Speedotron brown line Soft boxes beauty dishes etc

[kdthomas]

Just got my new strobes ... Comes with two m90 and 1 mw3 head(s) ... Very pleased.

I have umbrellas, but I think I'd like to get some soft boxes and maybe a beauty dish ... How would I get these and how do they attach to the heads?

Thanx!

 

[tirediron]

Unless you buy the M11 heads (highly recommended) you're stuck using modifiers with umbrella shafts. Is yours the MW3R or 3U; the U has an umbrella shaft hole, the R is just a fill light head and not meant for modifiers. There are lots of softboxes on eBay which have umbrella shafts.

 

[kdthomas]

Oh for the love of god!!! Did I just throw $1200 down the crapper???!!!

Sorry I just don't want to spend that kind of money, only to wind up having to do a bunch of duct tape, chicken wire Sanford-and-Son nonsense

 

[tirediron]

Not at all! Westcott softboxes (available in many sizes) are easy to work with, fold up like nothing and produce beautiful light.

 

[Derrel]

As far as softboxes for the M90 or MW3u type heads: for many years, there has been a SPECIAL Brown Line speed ring, made by Chimera; I own a couple of them, and they DO work well. I have used mine to attach softboxes using this special speed ring, on both M90 and M11 (and also 103 Black Line heads, virtually identical to Brown Line M11 in design). The speed ring you WANT is the one made by Chimera: Chimera Speed Ring for Speedotron 2350 B&H Photo Video

It is basically a standard, very strong Chimera speed ring, but at the bottom is about a 5-inch long aluminum shaft that mounts through the umbrella receptacle on the MW3u or M90 or M11. The needed mod is nothing more than a solid metal shaft, screwed to the bottom of a speed ring, with a flat spot milled off the end to prevent twisting. This mod could be done to any Chimera type ring.

 

[kdthomas]

Not at all! Westcott softboxes (available in many sizes) are easy to work with, fold up like nothing and produce beautiful light.

OK, thanks, this looks like an option ... freaking out a bit, sorry ... I'm really scared I've gotten in over my head and am going to start drowning in $500 trial-and-error frustrations.

I've been looking for adapters and these things called "speedrings" like this one:

Amazon.com : Fotodiox 10SPRSPD Speedring for Speedotron Black Line 202VF, 206VF, 102, 103, 105, Brown Line MW3R, MW3U, MW3UQ, M90, M90Q, M11 Strobe Flash Light and Speed Ring : Flash Adapter Rings : Camera & Photo

But I can't see how this would mount to the head of an M90, where are the holes for the three screws?

 

[Derrel]

That advertisement is flat-out WRONG. The speed ring shown uses what is called a "Speedotron Universal Mount", a two-lug bayonet fitting, designed to work on the Black Line lights, and the Brown Line M11, which also uses the Universal Mount. But it LACKS any way to be fitted to the Brown Line M90 or MW3 series lights; that ad copy is flat-out wrong. The two-lug system in Universal Mount are those two half-moon cut-outs seen in the inner collar. The item for sale is basically the new, cheap Chinese-made style of speed ring. Not sure who slapped on the M90 and MW3 series compatibility stuff...that's in error. Those light units NEED an UMBRELLA SHAFT mounting; they can NOT use that Universal Mount system!!!

 

[kdthomas]

Yeah, that's kinda what I thought, when I saw that

OK, well it looks like I'm going to have to make do with what I've bought, and I can do that. Maybe down the road I can invest in some M11's. At least with the westcotts there's a purpose-built product out there for this situation. I'm certainly not at a dead end.

What the heck, there's lots of people in the world that would kill, to have the only thing bothering them be the idea that the brand-new expensive camera lighting system they bought is going to make them work and think a little bit . Who knows, maybe it'll make me a better photographer. Perspective. Gratitude. Lesson learned

 

[Village Idiot]

$1200! Did you buy new? What else did you get with that?

Speedrings are the adapters that make things work. I have a Kacey Interprises (great for the price) beauty dish that I've used on Speed, Alien Bees, and Dynalite heads. I also have an Elinchrom Deep Octa that I've used on my Speedo gear and have just been too lazy to get the right speed ring for my Dynas. Pretty much anything will work if you put the right speed ring on it.

 

[tirediron]

$1200! Did you buy new? What else did you get with that?

Speedrings are the adapters that make things work. I have a Kacey Interprises (great for the price) beauty dish that I've used on Speed, Alien Bees, and Dynalite heads. I also have an Elinchrom Deep Octa that I've used on my Speedo gear and have just been too lazy to get the right speed ring for my Dynas. Pretty much anything will work if you put the right speed ring on it.

That's the problem; with the M90 & M3 there's NO WAY to put a speed ring on these lights. On the M3, you can't even remove the reflector, and the M90 is flat-out too big for the "universal" mounting system.

 

[kdthomas]

tirediron, will the rods on those Westcotts be strong enough to hold an M90 head? All the pic show 'em holding speedlights ...

 

[tirediron]

tirediron, will the rods on those Westcotts be strong enough to hold an M90 head? All the pic show 'em holding speedlights ...

They're showing the softbox mounted to a speedlight/umbrella bracket on a light stand. You will be putting the umbrella rod directly into the light. There are no strength issues at all. I have a couple of the Wescott boxes and use them with my brown line gear (M11, M90, and MW3U) all the time.

 

[kdthomas]

They're showing the softbox mounted to a speedlight/umbrella bracket on a light stand. You will be putting the umbrella rod directly into the light. There are no strength issues at all. I have a couple of the Wescott boxes and use them with my brown line gear (M11, M90, and MW3U) all the time.

Great, that's a relief to hear! I'll get a couple of these in the pipe, maybe some grids, and some barn doors for the M90's (grrr 2-door only!) and a snoot for the MW3. Or maybe make my own barn doors! (NOT)

I really do appreciate everyone's guidance.

 

[Derrel]

That's the problem; with the M90 & M3 there's NO WAY to put a speed ring on these lights. On the M3, you can't even remove the reflector, and the M90 is flat-out too big for the "universal" mounting system.

But there actually **is** a very easy,simple, proven way to put a speed ring on these lights: the speed ring is mounted by affixing a short length of simple aluminum or brass rod material to the bottom edge of a standard Chimera brand speed ring. That rod then goes through the umbrella mounting hole on either an M90 head, or an MW3u head. The speed ring is available ready-built and new for $42. As an aside, the M90's reflector does remove by unscrewing it, if desired. I've not tried to remove the reflector on an MW3, and am not sure how it is affixed to the body.

 

[kdthomas]

This item?

2350 - Chimera