YOU ARE THE 1st GAFFER ON KZread That actually showed what the job consist of. I owe you my life. I was so tired of telling people what gaffers do, and what the gear is. Now I can reference your work to point people in the right direction. You are the MAN OF THE YEAR for this!

@meetthegaffer

6 жыл бұрын

Ha, ha! I’ll let my wife know:)

Luke I have to say, that is very smart presentation. A VERY SMART ONE ! Nice the chalk approach. You should run this tutorials for money like Shane. Actually Meet the Gaffer is probably the best tutorial set ever. My sincere compliments.

@meetthegaffer

7 жыл бұрын

Right on, Luca! Thank you for the kind words. I think I've made about fifty cents on this series so far... not in it for the money:-)

To me, this particular video is most helpful because it is giving insight and know how to help me jump beyond 2k lights. I have worked on a handful of feature films and one of them I was the gaffer but the budget never required anything more than a 2k. It is difficult to make the jump into larger lights without knowing how work they distro electricity. Thank you for taking the time to produce these videos.

Thanks for this. I’m a new BBE and about to do my first distro job This was wildly useful

And this is why you hire a pro gaffer! There I was thinking I’m well equipped with a case full of stingers and power strips 🤣

your channel gives me info that it would be really difficult to learn otherwise. Thank you for making these videos!

Im a grip/electrition (same thing here) in Germany, this is fascinating, our entire Power infrastructure is so different!

@meetthegaffer

4 жыл бұрын

Yes. If you are able, it would be great to get footage and an explanation. I’m happy to make an episode around anything you come up with... if you have the opportunity to share.

@DasArmageddonTV

2 жыл бұрын

@@meetthegaffer ist pretty simple here. We have standard red labeled cables and plugs (called CEE) for three phase 400V (16A, 32A, 63A, 125A) and the same with blue labeled plugs for three pin (single phase) 220V. You can’t do anything wrong in Europe.

I am new to the industry and been rigging lately this just put much of the puzzle together for me' Much appreciated this was awesome

Thanks for the demonstration Luke this helps immensely!

Thanks for this! Needed this as a bit of a review for live event power and it was perfect. I've seen people in forums and around refuse to share information about 3 phase power bc of "safety" but knowledge is power! If someone who doesn't know what they're doing ends up setting up power distro, this is only going to help it turn out safely.

Hey Luke, I really appreciate the videos you are producing. They are definitely some of the most helpful videos I've ever watched that are on the website about the topic of set electricity. I am a sophomore in film school, but have advanced to senior classes and in no way have they taught me what you have. Keep up the amazing work and thank you.

@meetthegaffer

7 жыл бұрын

Right on, Leonard! Thank you for the kind words and all the best in what ever production related future lies ahead.

Love this series, it is amazing! Well produced and informative, keep up the good work!

Nicely done Alan! Miss you guys. I was actually online looking for a tow plant and ran into this. Mine was stolen (second time) from the Holiday Inn in Oakland last night. Best to all and thanks for stepping up and helping the youngsters coming in!

@meetthegaffer

3 жыл бұрын

😯 Stolen again. That’s just nuts.

Really enjoy the videos! I'm very much a visual and hands on learner so these really help me with some tools that I don't get to work with often in my small area.

Hello from New Zealand! Love the videos mate keep them coming. As a guy who has worked in TV for more than 15 years and is looking at getting in to more Film work your channel has been very helpful cheers.

@meetthegaffer

7 жыл бұрын

Right on, Tere! Thank you for the kind words and best of luck to you.

This is incredibly helpful and informative! I really appreciate you guys putting these videos together. Keep up the great work!

@meetthegaffer

6 жыл бұрын

Thank you,Taylor!

Alan is the man, I bought a ton of his old gear, started me in the biz!

Big THANKS ! and many blessings to you and your team Luke! I am a young Construction/Industrial Master Electrician that is brand new to the film industry in Vancouver BC Canada. Let me tell you, feeling much like an apprentice again while on set has been a big change! Your series is helping me get out of the green stage in double time! Plus its a great way to get through those long "condor calls" and night time genny op calls! LOL! Keep the videos coming my brutha!!

@meetthegaffer

6 жыл бұрын

Ha, ha! Condor watching... fun memories:)

I'm learning this is in class now and I'm so glad I found this video, OMG!!! THANK YOU, i'm starting to "get it"

@meetthegaffer

6 жыл бұрын

Good on you, Stefanie!

I've done this kind of power training before...but this video and tutorial was freaking fantastic man!! Highly recommended to anyone!

