# Safety Cables



## chris325 (Mar 26, 2009)

I'm curious how much of the lighting inventory of other theatres is safety cabled. My high school keeps all fixtures safety cabled, and on more than one occasion it has saved a light from falling. I've seen other schools that only safety cable some of their lights, or even none at all.


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## Les (Mar 26, 2009)

It should be 100% in every theatre.


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## DaveySimps (Mar 26, 2009)

Les said:


> It should be 100% in every theatre.



Ya, no debate what so ever. That is the only acceptable answer.

~Dave


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## derekleffew (Mar 26, 2009)

Les said:


> It should be 100% in every theatre.


Even on shinbusters, cyc footlights, and other deck-mounted fixtures?

The only absolute in this industry is that there are no absolutes!


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## cdub260 (Mar 26, 2009)

There are a few select fixtures that I don't safety cable These would be my foot lights, anything on a floor mount and one light pipe in the bushes house left that's below waist hight.


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## avkid (Mar 26, 2009)

I used to do a weekly audit (usually late at night) and inspect every rig on the property for safety violations.

If it's above your waist while on deck, it better have a cable.


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## BillESC (Mar 26, 2009)

At $ 2.50 for a quality 18" safety cable, it's the cheapest insurance you'll ever buy.

Every fixture, every time.


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## Sayen (Mar 26, 2009)

I agree with Bill. Every light I have, even those in storage, has a cable permanently attached through the yoke. Even hung as shin busters, the cable is there - and when someone not in the know moves the fixture to an overhead position, the cable is ready to use.


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## icewolf08 (Mar 26, 2009)

Wow, I really thought we had a poll like this a while back, but I can't find it. So...

Every fixture in my inventory has a safety cable that it always with it. All fixtures that get hung over people's heads gets safetied to the hanging position.


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## iLightTheStage (Mar 26, 2009)

Sayen said:


> I agree with Bill. Every light I have, even those in storage, has a cable permanently attached through the yoke. Even hung as shin busters, the cable is there - and when someone not in the know moves the fixture to an overhead position, the cable is ready to use.



Personally, I've never much preferred the eye-thru-yoke attachment, but I understand why people prefer it. In the least, it'll stop video from stealing your safeties to hang their screens.


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## Erwin (Mar 27, 2009)

Who voted for nothing?


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## ReiRei (Mar 27, 2009)

At the beginning of this school year, a fellow tech and I counted every light and safety cable that we had so we could order exactly what we needed and a little more. I safety cable everything, and I've gotten into the habit of checking that every light has a safety cable. Because sometimes when I look up, I see lights that have safety cables but aren't cabled to the batten.


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## Sony (Mar 27, 2009)

We safety cable every fixture that is not on the ground. We do not safety cable anything in storage or mounted to the deck as it is kind of pointless and my department is too cheap to buy safety cables for every fixture (Don't get me started.) I do however on every show I design, personally check that every fixture not on the ground is properly tightened and has it's safety cable properly attached. Any fixture that doesn't have one gets one and if I can't find one I make one out of 1/8" Aircraft Cable and Nicopress fittings.


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## gafftaper (Mar 27, 2009)

Alex you're probably thinking about the thread with the poll, "do you use the integral safety attachment?"

I want to point out my post on the 4th page of that thread that describes my new technique for attaching the safety cable. I've been using it for about 9 months now. I've yet to run into a situation where it doesn't work. It takes about 10 seconds longer than normal but I'm convinced it's the safest way to hook up a fixture. Check it out here complete with a picture.


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## church (Mar 27, 2009)

All fixtures have either a cable or chain. If something is floor mounted then the cable or chain may be removed to avoid someone tripping on it if it can't be taped out of harms way.


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## Esoteric (Mar 27, 2009)

Every light. Period. I dont care if it is 18" off the floor, it has a safety cable.

Mike


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## chris325 (Mar 27, 2009)

I've seen a lot of high schools that wouldn't safety cable their fixtures that were in storage on the catwalks, which seems like a ridiculous cost-cutting measure. The only thing I don't safety cable is barn doors, as the C'tran fresnels we use the barn doors on keep them well-secured to the fixture.


