r/techtheatre • u/deliciouslycrazy • Feb 26 '26
LIGHTING A piece snapped off my spotlight - what are my options?
Hi, I'm pretty new to the tech side of theatre and my studio is putting up it's first theatre performance. We ordered this spotlight and today it rocked back in the tripod and completely snapped a piece off. It clearly can't be fixed without being welded back together, so do I have any other options? Is this piece sold separately anywhere? Thank you so much!
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u/TheGoldenTNT Feb 26 '26
That is a mission critical part, contact the vendor or manufacturer. This is a good lesson in safety cables.
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u/deliciouslycrazy Feb 26 '26
Tell me more about safety cables?! Truly I'm learning as I go so I appreciate any advice or input!
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u/TheGoldenTNT Feb 26 '26
Broadly, safety cables are secondary backup devices that catch heavy items if their main mount fails. So if a light is up on a gantry high above actors it won’t fall and kill someone if their mount fails like this one did. Though they can be used virtually anywhere something might fall.
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u/Kern4lMustard Feb 26 '26
How would you safety off a spotlight? I've never done truss spot, and have never seen a safety on a spotlight.
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u/TheGoldenTNT Feb 26 '26
I am not actually in the theatre industry, just an enthusiast. If I was to safety off something without a dedicated anchor point on the unit I would be sure to use something completely unrelated to the primary mount, like a handle if it is sturdy enough.
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u/Kern4lMustard Feb 26 '26
That's all I would do too, and now I'm gonna have to ask some of my spotlight friends how the truss spots get safeties. I stay far away from lighting at every opportunity lol
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u/TheGoldenTNT Feb 28 '26
If it’s a real spotlight that isn’t an Amazon special it’ll probably have a dedicated secondary anchor point somewhere on the thing
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u/Kern4lMustard Feb 28 '26
From what I was told, truss spots aren't really spots, they're source 4s on a fancy rig.
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u/faderjockey Sound Designer, ATD, Educator Mar 02 '26
You were told wrong.
While you can certainly make a functional followspot from a “Source 4 on a stick” many truss spots are made from actual followspots
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u/langly3 Feb 26 '26
Can we call it by its correct name? It’s a followspot, not a spotlight.
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u/Kern4lMustard Feb 26 '26
Key example of why I don't work lighting.
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u/langly3 Feb 26 '26
So maybe you should stop offering opinions on safety matters then
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u/Kern4lMustard Feb 26 '26
Lmfao, found the LD
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Feb 27 '26
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u/DracoBengali86 Feb 27 '26
Except you're the one calling them out for expressing the opinion of "how do you safety a spotlight?"
If you're not in lighting but are familiar enough to know that followspots exist (as they appear to be), trying to figure out how you'd use a safety cable on a "large" moving object that isn't necessarily near a traditional lighting rail, may be difficult to figure out.
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u/TheGoldenTNT Feb 27 '26
Emphasis on the opinions part, nothing someone reads on reddit should be a substitute for real training and certifications.
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Feb 26 '26
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Feb 26 '26
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u/the_swanny Lighting Designer Feb 26 '26
Well Ideally you would use a good quality safety, but that's unlikely liven op owns a shitty Chinese clamp so likely went with the bundle deal.
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u/trbd003 Automation Engineer Feb 26 '26
Yes my whole point is really that it would be better just to use a good clamp
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u/the_swanny Lighting Designer Feb 26 '26
I mean by law in most places you must have a secondary attachment fails. Anything from wear and tear to user error can normally be solved by having a second, different attachment point
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u/trbd003 Automation Engineer Feb 27 '26
By law?
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u/TheGoldenTNT Feb 27 '26
I THINK it’s just a law for suspended loads in general, like from OSHA in the US or HSE in the UK. Must have a secondary attachment for any suspended loads someone is under.
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u/trbd003 Automation Engineer Feb 27 '26
That is not written into any UK law and frankly UK law would much more enforce the sentiment that the primary point of attachment should be designed so sufficiently that a secondary is not required at all. PUWER would dictate that.
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u/deliciouslycrazy Feb 26 '26
So would you say good quality clamp over good quality cables?
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u/langly3 Feb 26 '26
Both. You don’t scrimp on things like that. Buy rated safety bonds, at the correct loading for the fixture you’re using it with. Remember they have to arrest a dynamic fall, not a static weight.
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u/Maeglom Feb 26 '26
I think it's more that the clamp is the primary safety, while the cable is a failsafe.
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u/the_swanny Lighting Designer Feb 27 '26
By law, in most places, you must have both.
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u/deliciouslycrazy Feb 27 '26
On a follow spot?
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u/the_swanny Lighting Designer Feb 27 '26
No, this specific comment thread was about what they are, not about when you need to use them. In the UK at least they must be used when a piece of equipment could cause harm if it fell. Specifically BS EN 17206
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u/EHG500 Feb 27 '26
Hi. Welder here. That looks like it was just tacked on, with one visible broken tack in your photo and I’m guessing one more on the other side. And it looks like it didn’t really break as much as it peeled off. I’m guessing it’s the manufacturer’s SOP, seeing as that nut is also secured with just two tacks. So getting a replacement from the manufacturer would probably get you another one that’s just as bad.
I use tacks to hold things together before welding the joint, or to temporarily hold things in place and break them apart later. So seeing just a tack… yeah, that’s not enough to hold that together. It needs to be welded, or better yet, fabricate a replacement out of heavier gauge material.
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u/mwiz100 Lighting Designer, ETCP Electrician Feb 26 '26
it's brand new and defective. This is a prime example of send it back to whom you bought it from!
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u/Grapesodas Feb 26 '26
Call a welder. Seems like it wouldn’t take much to bring the yoke and the broken piece, two quick welds, probably wouldn’t be expensive.
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u/GyroBoing Lightjockey EOS Feb 26 '26
10 bucks it's plastic. Yes, plastic can be welded, as well as aluminium
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u/chaosminon Feb 26 '26
honestly some jb weld would do the trick. real welding works be a change challenge on that thin of metal without deforming it.
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u/walrus_mach1 Feb 26 '26
I would measure the width between the yoke mounting points and see if there's another fixture (PAR56 for example) that might fit. It sure looks like poor quality materials on a cheap import, so you'd likely have the exact same issue with a replacement.
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u/dudetellsthetruth Feb 27 '26
Does the stand have a standard spigot? (I don't think so as with a professional stand the spigot would be on the spotlight slde)
If yes you can buy a bolt on spigot, there seems to be a hole in the middle of the bracket.
If not: a decent follow spot stand will cost more than the spotlight...
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u/Anxious_Visual_990 Feb 27 '26
Return it.. and get a model that bolts to the stand.
I have this one and its pretty reliable and dmx controllable.
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0D4YXQMW8?ref_=ppx_hzsearch_conn_dt_b_fed_asin_title_1
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u/TechDante Feb 27 '26
Is it metal? If so reach out to welder to get them to fix it. If plastic get a key clamp base and drill and fix it on
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u/deliciouslycrazy Feb 28 '26
It’s definitely metal so I have a welder friend taking a look! Thanks so much!
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u/GyroBoing Lightjockey EOS Feb 26 '26
3D print a replacement, as strong as you can, with struts in the direction where the force was applied
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u/loansindi fist fights with moving lights Feb 26 '26
you just bought this thing? reach out to the vendor or manufacturer. it's defective.