The Manfrotto magic arm is a very common item used in the film and television industries for quickly clamping cameras, lights and small monitors to any grippable surface and setting a position.
This one is a cheap mass produced clone, which has the disadvantage of being flimsier than the real thing, but the major advantage of being about a tenth the price.
For lightweight video making it's a very useful gadget.
Here's an eBay search link to find one. Make sure you get one that includes the clamp.
https://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_from=R40&_nkw=magic+arm+clamp+11&_sacat=0&LH_TitleDesc=0&_sop=15&rt=nc&LH_BIN=1
Target price $12 to $15.
The phone holder is usually a separate item sold as a phone tripod mount.
If you enjoy these videos you can help support the channel with a dollar for coffee, cookies and random gadgets for disassembly at:-
http://www.bigclive.com/coffee.htm
This also keeps the channel independent of YouTube's advertising algorithms allowing it to be a bit more dangerous and naughty.
This one is a cheap mass produced clone, which has the disadvantage of being flimsier than the real thing, but the major advantage of being about a tenth the price.
For lightweight video making it's a very useful gadget.
Here's an eBay search link to find one. Make sure you get one that includes the clamp.
https://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_from=R40&_nkw=magic+arm+clamp+11&_sacat=0&LH_TitleDesc=0&_sop=15&rt=nc&LH_BIN=1
Target price $12 to $15.
The phone holder is usually a separate item sold as a phone tripod mount.
If you enjoy these videos you can help support the channel with a dollar for coffee, cookies and random gadgets for disassembly at:-
http://www.bigclive.com/coffee.htm
This also keeps the channel independent of YouTube's advertising algorithms allowing it to be a bit more dangerous and naughty.
Can you combine two of these? Im thinking of buying the 23 inch version but what If buy two 11 inch and connect each other if I need more for arm reach/lenght.? Is it possible to connect two?
I had accidentally disassembled the foot and then I no longer knew how to put it back😅. But thanks to her I succeeded. Thank you very much sir
I really appreciated you taking the time to explain this. I just purchased one of these for my mic and was extremely impressed with the versatility and articulation. Then, curiosity got the better of me and I wondered how, by just adjusting the turn knob, did the rest of the arms and end-points tighten like that? I really appreciate the drawing and the video!
Brillant ! One of my kids disassemble it. This video has been very helpfull to put the right pieces at the right places. Thanks for that !
Thank you for the beautiful drawing of the previous video (comments were of course turned off). It literally made my day Clive 🙏🪛🫂☕
Here I was wondering how those ends would tighten. Great video! Thanks!
I have (or did have) one of these cheap copies of one of the most incredible bits of gear ever invented. This cheap version failed and couldn't even hold a feather in the Scottish wind. I have 6 Manfrotto magic arms (all 143s) in various forms. They have all worked perfectly (with a little love and maintenance) for 20+ years.
This cheap copy that I owned is now filming Nessie (at the very bottom of Loch Ness) along with a GoPro 7 that it was attached to. If you want to buy something dont buy a cheap Far East copy, Manfrotto are the best..
Manfrotto sells magic arms with both the clamp action and the screw action. I believe pro usage is to use the clamp for lights and screw for camera.
Nice thanks Clive, just what I need. That type of clamp is called kant clamp.
I watched one of your videos recently where you were struggling with your alligator-clip third hand for soldering some small components. Have you ever considered equipping a couple of these with alligator clips to use as a third and fourth hand? They do a good job of holding things exactly where they were when you tightened the handle. Seems like it'd be pretty easy to use these to hold fiddly components while soldering.
Really good job on the diagram
"In It's Relaxed State, The Thing Is Just All Wobbly And Loose" – That's fine. The problem arises, if it stays like that when you're trying to use it.
Came to YT to find out how my favorite bit of photo kit works. Absolutely delighted to find that Clive had me covered!