Jones & Co. Video Services

Lately I’ve been looking into cage rigs for our DSLR setup. If you’ve searched the web in the last few months you’ve probably seen several new and interesting things out there. Zacuto, Redrock Micro, Jag35, etc, all have rigs of different sizes and price ranges. I was leaning towards the Redrock when I came across a new offering from ikan. I recently bought their VX9 monitor and have been very pleased with the unit so I thought I’d take a look at their cage rigs.

ikan offers 4 versions of their “Elements” package ranging from the simple Starter Fly MSRP at $119 rig to the full loaded Super Fly MSRP at $449. They also offer a couple of complete DSLR kits called the “Fly Pack”. These include the Super Fly plus Monitor, arm, backpack in one kit and another with the same options plus an on camera light.

Based on price alone the ikan is very competitive in a very new market. Zacuto has been at the forefront of DSLR rigs and has a slew of different types of rigs. But they are VERY expensive. I do have the Z-finder and love it. It’s head and shoulders above the other viewfinders out there but you pay a premium for the quality. Same goes for the DSLR rigs. Very good quality but very pricey. On the low price end is the Jag35. I’ve heard good things about their DSLR cage but haven’t seen a review on it so can’t say how good it is. But starting at $149 you almost could throw the money at it and it definitely wouldn’t be wasted!

I decided on the ikan based on how well I like their VX9 and how good the product specifications looked online. I can say based on what I received I’m not disappointed!

The Super Fly comes disassembled in a flat box with all the components divided into stapled bags. (You can purchase each component separately as well) I glanced at the assembly instructions and proceeded to put it together just by using my normal “this goes here and this goes here..” mentality. My logic worked like magic and in a few minutes I had the unit together. One nice surprise is that in the photos online, the handles are mounted with hex bolts. And I knew i wanted and easier way of assembly and had planned on switching them to wing nuts when it arrived. But to my happy surprise, ikan has changed the hex mount bolts to a threaded thumb wheel. Yeah! Nice job ikan! Another interesting surprise is that the angle arms which hold the base plate to the handles are now a kind of “new age green” color instead of black. It’s not bright green and actually gives the unit a nice kind of design flair. Now I don’t know if this will continue in the future since I got a very new unit but I kind of like it!

With our 5DMk2 mounted, the Super Fly gives the camera a little more control. You’re able to hand hold shots a little easier and steadier. Mount an external mic and you’ve still got an easy hand hold option. But once you start adding more stuff like an external monitor, mattebox and follow focus you’re back to needing a tripod. One thing I can’t figure out how is to mount this thing onto a tripod without adding additional components. That might be the only option though.

In the photos you see a bracket directly under the camera. This isn’t part of the Super Fly. I’m just using it to support and level. The Cavision mattebox is not to my liking with this rig. It’s too bulky. Our Redrock Micro Mattebox is WAY too big so we’ll be getting a smaller, screw-on mattebox. The ikan VX9 is great but may be a little too large for this type of setup. Might need a 5-6″ monitor.

What i like so far…

• Easy to assemble.
• Price is very good.
• Quality fit and finish
• Extra mount holes on angle arms. Nice.
• Lots of add on components.

Things I’d like to see changed…

• No way to mount onto tripod as is without additional components. Should be standard.
• The handles still spin some even when cranked down with the thumb wheel. I want them solid, no spinning. Maybe a rubber or fiber washer would help. I’ll try it later. If it works I think ikan should include them.
• The mounting plates only have threaded holes in the center area. I’d like them on the outer edges as well so I can spread things out a bit.

I’m pretty pleased with the Super Fly. It’s rock solid, light and feels good in your hands. Plus with all the components you can add allows a multitude of mounting options.

Overall a good product at a reasonable price range.

Super Fly

Part directly under camera is separate part for leveling only

Not too neat but just for show