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## JD (Mar 27, 2009)

For the cost of an S4, you can pick up almost 200 safety cables! I always leave them attached to the fixtures, even if they are laying on a shelf. That way you never have to hunt and will be less tempted to hang it without one.


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## cprted (Mar 27, 2009)

Here everything gets safety cabled (including barn doors) unless its a chin or stored on the upstage storage racks. We don't make a habit of storing extra instruments on the FoH cats. I wish we had the C-tran fresnels. It doesn't take much to knock the barn door off the front of a Strand.


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## SteveB (Mar 27, 2009)

Esoteric said:


> Every light. Period. I dont care if it is 18" off the floor, it has a safety cable.
> 
> Mike



I agree. You never know when you're going to have a hobbit walk under a boom unit.

Steve B.


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## Les (Mar 27, 2009)

SteveB said:


> I agree. You never know when you're going to have a hobbit walk under a boom unit.
> 
> Steve B.



And, if there's ever a tornado, that is one less flying projectile.


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## Sony (Mar 27, 2009)

Les said:


> And, if there's ever a tornado, that is one less flying projectile.



rofl, I think during a tornado it wouldn't matter if it was safety cabled....I'd be more worried about the entire boom going flying!


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## Clifford (Mar 27, 2009)

We have 54 working fixtures in our inventory (96 total) that we regularly use for shows. Last time I counted we had 11 safety cables. Two are pretty heavy duty, I think we "indefinitely borrowed" them from the digital media class' studio. The rest are okay, but two are used to hold up a drop in the SR wing from _Fiddler on the Roof_ that was too nice to throw away. The only things we have safetied right now are the fixtures over the stage (cycs not included). Our FOH catwalk has a fence sorta thing, which is why I don't worry as much about those lights as I do about the others.

Safety cables are on my list of things to buy with the money we're getting soon.


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## csheleytd (Mar 27, 2009)

I also make sure all of our units have working gel frame clips and that every gobo rotator and color changer has a safety on it all the time.


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## willbb123 (Mar 27, 2009)

Every instrument that is not in storage, except for the cyc row. Instruments in storage dont get cabled, because of the way they are stored. They are on the inside of the catwalk. So if they were to drop off the pipe they would just hit the catwalk and stay.

Every accessory gets a safety cable. Except for our GAM twinspins, I have yet to find a good way to secure them.


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## MNicolai (Mar 27, 2009)

Every fixture, every accessory, even on the ground. I leave safety cables on everything so that it is always there when needed and no one cuts corners while saying, "But I couldn't find one," even when they really mean, "I didn't want to look for one."

Our top hats have holes drilled in them for connecting safeties, as well as our barn doors. The only things that don't get them are template holders, gels, gel frames, and I've found no good way to give extra security to my image multiplexers.

I do have an issue when we hang our Altman R40 border lights though and have no good way to safety them.


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## awhaley (Mar 28, 2009)

With striplights, I've been known to chain 2 or 3 safeties together and wrap them all the way around the fixture and batten in two different places. I've seen people who safety striplights by just wrapping around the point where the 'tilt' bolt goes in securing it to the hanging iron... but since I consider this the most likely point of failure for major mechanical disaster, I don't trust that. Wrapping the whole fixture and batten isn't pretty close up, but who cares? 

And I'm also with the 'safeties really need to stay on every light all the time unless they pose a safety risk themself (shins, where they could be a trip hazard, as an example) because in my experience, tired electricians at the end of the day won't go find a safety if it's not there already... almost everyone will fasten it if it's on the light, but a lot of people won't go track one down if it's not there waiting for them.... be it from laziness or forgetfullness. 

You know, I've never actually had to have a safety save a light... I've heard people say they have, but the only unit I've ever seen dropped fell as an electrician was getting ready to hang it when the safety wasn't yet attached... so couldn't do any good. But I'm quite certain that if a light ever did fall out of the sky and hurt someone, the FIRST question asked of anyone who'd drafted it, prepped it, hung it, focussed it, or even just walked close by it would be 'DID IT HAVE A SAFETY CABLE?' And if you say no, the hunt to assign blame for the accident just ended right there with you. Why would you expose yourself to that kind of risk to save a very few dollars or seconds?

