carts typically have the advantage of two shelves with the top one at a more convienient height for lifting on and off. There may be some designed for rougher terrain (pneumatic tires, etc.).

What you are talking about is a walker.

 

Don't laugh, these things used to be simple push along affairs with tennis balls on the legs. Like everything else technology has advanced and they now come in bright colors with large wheels, brakes, seats and carry baskets. All of this folds up into into a trunk size configuration. You would probably need to increase the basket size to carry all your gear but that should be do-able. Check with hospital supply stores.

 

I have considered adapting one but am still able to manage with a two wheel cart that I made from a tricycle kid jogger like yours.

You may find various equipment useful for different tasks. Here is one I like for short �hops�. Note that the seat rises and swivels.

 

Also nice for polishing the bottom half of the car.

 

http://www.leevalley.com/garden/page.asp?page=45921&category=2%2C2120&SID=&ccurrency=2

Leonard,

 

First, take Charles' advice. The only reason I can pick up a camera bag is due to a very talented Chiropractor. Ask around and find one with a reputation for doing a good job. There are losers in every profession.

 

Would a wheelchair used as a walker and a caddy do the job? They fold up you know. when you get where you're going you have a place to set. Thrift stores sell them for $10 to $20. I've seen them for $4 in just the last week.

My dear Leonard, welcome to the club. You are a well informed kind of guy so my suggestions go with some trepidation. I have a bad back too but I carry my equipment in a backpack, which when properly adjusted is not carried by the back but by the hip bones. Hips are stronger than backs. Pulling the baby thing twists your back as one clever reply stated. Hardly good for your back. If you push it forward it may pose other hazards, things on wheels are best when been pulled than pushed. When you first load the equipment from a backpack first place it on something like a chair or table then slip your arms around it to minimize the load on your back. Of course there will come a point when your LF gear will by force of nature give way to your Hasselblad, then you Leica and finally your Minox. But while you feel able to wander about with some vigour, the backpack (loaded with Quickload) your camera and a carbon tripod will see you through. I trust you have seen your DOCTOR and make sure you do not have a herniated disk or any such mechanical handicap for if you do, being sat on or twisted about will not cure you. I had physiotherapy after a car accident and then I discovered that gradual excersize under supervision did help tremendously. From what I have seen you post, it is not Minox time for you yet, avanti!

How about llamas. A well trained male packer can carry about

90lbs and will never spit. I us e two llamas plus a 40 pound

pack for myself.

And lets not forget my other buddy.

Another thing you might think of, after you've seen your DOCTOR. Consider getting a referral to an occupational therapist. This is just the sort of problem they're trained to do.

Thanks for all the answers. Of course I've seen several doctors, but they aren't much interested unless there is a pertinent reason to intervene. Intervention consists of cortisone injections or in extreme cases surgery. I have something like four disk herniations and narrowing of the space through which the nerves pass, which is what is meant by stenosis. So far however I don't have intense ongoing pain and my nerve conduction tests are in the normal range.

 

I am currently seeing a physical therapist and she is working on helping me increase flexibility and strengthen my abdominal muscles. The latter tends to keep the spine in a position so the nerves are not irritated as much. This will all help some but not eliminate the problem. I can also just fill up on Vicodin before an outing and that would probably help, so one way or another I will manage. But this is not the common garden variety back problem a chiropractor can help with. My one foray into chiropracty with an well recommended sports chiropractor was a disaster, so I am not tempted to try that again.

 

The various sugestions have given me several ideas to ponder and I will look into them if the physical therapy doesn't do the job.

Leonard, have you seen some of the fancy geriatric walkers about lateley? I marvel at what I now see on the streets. Four 10in wheels or thereabouts and a seat to boot. One model even had a smallish tray for the shoping and independent rear wheel handle bar brakes for those tight turns!

 

Alternativly there are those fold flatable 4 wheel 2 caster goods trundlers used in kitchens and hospitals/factories. Holding about 40Kg or so. I use one in the studio. Handle folds from flat to vertical. May do the job with a wheel upgrade.

Look what I found:

 

http://www.glad.net/catagory.cfm?catagory_id=609

 

Bingo!

Hi Leonard,

I've been working on a design for a ULF camera that I can pedal around. It's basically a tricycle set up, or rolling tripod with pedals. I used to ride a Workman three wheeled bike around the chemical plant in Nikiski, and they're very sturdy, versatile little rigs. Just like a little pedal-pickup. They run around $400, I think, but worth it if you can use one. Good luck.

Leonard, How about a light two wheeled cart/dolly that could be pulled or pushed. I've used my heavy duty one recently to get my monorail camera box and tripod over some distance, even up and down a steep hill, which I wouldn't recommend doing for someone with your back problems. The dolly was easy to push on a smooth trail. I secured the camera case and tripod with bungy cords.

 

BTW, I am a therapist in a chronic pain clinic. I see a lot of guys with back problems like yours. Variety is the best treatment: reconditioning through Physical Therapy, daily stretching, daily exercise, some relaxation every day, cortisone injections can be helpful, Its really important to keep moving, gently, and don't get too out of shape ("deconditioned" in our lingo). Don't "over-do," in other words, pace yourself. A beginner Tai Chi or "Chi Gung" class can teach you to move in a comfortable way and stay loose.

 

Good luck man, Steve

Good idea, Jay.

 

Pashley still makes them. Scroll down to workbikes, Old Bean!

 

http://www.pashley.co.uk/

 

There's a dealer/distributor in the USA. Virginia or NC, I believe. You can get it off the above site.

