[Q+A] Insight from the Experts – Steve Marshall and Dirty Rigger®

Dirty Rigger™ is a growing brand in the entertainment industry, and their products have already been distributed to over 50 countries to rave reviews. Their product line revolves around quality varieties of rigging gloves, tool bags and belts that have been designed specifically for entertainment professionals. What makes Dirty Rigger’s product line rise above the competition? We went behind the scenes and spoke with Product Manager Steve Marshall about what drives him and Dirty Rigger to succeed. Production workers face unique issues and specific situations—how does Dirty Rigger manage to meet the high standards we demand? Take a look…

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Lejan Announced as MTN BOX® Dealer Representative in Netherlands

MTN BOX® partners with Lejan

Global Expansion for the MTN BOX® Brand

MTN BOX® is excited to partner with Lejan, an experienced provider of flight cases, bags, and transport cases with 80 years of high quality service. Lejan will be the MTN BOX® dealer representative in the Netherlands, making the MTN BOX® product line easily available to European users.

Lejan is a company backed by three generations of experience creating and manufacturing custom packing solutions. They are a full service provider, starting with research and development and following through the entire manufacturing process.

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[Q+A] Insight from the Experts – Ed Leahy and The Chicago Flyhouse

We’re excited to host Ed Leahy from Chicago Flyhouse as the new rigging trainer at our 32nd CM Hoist School event. Ed is a veteran of the rigging industry, working with the world renowned Chicago Shakespeare Theater as their Technical Director before transitioning to The Chicago Flyhouse Inc. as their Head Trainer and Cruise Ship Division Manager. Chicago Flyhouse is a diverse production company providing a wide range of theatrical rigging services, including stage/studio rigging, automation, softgoods, safety/fall protection, and more. Ed took some time to talk to us about the Safer Venue program (Chicago Flyhouse’s rigging inspection program), what he’s seen change in the industry over the years, his career launch into rigging and more.

Ed Leahy from The Chicago Flyhouse

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CM Lodestar Lubricant Guide

We’re back with another handy resource detailing the proper lubrication procedures for 5 areas of a CM Lodestar. Maintaining hoists will greatly improve the operation and longevity of your equipment—make sure you’re taking the steps necessary to get the most out of your hoists. This is a quick reference guide, but if you need more information or assistance, we’re only a phone call away. Enjoy!

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CM Tech of the Month: Wade Mannes and LMG

We’re excited to announce Wade Mannes from LMG as our CM Technician of the Month! Wade gave us some quick info about himself and his career before bustling away to his next job. Read more below.

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Anchor and stabilize your staging with these 5 types of Ballast

Nearly everything we build requires some type of ballast for stability and grounding. Ballast is necessary, especially when working outdoors, and ensures our stages are supported from the ground up. Monitoring wind speeds and the effect nature has on our structures is critical, but ballast is the anchor that provides the first level of stability. Here are 5 types of ballast that we use on our staging systems and support structures.

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Water Tubs & Barrels

Water tubs offer many advantages as a ballast solution. Using water tubs saves money on trucking, as they are shipped without weight as a factor. Water is easily supplied on site, and the extra weight reduction can make a big difference on transportation cost and efficiency.

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Download Dirty Rigger’s Glove Sizing Guide

Dirty Rigger’s glove line is available in a variety of sizes, ranging from Slimfit sizes for smaller hands all the way up to XXL. With so many size options, it’s important to find the correct fit for you—after all, these gloves are optimized for all-day comfort IF you are wearing the appropriate size. Dirty Rigger created an easy way to find the best size gloves for you, and all you need is a printer and a piece of paper.

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[FEATURED PRODUCT] SureFire Sidekick™

Our featured product this week comes from SureFire, a proud U.S. manufacturer of illumination tools, weaponlights, suppressors, high-capcaity magazines, and more. The ultra-compact SureFire Sidekick is a lightweight triple-output LED flashlight that attaches directly to your keys or retractable Lightkeeper clip for instant light when you find yourself in the dark. This product goes beyond the work day, and is ideal for anyone, including children.

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Built to last

Many of us have a small lightsource on our key rings for those times at night when you need a quick beam of light. More often than not, these mini flashlights are built cheaply and stop working after a few uses.

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Visual Guide to Common Cable Connectors

There’s a ton of different types of cable connectors in use, and it’s important to choose the right one for your application. Both feeder and motor (fly) cables are required for our jobs, and our electric shop often encounter the same type of connectors used throughout entertainment production specialists.

This visual guide below gives a quick reference to what these common cable connectors look like, and what they’re used for. Take a look!

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[STAGING SPOTLIGHT] The Rolling Roof Front of House

Your performers won’t be too happy without a reliable, experienced front of house crew. The front of house structure is critical to an event’s success, and Mountain Productions provides three styles of mix position structures for FOH operators. This week’s Staging Spotlight dives into our Rolling Roof retractable mix position.

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Retractable and engineered for practicality

Using our versatile scaffold system as its base, the Rolling Roof front of house utilizes a combination of extrusion, weather protection vinyl panels, and roller beams to create a 360° covered mix position.

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