Art Whaley
Art Whaley Design


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## renegadeblack (Mar 28, 2009)

I personally view it as a hazard that is punishable by law. Is it? I don't know. Do the techies I'm training know? I tell them that its punishable by law. Do they safety everything? You bet!

When I was back in middle school, we didn't know what these cables were that came with the rental lights. He told us that they're safety cables and that you only put them on rental lights


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## JD (Mar 28, 2009)

Can't say I've ever had a safety come into play. Its like the airbag in a car. Probably never needed, but it will save your life if you do! When you imagine the weight of a mover, or even an S4, and then you think of it dropping 20 or 30 feet....


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## SteveB (Mar 28, 2009)

awhaley said:


> tired electricians at the end of the day won't go find a safety if it's not there already... almost everyone will fasten it if it's on the light, but a lot of people won't go track one down if it's not there waiting for them.... be it from laziness or forgetfullness.
> 
> Which is why I don't keep the safety's with the fixture, preferring instead to assign someone to attach safeties and make sure all fixtures get them. I also have someone go around and pull shutters and check that the square head bolt is tight and that the fixture doesn't swing.
> 
> ...


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## Esoteric (Mar 29, 2009)

I have actually had a safety come into use. A C-Clamp over stressed and broke (bad lot) and the safety caught the unit. Of course a piece of clamp came down 8" from the LD's head.

Mike


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## TheDonkey (Mar 30, 2009)

About 75% of our fixtures are cabled, whenever I hang, I always shuffle cables around so every hunh fixture has a cable, but only some of the inventory ones are cabled.


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## Anvilx (Mar 30, 2009)

At my high school we use safety cables on movers and most of the lights in the house most of the lights on the stage. Unfortunately we don't have safety cables on 75% of the fixtures above the stage.


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## mnfreelancer (Mar 30, 2009)

What's the latest practice on "new generation" clamps for lighting that are rated and not cast iron? The Mega-claw and mega-clamp don't pose the same risk of cracking like the old cast iron c-clamps do. I have the tendency to want to safety anything clamped to a pipe because it's cheap, easy and fast. We often use airwall track hangers in hotel ballrooms that are rated and use american made bolts. There's no-where to safety to other than another expensive airwall track hanger so we usually just trust in the rated hardware since there is no clamp involved at all, just the cold rolled steel yoke and the rated rigging hardware, and the track that holds up many hundred pounds of acoustic airwall.


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## fredthe (Mar 30, 2009)

Like many, we've got safety cables permanently on the yokes of everything.


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## MSLD (Mar 30, 2009)

In talking about all of these "grounders" even though they are not in the air they are still dangerous. Mak sure you tell actors that there is a fixture there and that you put bright gaff tape to frame it to show there is something there. 


Didnt feel like reading all of them so if this was already mentioned. sorry


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## Clifford (Mar 30, 2009)

We use spike or glow tape. That way they can't miss them.


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## ship (Mar 30, 2009)

Sony said:


> We safety cable every fixture that is not on the ground. We do not safety cable anything in storage or mounted to the deck as it is kind of pointless and my department is too cheap to buy safety cables for every fixture (Don't get me started.) I do however on every show I design, personally check that every fixture not on the ground is properly tightened and has it's safety cable properly attached. Any fixture that doesn't have one gets one and if I can't find one I make one out of 1/8" Aircraft Cable and Nicopress fittings.



Hopefully copper not aluminum oval sleeves and crimped three not two times in following the crimp pattern in not attempting to crimp the center crimp following the ones on the ends last - or you gonna break your tool or at least get it out of alignment in no-longer having proper crimps. This and in crimping your own, you have every few times checked the crimps against the go/no-go gauge so as to confirm not too tight or loose. If out of adjustment such crimps are thrown out until the tool is either serviced or replaced & there ain't a lot of places that will fix the tool but some will do so. Proper safety cables... I normally buy the standard ones, other than that me or those personally trained and checked up on by me in their doing so "did you check it against the go/no-go gauge.... I take as a very important thing to verify. Easy to make, perfer to buy them but if made it's to be verified as good.