@nicholasosczypko2248

4 жыл бұрын

Lol and I misread...thought this was video number three! It's like video 43 of what looks like over a hundred....my new favourite channel!

@meetthegaffer

4 жыл бұрын

Ha, ha! Enjoy:)

Absolutely Love your videos. Can you please make a video about metering a box, why you do it, and what you do when there is a problem? I feel so many people just understand how to plug into a distro box and go, but dont check the actual box for problems before that problem gets out of hand. Either way Thanks for the great videos, and any on larger distribution are greatly appreciated as they clarify everything and make the set a safer place

@meetthegaffer

7 жыл бұрын

Hi Matt, Thank you for the kind words. I'll do my best to put together a clip about metering a box...

@mattradican8762

7 жыл бұрын

Regardless amazing videos!

@alansteinheimer4274

6 жыл бұрын

Essentially you are looking to make sure you have approx. 115-119v on a three phase distro or 122-125v on a single phase box. It is also good to test the ground. It should read the same as a neutral if it is good. Unfortunately metering the voltage does not mean you are absolutely guaranteed that you have a perfect system. If one camlok connector has 4 copper strands connected and the rest pulled out you may test positive and then run into problems when you go to plug lights in as the 4 copper strands are not going to carry 100 amps. At least by metering the legs you know that no camlok connectors are mismatched or unconnected.

Amazing work!

Invaluable info! Thank you!

Make sure to stay off your knee when plugging in power LUKE!

@meetthegaffer

3 жыл бұрын

💯

Luke I love the content, quick note on what my union has been teaching and i am not sure if its industry standard. They say to never drop a knee when plugging in the bandit due to grounding yourself and uping a chance of shock. Let me know what you think appreciate!

@meetthegaffer

6 жыл бұрын

+mac ruiz, absolutely! It’s an important rule whether your line is hot or not. Have your connection to the ground only be your rubber soled shoes and the cable you’re working with. Thanks for the input.

Thank you so much! This is really helpful!

Awesome video. Could you do a part 2 a discuss how the to properly distribute the power and balance the generator? Also, are the soft threefers in place of a spiderbox or is that something different?

@meetthegaffer

7 жыл бұрын

You know, we shot a quick mention about balancing the legs, but it didn't make it into the final edit:-( I'll do another episode with another genny owner where we can get into that...

@alansteinheimer4274

6 жыл бұрын

Spiderbox is a somewhat antiquated device, pretty much replaced by distro boxes. Spiderboxes generally had lug connectors in and out and where time-consuming with no breakers. Modern distro boxes are a lot better and safer. I mainly use soft threaders to get out of distro boxes. If you are adding a therefor to a piece of banded or 2/0 then hard threefers are fine. The you put hard threaders on a distro box (and sometimes older boxes are too tight to accommodate even) you have to raise the box on either a 1/2 apple or full apple box to allow cabling to happen.

@meetthegaffer

6 жыл бұрын

I think the autocorrect is messing this up... soft-threefer and hard threefers is what he meant to say:)

A Flur type thermal camera would be a useful diagnostic tool for an on set electric. Once things are up and running walk your cable runs and distro points to look for excessive heat. Simple, easy to use, modest cost, ~$300.

@meetthegaffer

3 жыл бұрын

Could be!

Great video!!! Thankyou!

Had a best boy tell me not to put my knee on the ground when plugging in banded, is that really a thing? (Possibly creating an arc if it's a hot line) You didn't rest on your knee when plugging into the genni and then you rested on your knee when you plugged in the 600 box. (Of course in theory it should never be hot.) Great video! Thank you.

@meetthegaffer

2 жыл бұрын

Yes, proper procedure is that you don’t put your knee(s) down when plugging in cable in case the line is hot.

@jayb.johnson139

2 жыл бұрын

@@meetthegaffer Thank you!

Hi, I've watched this a few years back and it was a very good video then and it still is now. But do you see the big tow genes and the heavy distro runs fading away because the LED fixtures are taking over the industry. It nearly feels like the switch from film cameras to digital cameras...

@justinoff1

Жыл бұрын

Yup

I'm a little bit confused what the 220 is with the yellow backing there. is that referring to amps or volts? the cable with the stage pin connectors. and you brought it up when wanting to use more powerful light, can you possibly go more in depth? thank you! :) Early in the video you mentioned not being able to use a 10k out of the 220 box but later you mentioned potentially an M90 which is 9k yes? That's why i'm a little confused thanks!

