Paul C. Buff, Inc. Technical Forum

I've always wanted to take the silver 86" plm outdoors for a photoshoot and knew the risks involved in doing so. I had assummed that on a warm afternoon with no wind that I would be able to get away with not sandbagging the 86" plm and boy was I wrong. the umbrella would move slightly to indicate that there was some air movement, however it really doesn't take much to tip over a large umbrella and thus the plm fell.... breaking 2 ribs on the umbrella: one supporting the outer portion which was secured by a rivet and the other located on the center shaft. The plm still retains it's shape, however when closing the umbrella, i run the risk of puncturing the silver material. Am I able to have this umbrella serviced? Replacing a rivet doesn't appear to be too hard to do.... it's the central shaft attachment that has a nylon? wire that might be harder to repair.



the damage:





Is this repairable if i send it into alienbees in the future?

some shots from the shoot:




moral of the story..... ALWAYS USE SANDBAGS WHEN USING LIGHT MODIFIERS OUTDOORS!

p.s. the einstein +vagabond mini combo on wheels definitely increased the mobility for this shoot and having the cybercommander on camera saved me from running back and forth to dial in the light.

I sandbag indoors, too! Particularly the 86 PLM, which can easily be bumped on set by anyone there--it is a bigger 'target'.

I have three sets of these (4 bags/set, 20 bucks) and a $5 bag of sand for each set from the home improvement store. http://www.amazon.com/PBL-SANDBAG-HEAVYDUTY-SADDLEBAG-DESIGN/dp/B001AHALEC Highly recommended: keeps your modifiers and strobes safe, keeps family/friends/clients safe, indoors and out.

That said, I am not sure that sandbags would keep an 86 safe outdoors: that is a big windcatching sail of a thing, lots of moment arm on it. If the stand is bolted to concrete, the umbrella would likely still tear itself up.

Since we do not build the PLM's here, we cannot service one. You would have to contact customer service to see if anything else can be done. Otherwise, the part that goes on the slider looks intact, telling me the retaining wire broke. If that is the case, you run the risk of all spreader ribs coming off, as the wire can then easily slip out. Using heavy guage wire, you may be able to rewire those hinges without too much difficulty.

It's vital whenever working outdoors. I use two day-glo orange saddle-style sandbacks on each light stand, scrim, or anything else that may catch the breeze, regardless of modifier size or type. I buy them at B&H, and take the extra step of lining each pocket with a gallon-size Zip-Loc plastic bag, then filling the bag with sand.

There's also the upside of the biceps curls I wind up doing with these dead weights. The downsides are the bulkiness of traveling with these sandbags and the mileage penalty for transporting all this weight in the trusty 4Runner.

http://www.ehow.com/how_7795604_fix-bro ... -ribs.html

After trying to figure out if i could find a umbrella joint rivet replacement through google, i found a solution for the outer shaft holding the umbrella rims: use a paper clip and some wire clippers. works like a champ at least for now.

The center rib attached to the shaft doesn't seem to be affecting the structure too much but i did put a piece of tape just to make sure that it doesn't slip out and poke a hole. although this is a temporary fix, it'll extend the life of the plm for awhile.

For what it's worth, I use 20 lbs ankle weights that secure to the stands nicely with built in velcroe straps. Lighter 5 and 10 lb versions can be had as well or you can just remove one or more of the removable "plates". I find them to be the best option out there and MUCH better than sand bags which are just draped over the stand. I use the Gold's Gym version available at your local Walmart! My PLM's are not going anywhere! Not with up to 60 lbs of weight easily secured to my stand!



http://www.walmart.com/ip/Gold-s-Gym-20LB-Ankle-Weights/12177363