One in general would assume this pole was waist high at least in it being perfectly valid not to safety a floor base fixture.

My garage by the way ain't safety cabled so should I change my results? This much less stuff on a C-Stand, floor base etc. at work ain't either.


So here is a good sub-question, if your manufacturer made safety cables have more than 1/8" of the dead end of the wire rope hanging out, outside of the crimp, what do you do about such stragglers which could even if seemily tinned become TBA needles to the fingers if not tinned as well as good?

Dremmell cut away the extra strands, tape them or deal with them (assuming sending back ain't an option)? Just recently had a few safety cables come on especially of the silver type that I didn't like in having longer dead ends hanging out of the crimp than normal or what I would call properly crimped. Seemingly the dead ends are tinned in thory not fraying but tinning a safety cable ain't always done very well.


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## Sony (Mar 31, 2009)

ship said:


> Hopefully copper not aluminum oval sleeves and crimped three not two times in following the crimp pattern in not attempting to crimp the center crimp following the ones on the ends last - or you gonna break your tool or at least get it out of alignment in no-longer having proper crimps.



What is wrong with Aluminum Oval Nicopress fittings? Thats all anyone sells around here are the aluminum ones so thats all we have. I do however check each one against the go/no-go guage and I do crimp in the proper pattern.

Thanks


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## photoatdv (Mar 31, 2009)

We're TRYING to get safeties on everything in the air. We said we needed more and they sent maintnance over with some cheap chinese chain and locking carbiners. They forgot to put carbiners on half the chains (wraping a chain works, right?). And the half they put on we can't get off when we need to move the lights (I believe a couple have been broken off-- with bare hands none the less). The actual safeties that we have are all in use though.


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## ship (Mar 31, 2009)

Sony said:


> What is wrong with Aluminum Oval Nicopress fittings? Thats all anyone sells around here are the aluminum ones so thats all we have. I do however check each one against the go/no-go guage and I do crimp in the proper pattern.
> 
> Thanks



Aluminum oval sleeves are fine for your fence but for rigging puropses they develop micro cracks especially after just one shock you cannot see. Go on line to any number of sources from the local or national rigging place - industrial or theater, to Grainger or McMaster Carr for the proper ones. Easy enough to get and no doubt cheaper or the same price once shipping is added to the price.

Sapsis Rigging website, believe it was an early edition of "Heads" which brought this to my notice - been years since written but trust me you don't use aluminum, much less most normal crimp tools are not set up for crimping aluminum properly - different gap and gauge if memory serves. This means you might have been over-tensioning the aluminum sleeve which isn't good either. Been a while since I studied aluminum sleeves on the other hand so the different crimp tool is a question. McMaster would list the proper crimp tool for aluminum sleeves, if the same in a size as for copper, than I'm wrong but doubt I am. McMaster would also no doubt have a safety warning about aluminum sleeves.

On snap hooks (not key chain caribiners hopefully = not load rated), that's the current standard though I'm not much of a fan of them. I like Euro snap hooks with thimbles on the wire rope and a load rating tag on the safety cable much better & hope the industry goes that way soon. Unfortunately such snap hooks are not domestically available.


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## tomed101 (Apr 1, 2009)

I don't know how common this is but I just noticed that that the Selecon Arena fresnels come with permanent safeties attached to them. Good to see some companies moving in this direction.


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## lazor (Apr 1, 2009)

I-cues come with permanent Safety Cables as well. Makes it very convenient to tie them off. Though I do worry when they strike them that one of these days a student won't be paying attention and that safety will swing around and break the mirror.


