Lately we've been hearing a lot about gyro-stabilizers, but the team over at Rhino, who brought you the Rhino Slider, have assembled an innovative, modular, and fully customizable shoulder stabilizer: the Rhino Rig. Since the launch of their Kickstarter campaign a week ago, the Rhino Rig has, by far, surpassed its $50,000 goal, in part because each pledge equals a preorder or part of the kit. Not only that, but they're offering you quite a deal. So, hit the jump to check out what the Rhino Rig can do, and how much you can save by pre-ordering on Kickstarter.

One of the most impressive things about the Rhino Rig is its fully customizable design. It's made up of 4 modular components: the Base Kit, the Rail System, the Cage, and the Rhino Rest, all of which can be changed to fit the operator.


The crown jewel of the Rig, in my opinion, is the Rhino Rest.

For ultimate comfort and customization, we created the first ever fully-articulating, custom-fitting shoulder rest; the Rhino Rest, which is being received as the most comfortable shoulder rest on the market. It features 9 individually articulating TPR (thermoplastic rubber) pads that distribute the weight equally across the shoulder and an integrated 15 degree cant that conforms to the slope of your shoulder. We added even more functionality by integrating eight 1/4-20 accessory mounting locations above each link.

Check out the Kickstarter video below to see the Rhino Rig in action:

Another thing that I like about this stabilizer is that you can add to it, because it's completely modular. If you're on a budget and can only afford the base kit to start, no problem. If you do a lot of action videography and only need the cage, no sweat. But, if you want to start branching out and adding to your rig, you can, and each new piece serves a purpose to make your life easier (and more stable) as you shoot.

And speaking of add-ons, the structure of the Rhino Rig allows you to add all sorts of accessories onto it, and since it's fully customizable, you don't have to worry too much about decreased mobility or performance from crowded gear.

The Rhino Rig_02

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Cameras

Even though the Cage comes in 3 different heights, any camera that is over 6.4" tall will not fit inside the tallest cage. Here is a partial list of cameras that will work with the Rhino Rig:

Canon - EOS Rebel Series, EOS-1D X, T2i, T3i, T4i, T5i, 60D, 7D, 6D, 5D Mark II, 5D Mark III, Cinema EOS-1D C, EOS C100, EOS C300, EOS C500

Nikon - D3100, D3200, D5100, D90, D5200, D7000, D7100, D300S, D600, D800, D3X, D4

Sony - a58, a65, a77, a99, NEX-3N, NEX-5R, NEX-6, NEX-7, NEX FS700, F5, F55

Panasonic - GH2, GH3, AF100

Red Digital Cinema - Red Scarlet, Red Epic, Red Dragon

Blackmagic Design - Blackmagic Cinema Camera, Pocket Cinema Camera, Production Camera 4K

Since the Rhino Rig is raising money to fund production of the Rhino Rig, they've drawn up a production plan to show you not only when to expect to receive your Rig in the mail, but also what phase of production its in along the way.

The Rhino Rig Production Plan

Just yesterday, Rhino launched some new rewards. There is now a counterweight for an extra $70:

They're also adding a new pledge called the "Rhino Studio Kit," which includes the Rhino Rig Full Kit, the new 2ft Rhino Slider PRO ($450), and Rhino Armor case ($75) for $300 off retail:

Rhino-Studio-Kit

If you're interested in learning more about the Rhino Rig, check out their Kickstarter campaign. You can also find the new 2ft. Rhino Slider PRO and case over on their website if you'd like to order one right now.

What do you think about the Rhino Rig? From what you've seen, how do you think it compares with other similar stabilizers? Let us know in the comments.

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