New From Setwear – Safety Glasses

Setwear just announced the arrival of their latest product, the Safety Glasses. I have to hand it to Setwear.  They are out to protect us.  First our hands for almost any application to tool belts and now protection for our eyes. kudos Setwear!
More about the Setwear Safety Glasses:

• Lightweight and flexible polycarbonate frame construction
• Contour lens enhances peripheral coverage
• Impact resistant polycarbonate lenses
• Protective storage bag included
• Provides 99% protection against harmful UV-A and UV-B rays
• LENS COLORS: CLEAR & SMOKE

Learn more about the Setwear Safety Glasses from Setwear’s website www.setwear.com. Retail price of either the clear or smoke lens, $8.95 USD.

#LDI2010: StageJunk.com Releases Flat Ultimate Focus Tool

Rob Junk from StageJunk.com is at it again.  First it was the Ultimate Focus Tool, then the Ratcheting Ultimate Focus Tool and now, the Flat Ultimate Focus Tool!  How many different designs of a tool can Rob come up with?!?  I though he had it right at the original Ultimate Focus Tool! Again and again he is proving me wrong!

This year at LDI, StageJunk.com showed off the Flat Ultimate Focus Tool.  It does a lot of what the other UFT’s do, but comes in far less expensive then it’s big brothers.  Hold on to your pants… the Flat Ultimate Focus Tool goes for just $20 USD!!!  Check out the quick video of Rob demoing the Flat Ultimate Focus Tool.

Field Template Releases New Metric Drafting Stencil, The METRIC RULES!

The METRIC RULES! Stencil is the latest offering from Field Template. Using the patented Pro•Grid Metric 50 system, all cutout lighting symbols are pre-spaced 50 centimeters apart and aligned onto a horizontal axis like a batten. Manufacturers include ETC, Selecon, Strand, Robert Juliat, CCT, L&E, Reich & Vogel, and even includes a favorite of many designers, the Strand Patt 23! Adjacent to every 1:25 cutout symbol is text displaying the metric weight, cut color size, and beam spread information for that symbol.

The METRIC RULES! Stencil also contains a substantial collection of ancillary symbols not found on any other template; LED dots, HMI indicators, dimming shutters, scrollers, top hats, half hats, along with several sizes of circles, rectangles, squares, triangles, and generic moving light symbols.

The METRIC RULES! Stencil is laid out so that every lighting and ancillary symbol is repeated in two scales—both 1:50 and 1:25. The scales are printed on either side of the template. ½” and ¼” scales are also printed on the scalloped edge of the template.

The METRIC RULES! Stencil is packaged in an A4 page format. Four cutout holes across the 1:25 edge allow it to snap into a 2-hole or 4-hole A4 binder. The top sticks out to act as a tab separator in the notebook.

For more information on Field Template, please go to www.fieldtemplate.com.

Setwear Preparing to Introduce EZ-Fit EXTREME Gloves

Starting sometime in July 2010, Setwear will be releasing their latest glove, the EZ-Fit EXTREME. I made that bolder to help carry the weight behind it.  It makes me want to scream it each time I say it, well, at least in my head anyway.

The EZ-Fit EXTREME are new and improved version of the Setwear EZ-Fit 2 gloves. Some of the new features include:

• Increased form fitting padded spandex knuckle paneling
• 4 mil gel foam padded synthetic leather palm
• thick rubber exterior finger guards
• stretchable elastic cuff design

Just like almost all of Setwear’s gloves, the EX-Fit EXTREME comes in X-small to XX-Large.  If you are like @UKSLC and can’t get to a show room near you to try them on, use Setwear’s online glover chart. The retail price of the new glove is $30.95 USD.  Call your local dealer or find a Setwear Dealer near you to order a pair up. Learn more about Setwear products by visiting their web site at www.setwear.com.

iSquint Holiday Gift Guide for the Theatre Geek

Can you feel that?  It’s the gift giving season! There are always great gift giving guides for loved ones, kids, add all kinds of other people in our lives.  But what about the techie in all of us?

There are a bunch of cool tools and toys out there for the techie and designer in all of us.  Most of these gadgets help us do our jobs quicker and easier.  Then there are some that are just way to cool not to own and play with.

The iSquint Holiday gift Guide is just a sampleing of some ideas on what to get.  Where can you pick up these great gift ideas?  Try your local theatrical dealer. If you can’t find it there, you can certainly find it online some where.  But as today is December 7, you better hurry, you want to make sure to get your gifts in well before the celebration begins!

I have broken down the guide into three list.  One list for each type of theatre professional.  While of course there are many MANY other types of theatre professions, I am just focusing on these at the moment.  If you feel that I am missing a great gift to add to the guide, let me know if the comments section of this article.

Happy Hunting!

Techie

• The Ratcheting & Original Ultimate Focus Tool
• Focus Glass
• C-wrench
• Pin Splitter
• iPhone Lighting  apps
• Setwear Gloves
• Backstage handbook
• FireSword Flashlight
• MagLight
• Spyderco Knife
• iTunes Gift Card

Lighting Desingers

• Lux meter
• Seachanger Color Bug Meter
• Lightwright 5
• Vectorworks
• WYSIWYG

Programmers

• Enttect Programming Wings
• DMX Coffee Machine
• Swisson DMX tester

Again, these are just a sampling of gifts to get the theatre professional in your life. Am I missing something to the list? Let me know in the comments section of this post.

FireSword-IV, When is a Flash Light to Bright?