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## FatherMurphy (Apr 1, 2009)

Aluminum sleeves are supposed to be more prone to corrosion/oxidation issues than copper, and being a softer metal, less able to withstand shock loading. Properly crimped, the sleeve should be capable of roughly the same load as the 1/8" aircraft cable, so at 2,000 lb breaking strength for 7x19 GAC, a 20 lb lighting instrument is safetied off with a 100:1 design factor - at that point, I'd worry more about the rating of the snap hook being used. This assumes use as a safety only - if your cables tend to get used for other purposes, then aluminum sleeves should be avoided.

I've always been a bit lukewarm about safeties, since they really only protect against clamp failure. However, they make a lot of people feel safer, and for the price of a safety cable, that's a good bargain.

I've only been around one incident where a safety would have been effective, and even then it wouldn't have helped. At a community theater, the LD had yoked a fixture straight out horizontal from the electric, and not tagged the rope lock. An adjacent empty pipe was brought in at a rapid pace, and smacked into the yoked out fixture, breaking the yoke (an old diecast Century Leko) and dropping the light to the floor (tearing the main traveller on the way down). The light hadn't had a safety, but even if it had, it would have only been passed through the yoke. All other fixture falls I've been around have been clamp failures as the light was being hung, or passed up a ladder.

A friend at a TV studio pointed out to me once that since the newsroom lights tended to be left in place for years at a time, thermal expansion and vibration tended to conspire to loosen the main clamp bolts, sometimes backing them out far enough to allow them to fall off the pipe.

At the rental house I work in, we've started passing the yoke through the empty loop of the cable, not just clicking them through the yoke. That's cut down a lot on 'borrowing', since you have to do some work to get it loose again. It's also cut down on customers complaining that we 'forgot' to include the safeties, and it's cut down on customers 'forgetting' to return them.


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## lieperjp (Apr 2, 2009)

FatherMurphy said:


> I've always been a bit lukewarm about safeties, since they really only protect against clamp failure. However, they make a lot of people feel safer, and for the price of a safety cable, that's a good bargain.




It would be a good time to bring up this old poll, since it pertains to this and this thread:

http://www.controlbooth.com/forums/...ixtures-integral-safety-attachment-point.html


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## genericcomment (Apr 3, 2009)

My only reason for answering all instruments not in storage are safety cabled is because we are short safety cables and we keep stored instruments grounded. Anytime we do a hang we go around finding all the instruments without cables and take them of the ones in storage. I mean at one point every instrument had a safety cable; however I'm sure just irresponsibility led to missing cables. I have no doubt if we went on a deep search everywhere in our facility we could recover them all.


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## mrb (Apr 6, 2009)

this is pretty scary seeing the number of cases where there is stuff in the air with no safety, or with a piece of chain and a keychain beaner, because there arent enough safetys. We are talking about stuff that costs what, $5ea? (its been a while since I have bought any).


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## LitUp (Apr 6, 2009)

Every instrument at front of house positions, and all overstage instruments have safety cables. Pipe booms are safetied and tied off to the grid, but box booms are not safetied or tied off for the simple fact that they're only 8 feet tall.

Dead instruments, whether they're stored in the spot tower, or in the upstage storage are not safetied.

I try to make sure this happens at every venue I'm working in, because the last thing anyone needs is to be beaned in the head by a 6x9 that some yokel forgot to torque down... it's bad enough when you're not paying attention and walk into one of them.


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## BillESC (Apr 6, 2009)

mrb said:


> this is pretty scary seeing the number of cases where there is stuff in the air with no safety, or with a piece of chain and a keychain beaner, because there arent enough safetys. We are talking about stuff that costs what, $5ea? (its been a while since I have bought any).




Actually $ 2.50 in quantities of ten or more is what you can find them for. There is NO EXCUSE for every fixture to have a safety.


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## gafftapegreenia (Apr 6, 2009)

Best "Safety" I ever saw was in one of the schools other auditoriums - not under the jurisdiction of the theatre department - it was a PAR 64 that had a black bungee cord as its safety.


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## ship (Apr 6, 2009)

gafftapegreenia said:


> Best "Safety" I ever saw was in one of the schools other auditoriums - not under the jurisdiction of the theatre department - it was a PAR 64 that had a black bungee cord as its safety.