@00WhiteBlade

9 ай бұрын

Volts. The yellow paddle indicates 220v. As for the second part he replied to a comment further down. Here is his reply: "Hi Joseph, That particular box just doesn’t have a 110v receptacle from which you could run power to a 10K unless you had a 10k globe that could run on 220v power, which may be very prevalent in other parts of the world... just not in the US. It’s not really about amp draw, it’s more about what kind of power the lamp is expecting and 220v would blow a lamp manufactured to receive 110v. Theoretically the amp draw could be a factor, but that’s not the point Alan was making in this instance. Hope that helps?"

This is super helpful! Would there ever be a scenario in which you tape over your open connections like the open ends of the soft three-fer when you weren't using it or is that unnecessary?

@meetthegaffer

4 жыл бұрын

It doesn’t hurt to tape off openings. It’s a preference. I’ve seen crush tips jammed in there:) Look to ur BB Electric to what they prefer. For rain it’s good to cover with plastic and aim down and preferably boosted by a box or mat, but it’s been a while since I’ve Bested, so there are probably smarter habits out there people could share.

@trstone

4 жыл бұрын

@@meetthegaffer Awesome, thank you!

You just got me a job. Thanks!

@meetthegaffer

4 жыл бұрын

Great!

Alan IS a máster!

Question: do large film shoots have fire extinguishers on set? If so, which department is responsible for providing them? I have started carrying one in my modest grip box just so I know where one is. My fireperson friends remind me that most major fires could have been put out with a fire extinguisher in the first few minutes of the fire. Time is critical.

@meetthegaffer

3 жыл бұрын

There should be one with the genny and another on the grip truck. Sort of like hear attacks and choking: immediate attention saves lives!

Hi, Great demo. I searched the comments and didn't find a similar question (apologies if repeat). The example has a 500amp genie connected to a 600amp distro. Does the generator and distro need to be at the same Amp?

@meetthegaffer

2 жыл бұрын

It would be a good rule of thumb, but I’m familiar with 400 amp and 600 amp boxes, so what is more important is that the electrics all know what they are doing and how many amps they actually have to work with.

@davidkiang3891

2 жыл бұрын

@@meetthegaffer I work for eComm photo studio outfitted with 200a CAM box (still rarely needs 180a). We need to sub rent at a place with 300a CAM box, but my Distros are all 200a rated. This should mean the distros will limit the draw to 200a? Otherwise are there devices to adapt and step down the amps?

The color coding seems a bit odd here, but maybe it's not a hard and fast rule? All the TV trucks and tie-in service boxes I've worked on follow the common scheme for 120/208V as A-black, B-red, C-blue, N-white, G-green for 3-phase, and A-black, B-red, N-white, G-green for 120/240V single-phase. Black/White/Green for 120V and Black/Red/Green for 240V.

@meetthegaffer

5 жыл бұрын

I don’t know the definitive answer, but my experience in the Bay Area has been that we only add the black leg for 3-phase... so regular single phase with two hots is generally Red and Blue, with White for neutral and Green for ground. I think this may come from earlier days when we did our own tie-ins and built our own cable. 4-wire banded was always red&blue. 5-wire added the black.

@TimWardAV

5 жыл бұрын

@@meetthegaffer Oh ok. Gotcha. I've only just now stumbled across you channel, but loving it so far! Thanks for all you do.

@alansteinheimer4274

3 жыл бұрын

Certainly in the Bay Area the first two hot legs in the film business are red and blue. However, I have noticed that theatrical work often seems to do black and blue... don't know how much variation there is over the US or world. It is mainly confusing when using single phase on a genny... are the two hot legs black and blue or red and blue?

Hello! Absolutely fantastic video! Just found your channel and I cant stop watching! I had a quick question as I often gaff and seldom have to touch distro boxes as of late. When you say that with the 220v distro box cannot be used with 10ks because it doesnt have a 100 amp out does that mean it has no way to re-circulate the large amp draw back to the generator? thanks again and just subscribed!

@meetthegaffer

3 жыл бұрын

Hi Joseph, That particular box just doesn’t have a 110v receptacle from which you could run power to a 10K unless you had a 10k globe that could run on 220v power, which may be very prevalent in other parts of the world... just not in the US. It’s not really about amp draw, it’s more about what kind of power the lamp is expecting and 220v would blow a lamp manufactured to receive 110v. Theoretically the amp draw could be a factor, but that’s not the point Alan was making in this instance. Hope that helps?

@jkattz1

3 жыл бұрын

@@meetthegaffer Thank you for the reply, helpful! I realized where I misunderstood and now completely makes sense, love the content!

"bio feedback" LOL

Can each of those lunchboxes carry a 100 amp load, or is it 100 amp combined with extra inputs?