You have to ask yourself sometimes, when is a flash light to bright?  My response, Brighter the Better Baby!

One of iSquint’s readers, Tobin Neis sent me a link this morning about something he read in Wired Magazine, the FireSword-IV from Elektrolumens. First things first, this thing puts out over 3,000 lumens. Talk about CRAZY bright! The FireSword is powered by four – 18650 Lithium-Ion Rechargable Batteries. It uses four – Cree MCE LED’s with custom 20mm reflectors. The LEDs have a life expectancy of 50,000 lamp hours which equals 5 years of continuous use.

The FireSword measures in at little over 1 foot long and just under 3 inches at the head. Elektrolumens does not mention what the FireSword is made from, but I would assume Aluminum, but weighs in at 3 lbs.

To learn more about the FireSword-IV, visit Elektrolumens website at www.elektrolumens.com.  You can also purchase your very own FireSword from their online shopping cart for $399.99.  But you might have to wait a bit on delivery, each of the Fireswords are custom built!

The Piranha By PocketToolX.com

Tools tools tools, we can never have enough tools.  But what about tools that do more then one job?  How about The Piranha from PocketToolX.com?

The PIRANHA is a single-piece, multi-purpose pocket tool that is constructed from heat-treated and corrosion-resistant S30V Stainless Steel with a built-in neoprene double-ended driver bit holder.

Keep this slim tool in your pocket and you’ll always be able to tighten screws, loosen bolts, pry things open and pop the tops on your favorite beverages.

Once I read that the Piranha opens my favorite beverage, I was SOLD! Here are some more features of The Piranha:

Video: StageJunk’s Ratchet Ultimate Focus Tool

While down in Orlando, StageJunk announced the release of their latest Ultimate Tool, the Ratchet Ultimate Focus Tool.The new tool looks and feels just like the previous tool, the Ultimate Focus Tool, with one exception, the Ratchet.

StageJunk has taken the all aluminum tool and re-engineered the wrench portion of the tool to incorporate a fully ratcheting wrench. The tool still has the great features that we know and have come to love, such as the pin splitter, the continuity checker and of course, the ability to open a bottle of beverage.

Rob Junk, the owner and name sake of StageJunk took time out of quite busy booth at LDI to give me a quick run through of his latest tool, the Ratchet Ultimate Focus Tool.

SeaChanger Offer $100 Savings on ColorBug AND MORE!

Talk about service!  Not only is SeaChanger offering $100 bucks off the ColorBug Light and Measurement tool, but they will personal hand deliver it to you at LDI… That is if you are attending! And to top it off, you will get hands on training on the ColorBug, right there on the show floor!

Here is the Billy Maze line.. But Wait, THERE IS MORE, with every purchase of the ColorBug, you will also get a special, limited edition SeaChanger Duck.

Hurry and get your order in now, this is a limited time offer that expires on November 22, 2009.
To learn more and purchase your own ColorBug, visit www.SeaChangeronline.com.

Ocean Optics Jaz Light Meter

While doing some research on the internet, we came across an interesting tool from Ocean Optics, the parent company for the SeaChanger color engine, called the Jaz Light Meter.

What is neat about the Jaz that is that is a small light weight meter with a lot of features built in. Such as the ability to radiometric analysis all sorts of light emitting devices from LEDs, flat panel displays and lamps.

This pre-configured, pre-calibrated spectrometer suite is the ideal tool for quality control, lab and field measurements of LED chips, assemblies and other luminaires. With the Jaz Light Meter, and its onboard processor, you can measure spectral characteristics and calculate key parameters like Lux, Lumen, PAR and Watt values. The battery module enables you to measure for up to 8 full hours, without recharging, and Jaz’s SD card slot gives you a convenient way to store spectral data. You can also download Jaz’s data into SpectraSuite for post-processing and determining CIE color coordinates, color rendering indexes and color temperature.

The Jaz meter comes with the SpectraSuite software to analysis a source of light and calculate a multitude of characteristics of a light such as Lumens, Lux, PAR and watts. All of this information is stored on to an SD card in the Jaz meter and then downloaded into a computer running the SpectraSuite Software.

Where does this have use in the entertainment industry?  Rental shops and manufacturers of lighting fixtures can analyze a fixture very easily either in a lab or out on the road to make sure fixtures are up to snuff and producing the correct levels you desire.

For more information on the Jaz Light Meter, visit Ocean Optics website at www.oceanoptics.com. The retail price of the Jaz Meter in a rugged Pelican case is only $5,972.

Lex Products Donates Portion of Proceeds to Behind the Scenes

We love hearing news like this.  Since last LDI, Lex Products has been donating portion of the first year’s sales of the 6 Circuit Live Tester to ESTA’s Behind the Scenes.  Since that first year ends this LDI in Orlando, Lex has decided to extend this giving until the end of 2009.

This gives you two more months to not only get the Lex 6 circuit Live End Tester, but also help your fellow professionals in their time of need.

To learn more about the Lex Product 6 Circuit Live End Tester, visit Lex’s website at www.lexproducts.com.  To learn more about ESTA’s behind the Scenes Charity, visit their website at www.estafoundation.org.

Survey: What Tool Can A Lighting Professional NOT live Without?

Recently we were looking through our gak box of tools, testers and gadgets and wondering to ourselves, do we really need all of these for a show?  Turns out probably not, but it is always safe to have all those tools available to us!  But if we had to, what tool could we not live with out?

Do you have a certain tool that use day in and day out and can not live with out?  What is it?  We would love to know.  Let us know in the comment section.