This summer I got a Hague K10 crane because I wanted to add some productionvalue to a corporate film. I've used it to get nice footage but I wanted something better. The K10 crane is a decent crane with a long reach. It's easy to setup but I felt a couple of things about it I didn't like.
It can only take a load up to 2.5 kg. A single bar so any vibration got enhanced resulting in footage with a bouncing camera. It can't be levelled so you really have to use it on a level surface. It didn't came with a dolly so moving it around was not to fun.
My Panasonic AF101 with lens comes in under 2.5 kg but to have a crane that is maxed out by the small AF101 is limiting. Instead I wanted a crane that could be used on several cameras and beefier cameras. Entering Hague K12 crane.
I liked the basic concept of the Hague K10 and all parts are of good quality so I went up in their crane line to the K12.
This crane uses two bars on top of each other and it's much sturdier to avoid any sway or bounce. It solves all the things I didn't like about the K10.
Payload up to 14 kg, it can be levelled, you can use any tripod with a dolly so moving it around becomes practical and it can be used at different lengths, a great feature.
It's also cheaper than the EZ FX jib with extension kit I first had in mind.
Up to 4 meters lift and with my AF101 and Manfrotto 504 head at the longest length it's very steady. If I yank it you get some bounce but compared with the K10 it's night and day.
When you have the 504 head you can stay at the back of the crane and do lifts or you can grab the handle of the 504 and do crane moves at the front of the crane.
The Hague K12 is not ready to go out of the box. You have to add a tripod and head. I tried it on my Manfrotto 546 tripod and it works but the 546 has a max payload of 20 kg. Instead I have a Manfrotto 528XB heavy duty tripod on order along with a dolly spreader.
Assembly time might be little longer than with the K10 and you assembly it differently. With the K10 you started with the tripod and the K12 you start with putting all crane parts together. I counted nine screws on the K12 to assembly it. All tool-less which is great. There are ball bearings so again compared with the K10 using the K12 is much smoother.
I also like the fact that weights are put on from the top so you only have the weight pin to fasten instead as with the K10 you had to fasten the whole bar. I guess about 15 kg counter weight is needed to balance it, in it's longest state, with the AF101 and 12/1.6 SLR Magic Hyperprime mounted.
So far I've shot some test footage and it looks very good. No bounce and smooth motion.