How were the ends of the bungee linked together in being curious?


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## gafftapegreenia (Apr 7, 2009)

ship said:


> How were the ends of the bungee linked together in being curious?



Oh, ya know, just lazily hooked together.


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## Sony (Apr 7, 2009)

You know, when you think about it, if you could properly attach a bungee cords two ends together and prevent damage from chafing, it would probably make a good safety cable. I mean, the stretchiness of the cord would absorb the shock load of the falling instrument over a longer period of time which would reduce the impulse force. This is a sound concept and one of the reasons rock climbers use rope for climbing instead of steel cable, (there are other factors too like weight) because when you fall it slows you down gradually by stretching and helps you absorb the force of your fall over a longer period of time instead of all at once , which could cause injury to the climber.

Really this is a moot point though, smaller fixtures like a source 4 don't really gain enough momentum in such a short fall for a steel safety cable to cause any damage to the fixture and rope is not really durable enough to make a safety cable out of...they would wear out fairly quickly.


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## gafftapegreenia (Apr 7, 2009)

The problem is, in a fire, your safety cable disappears.


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## Sony (Apr 7, 2009)

I think...in a fire, everyone should be evacuated before falling instruments become an issue you should be worried about, but I see thats another valid point.


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## DaveySimps (Apr 7, 2009)

You really have the same issue of a fire when the material is so close the the high heat produced by lighting instruments. Even though you have may not have a fire, an instrument that is bumped out of focus and not noticed could easily melt a bungee. The same hazard could potentially loom when the bungee rest against part of a lighting instrument for a long period of time. Bottom line, a bungee is not safe for overhead use (or any rigging use). Plus, the safety of emergency responders (firefighters, EMT's, etc.) should be considered as well, especially since proper safeties are so cheap.

~Dave


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## pacman (Apr 7, 2009)

All fixtures on safeties... even in storage.


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## chris325 (Apr 7, 2009)

There would be no way to properly ensure that a bungee cord would not touch the fixture and melt, so it really wouldn't ever be a good idea.


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## cdub260 (Apr 7, 2009)

Do I hear an echo?


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## ship (Apr 11, 2009)

Gee, thanks for steeling my idea on that concept of - would the "safety cable" still be there once it touched the fixture or just during the show drop melted plastic on the audience during the show in no longer being there - this beyond any sort of S-Hook attached to them.

None the less, the Euros in many times being crap have the right idea for safety cables. Load rated and stamped for MFR safety cable with screw locks on the snap hook. More and more I'm going towards it in stocking them these days. Just talked with a TMB rep. this week and with luck they will not just stock the safety cable domestically in each of the three grades or sizes, but also stock the snap hook itself otherwise not domsetically available. 

I'm working on the day when safety cables become something that's really safety and say even for a Mac 2K that weighs a bit more than a S-4, perhaps it needs a more load rated safety cable. This beyond other heavier fixtures that still get just a simple snap hook safety cable to make it safe. Mostly on the market without special order these days even the 3/16" snap hook, it's the lesser 1/8" one that even less would support a major load on it.

Hang your school's follow spot from the grid.... it's safe - see the safety cable?


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## Sayen (Apr 11, 2009)

I'm still surprised that manufacturers don't include the cable with the fixture...for the price of a S-4, what's a few more dollars invested in a cable already attached to the 'integral safety point?'

I would also still like to see cables with two locking clips, one on each end, so the cable can be left attached to the safety point, and still easily clipped around a pipe without inhibiting movement.


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## derekleffew (Apr 11, 2009)

Sayen said:


> ...I would also still like to see cables with two locking clips, ...


Oh, puhlease! That's sooo Series 200!


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## kadams17 (Apr 30, 2009)

every one of our instruments has an attached cable, no matter what.
we have drilled eye hole hooks in the wall for when they are in storage.

we had a student fall out of the catwalks and drop an instrument and saved himself on the safety cable.

whoever hung the instrument missed the yoke so when he dropped the instrument and fell, he grabbed the unattached cable.

scary stuff right there.

safety cables do more than save instruments, they save lives.