Stephen: Great idea, and nice shots of your friend. You should write something about your experience with llamas as photo equipment carriers. I am guessing that most of us here know more about filter factors than about animal husbandry. I certainly am in that category although I am quite interested in llamas. Will you? That would be great new thread.

Leonard, I have been going down the road you are now going down for the last 9 years. Do your self a favor and stay away from the trigger point injections. It only agrevates the nerves more. The realization is "yes you will have to live with this the rest of your life", so 1. Take the Vicodin or any other pain meds you need to keep moving. 2. You have to come to the realization that you will have to live in pain, and don't be afraid of taking pain meds. People who are in chronic pain do not get addicted to these meds, They are dependent, like a diabetic is dependent on insulin. You may want to mention methadone to a good pain specialist. This stuff does not make you high, keeps you moving, and living a somewhat normal life. The nerves do get desensitized after a few years. Just don't start putting on the weight like i did, it is even harder to take off when you are in pain. A good pain counselor can be invaluable also. Last month I was able to hike 1 1/2 hours up a 30-40 deg. grade carrying my equipment on my shoulders. yes I had to take a couple Vicodin when I got to the car. Yes I was hurting the next couple of days. You just have to keep moving, and have patience. Good luck & stay away from the knife if you can.

Daniel and the others,

 

Thanks for all the advice yet again. I'm glad to know there are others who are even worse off than I am but have not given up yet. Of course, I hope all of us are miraculously cured, but apparently that is not likely to be in the works.

 

I do pretty well on Vicodin. Paradoxically it wakes me up rather than making me groggy, and the other side effects are easily controlled. I am somewhat annoyed that I have to take the Tylenol along with the hydrocodone, which is the active ingredient. This is, I think, the result of the so-called 'war on drugs'. Although it is now easier for physicians to prescribe straight codeine or hydrocodone, they still don't like to do it lest they get on some DEA list. I think the principle must be that if you took enough Vicodin to get a significant high from the opiate part, the tylenol part would kill you. ;-) The side effects of tylenol are much more serious than those of hydrocodone, particularly if you have to take an NSAID like naproxen at the same time. In the past I've had to take as much as two Vicodin every four to six hours for weeks on end to deal with ongoing moderately intense pain, and I was always able to stop without becoming addicted. I gather that for the vast majority of people who take opiates to control pain, the same is true.

I have already answered directly to Leonard Evens.<br>

I am 54 old, and I have two prothesis of hip (and about 20 Kg of photo gear to carry).<p>

My "photo-stroller" might be interesting for somebody else. It's a baby stroller with a Lowepro Super-Trekker fixed on it.<p>

The stroller has brakes on front and rear wheels, and a speed-reducer system on the handlebar, large inflatable tires for cross-country, It can be folded and wheels are removable without tools.<p>

As I don't have a digital camera to shoot the real one, this photo is a "dummy" computer-made image. I'll try to borrow one later.<br>

My sympathies Leonard. I have suffered back problems for many years but the one solution I have found to work effectively long term is acupuncture. It's not a quick fix and some form of ongoing stretching is part of the solution too. I have tried all the usual cures including physiotherapy, chiropractors and pain killers. But what they won't tell you is the unmentioned factor is in what you eat and drink. The high levels of acidity in our modern western diets have much to do with this. A few years ago I wrote a policy review for an arthritis charity here in New Zealand and wondered at the pervasiveness of the drug cultureas a "fix". Really a case of the "Ambulance at the bottom of the cliff" I have suffered MUCH less problems since giving up caffeine about a year ago. There is an excellent book on the subject by Stephen Cherniske called "The Caffeine Blues". At the age of 32 I really did think that I was going to be stuck with a permanent disability. Not so. I can haul around a Toyo 4X5 monorail without a problem now. As I have come to understand it, back & joint problems are related to the damage of nerve endings in the muscles. The problems arise when other muscles try and take over the role of adjascant muscles, this is what causes the misalignment. Simply forcing joints back into place is a short term solution at best. There is light at the end of the tunnel!

Sorry to here about your back problem... Being a back-pain

sufferer sometimes, I really understand what you're going

through, so hang in there.

 

I live in Paris and have a "dream" of shooting large format in the

streets, much as Atget did. Even started an association for

like-minded photographers. For me, aside from time constraints,

the main problems are the incredible French bureaucracy (if you

use a tripod you need a permit to photograph a monument or in

parks, etc.), the risk of being killed in traffic or theft of equipment

while you're under the darkcloth.

 

My problem relates to yours because I can't imagine lugging

around a backpack and a tripod in this situation. One day I

noticed that some mailmen here use an enclosed push-cart to

transport small packages door-to-door. The freezer-like body is a

lightweight molded fiberglass affair, and it has four wheels; one

bicycle wheel on each side and two small wheels (front and

back) underneath, to stabilize the whole thing. It has a push

handle at the back and is a big as a small car trunk. Maybe it'd

be possible to build something similar out of marine plywood?

(assuming you live in a relatively flat area!)

 

Secondly, when I lived in Amsterdam I used to see street

merchants peddling around on three-wheeled bicycles having

two wheels in the front on either side of a large box designed to

hold alot of merchandise. It was the rear wheel which

manoeuvred the vehicle, rather the the forward wheels (sort of

like a fork lift). Another building project?

 

Perhaps these do-it-yourself ideas are the solution to your

problem, if you can't find a store-bought answer.....such is the lot

of many a large format photographer!

 

Hope this is helpful and best of luck.

 

 

Christopher Nisperos