All of us who have owned or used an ARRI 2B or 2C camera know the wonderful pistol grip motor that ARRI made for these cameras. The most common problem with these motors, other than the variable speed control dying, is their proprietary plug that goes between the battery and the motor. Over time, these power cables fray, oxidize, and become unrepairable and frustrating. I have had many requests over recent years for working ARRI 2B/2C cables, and I just don’t have any more.
I decided it was finally time to make a replacement. As you all know, I hate doing stuff that modifies the existing equipment and am always looking to make something that works with the original design. My concept was, rather than create a whole new cable, to design an adapter that connects to the stock motor pins, and then has an industry standard 4-pin XLR connector on the other end of the adapter.
This arrangement allows you to use the adapter with an unmodified, standard ARRI pistol grip motor, and then use any standard 4-pin XLR power cable between the camera and the battery. With the concept clear in my head, and after 5 prototypes, I designed the adapter body so I could 3D print it on my Bambu Labs P1S.
As you can see, this is still a work in progress, but it is coming along nicely. I still have to make the tooling to machine the copper connectors that will allow the adapter to work with the stock ARRI pistol grip motor pins. I hope to have that done after Thanksgiving. Stay tuned!