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## pianoman55 (May 1, 2009)

The road house/regional theatre I work at uses safety cables. At school here, I was working a show last night, and realized that some lights hanging were not safety cabled (including one that I safety cabled myself when I hung it two months ago. Hmmmmmmm).


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## gafftaper (May 1, 2009)

pianoman55 said:


> The road house/regional theatre I work at uses safety cables. At school here, I was working a show last night, and realized that some lights hanging were not safety cabled (including one that I safety cabled myself when I hung it two months ago. Hmmmmmmm).



Hanging lights without safety cables is just asking to kill someone or have the light be destroyed. Talk to your teacher or administration. You can get safety cables for $2-$3 each. That's a small price to pay to potentially save a life... or at least save a lighting instrument. 

This time of year school budgets turn "use or loose" I bet someone can find you $100 to buy enough cables to safety everything.


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## nx27lei (Feb 4, 2011)

I just took over media in a youth department at a small church in north florida, I am working on a 0$ budget. None of the lights that are hung have safety cables on them and there doesn't seem to be any in the building. When I approached leadership about the hazard that this posed they told me that they would dish out the money if I could provide them with legal reasoning to make the purchase (ie, an osha standard or quoted law) I am having an absolute bear of a time trying to find anything to present to them. Anyone have an idea of where I can get something? It's a huge safety concern for me.

Thanks


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## What Rigger? (Feb 4, 2011)

Would it help if we CB'ers pointed out to them that safety cables on anything over peoples heads is industry standard? (ETCP folks, help me out here.)

Or that every play, concert, etc...in every venue (theoretically) safeties all things overhead? Lights, speakers, truss, motors, etc....

Ask the money people to stand under one of those lights, and volunteer to have one dropped on them. If they still aren't convinced, or won't pony up the cash, then divest yourself before the lawsuit comes.

Extreme reasoning? Maybe...but then again....maybe not.


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## bdkdesigns (Feb 4, 2011)

I remember facing that same battle way back when I was in high school. We couldn't get the district to give us any and we continually put up a fight (the entire district, not just one school). That year during the regionals for the Florida Thespians, a Fresnel fell right next to the presenter just barely missing him. The next morning, every school had two boxes of safety cables waiting for them with a note saying more will be supplied if there are not enough. I'm not sure if that ended up being a statewide mandate or only a local mandate but it might not hurt to ask the local schools if that is still being enforced.


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## wolf825 (Feb 4, 2011)

I'm glad to hear it bugs you as a safety issue cause such would bug me and most others too. 

If there is a local law in print somewhere I would bet it is buried deep in a Building Code or a OSHA guide or NFPA book somewhere....I can't recall ever seeing a 'legal code' for having a safety chain on every light..but I know everyone of my lights has one as does everyone I know in their venues has one... Not doing so--just sets a bad example practice... 

Here is my thought--I would bet your local OSHA office or Fire Marshall could be of help in giving you a more legal reply...or order for such to be installed.. Your local Theatrical Rigging company may also be able to help or offer some ideas too....

Not one to endorse--but I would also bet Dr Randall Davidson, a.k.a. 'Dr Doom' may be able to shed some helpful info for you which you can then use for those higher ups who want 'proof' of cause to use them....safety in theater and secondary places is his expertise. Couldn't hurt to see what they say either.... 

Check out Dr Doom's book here: 

Welcome to Risk International Publishing, home of the Theater Health and Safety Book!

And his company: Risk International & Associates, Inc. | Global Health and Safety Network - Littleton, CO


I get the impression the higher ups want to do 'just the minimum' as may be required by a law and ignore common practices and valid safety concerns...but stupidity for them or ignorance on their part is not a defense for bad practices or ignoring what is common practice for obvious safety.. People like that tick me off... 