@meetthegaffer

2 жыл бұрын

If the lunch boxes are on the same 100A extension, then the total is 100A combined because the breaker at the flow through wil trip.

What do you do to for safety / protect those open 3 fer’s?...

@meetthegaffer

2 жыл бұрын

You can tape them. Some people put rubber crush tips on them.

This is amazing. One thing. You put your knee on the ground. Big no no.

@meetthegaffer

2 жыл бұрын

Agreed!

Interesting!!!

Thank you, note never take a knee when checking voltage?

@meetthegaffer

4 жыл бұрын

👍🏻

@Ziastarrecords

4 жыл бұрын

I appreciate your instructions 🙏

Thanks, very interesting. Btw, what the name of your silent partner, the electrical box sculpture seen at the left outside the garage?

@alansteinheimer4274

3 жыл бұрын

haha, our Tin Man has no name... he seems to change with the times... currently busy holding a plant.

So crazy how different it is then Europe. Be lucky you don't use 125 amp three phase cable

@meetthegaffer

7 жыл бұрын

If you have the time, it would be great to see video of how you set up your distro!

@R3D7STUDIOS

7 жыл бұрын

@G009 I'm camera based in the UK and don't take too much notice of the generator side of things, But I am really interested in this as well, don't we use 16-32/63Amp Cform plugs and even 3 phase RED Cform plugs on the generator more than all these individual inputs?

@J-Gx

7 жыл бұрын

Sorry, completely missed your reply. I'll try!

@J-Gx

7 жыл бұрын

That's correct. The most common is 16,32,63 and 125a cee mono/three phase plugs. However, there is also a system called powerlock, which uses the individual phases. They use this more on festivals/events. I'll try to do a video this summer about it

@R3D7STUDIOS

7 жыл бұрын

That's an awesome reply! Out of curiosity over in the US when they wanna run 5K HMI's or even a 18K, do they plug them into the Lunch boxes? as they look like there just filled with normal house domestic plugs? Is that the same technique over here or would a 5K HMI just be a 32Amp Cform plug?

8:38 , small distro lunchboxes

Who knew casting Barbie and Ken would generate $1 billion box office? ;)

@meetthegaffer

9 ай бұрын

Right?! LOL

When you use the pass through for the 100 Amp lunch box run the two boxes have to split 100Amps total correct? You can put a 100 Amp load on both boxes right?

@meetthegaffer

7 жыл бұрын

Hi Ryan, Yes, that's the idea. Just like in a house, you may be able to exceed the limit of breaker for a while, but eventually it will trip. So as a BB or set electrician you have to keep a tab on usage!

I have a question on the 100Amp lunchbox passthrough. Can the cable take 200Amps total if I chain 2x 100amp boxes together? Or am I still limited to 100amps total for that run? (I assume I'd need to run the boxes independently) Thanks!

@meetthegaffer

4 жыл бұрын

In this case, you are limited to the 100A extension, so if you use up the 100 amps in one box, you will pop a breaker soon after you add more, but if you use three on one and two on the other, you’ll be good. So your assumption is correct.

@backyardwindow

4 жыл бұрын

@@meetthegaffer Thanks! Great videos!

I don't miss this shit. Thank god for sky panels and CMOS sensors

The system used in Canada is quite different i'd have to say simpler and more robust. This set up looks unnecessarily complicated.

@meetthegaffer

6 жыл бұрын

+cam arilo, What part of Canada?

@891gennyop

6 жыл бұрын

Vancouver BC

@meetthegaffer

6 жыл бұрын

+cam arilo, Ah, I happen to be in Toronto this weekend, so I was going to see if you could show me what your set up looks like:-) Missed it by that much!

high budget set haha

can you run an 18k off a 500amp genie?

@meetthegaffer

7 жыл бұрын

Yes! The easy way to think about it is in what some call "paper amps", which means how you rough out the load requirements for a certain job. Roughly speaking, with out putting a meter on it, you can think of an 18K as needing 2 legs of 90 amps a leg. If you put the 500A genie in 3 phase, you have roughly 150A+ a leg, in single phase it's more like 250A- a leg, but you should leave some overhead. Does that make sense or am I assuming too much?

@foresterwin1837

7 жыл бұрын

makes sense! thank you:)

I hope you don't make a habit of dropping onto your knees...

@wilpedigo4374

7 жыл бұрын

that's the first thing I thought. Get that knee off the ground.

@meetthegaffer

7 жыл бұрын

+Wil Pedigo, Fair point:-) It was just a random opportunity to check out the set up on a day the stage was not working.

No way you’d get Barbie and Ken in a “budget” production -they’re not working for scale. They command premiums and very extensive riders.