If they refuse to stick a crowbar in their wallet to buy a $3-$4 safety cable for each fixture--then they are not worth holding the bag for or dealing with...and you can do better elsewhere working for someone more considerate and reputable. Because if something does happen and someone is hurt--church group and nice guy aside--don't doubt for a second that they WILL toss you or anyone else under a bus in a heartbeat and deny any knowledge of 'safety cables' you warned them about... I've seen it happen to others..don't set yourself up... 




-w


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## MNicolai (Feb 4, 2011)

Insurance is a good reason, ethics is another.

When light fixtures are hung properly (not over-tightened, under-tightened), fixtures falling from the sky is unlikely and rare. However, c-clamps are known to explode and bust apart without warning. Inherently, your fixtures could fall at any moment (although it's rare, it does happen). The better reason to have safety cables is because the situation comes with a very high potential for human error. Usually a couple times a year I'll hop in a lift for a focus (after the electrics have been flown out) to find that a fixture was placed on the pipe but the c-clamp was not tightened down _at all_.

People are human, and humans make mistakes -- often innocent mistakes. We all like to expect that our technical staff members will never put anyone in harm's way purposefully or accidentally -- we also like to think that only amateurs make those sorts of mistakes, and because we're not amateurs, we'll never make those mistakes ourselves. But I know my crew and I know myself better than that. I wouldn't classify anyone I work with as reckless, and if I ever did, I would refuse to work with them. But getting distracted during a light hang, forgetting you didn't tighten that one clamp down all of the way, and then being certain the electric is ready to be flown up to trim height -- that doesn't take an act of purposeful recklessness; it takes working in an environment where sometimes there are distractions that require a person to regularly shift their attention to something else for a brief moment.

There are many better reasons to use safety cables than to avoid legal ramifications. I trust my coworkers and our student employees, but certainly not more than I trust myself, and I know myself better than to naively think I don't occasionally forget to tighten a clamp down. That means I also know better than to think my coworkers will never make that mistake. I even know better than to think a mandate that all fixtures be inspected before electrics fly out will make a difference (because fixtures will slip through the cracks, or at one point in time or another someone will simply forget to do a once-over before flying everything out to trim height).

Aside from using safety cables selfishly as a measure to protect me from myself and my imperfections, I also care very much about the people who walk onto my stage. By walking into my performance space where I have hung lighting, setup audio equipment, managed in any form, or built a set in, a person must have an implicit trust that I have taken the appropriate measures to ensure their safety. If just once a fixture falls, even if it doesn't hurt anyone and falls from 8' off of the floor instead of the usual trim height of 25', forever after that I will have performers reluctant to walk out on stage -- reluctant to ever trust my professional decisions ever again. They'll always be wondering in the backs of their minds what the chances are that the next time a fixture falls that it falls on them or someone they care about. Every theatre they'll walk into after that will also have them concerned. Their art will suffer because they'll become distracted worrying about the dangers of working in theatre when they should be worrying about remembering their lines.

As technicians, it's both our duty to protect our performers from themselves as well as to protect them from us. It's our job to worry about their safety so that they never have to.

The above reasons don't make good arguments for people who are worried only about paying the bills, but they make it so that I can sleep comfortably at night. In a way, they're also qualifiers for me to work for a given employer. An employer who skimps on such basic safety necessities is not someone I would ever want to work for, so if they want me and my expertise, part of the cost of doing business with me is guaranteeing the safety of everyone involved.


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## bishopthomas (Feb 4, 2011)

Where are you located and how many safeties do you need?


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## MPowers (Feb 4, 2011)

Safety Cables are cheap insurance. Check with your local AHJ, fire marshall and IA and see if they have any written rules or regs. In your situation, make a formal request, in writing, explaining the potential danger. Outline the fact that safeties are industry standard and cite any OSHA/ANSI standards you dig up, local codes vary. Also mention the phrase "Due Diligence" and the fact that once informed of a potential danger, they become liable for any damages resulting from any future accident involving the particular issue.


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## ship (Feb 6, 2011)

MNicolai said:


> People are human, and humans make mistakes -- often innocent mistakes. We all like to expect that our technical staff members will never put anyone in harm's way purposefully or accidentally -- we also like to think that only amateurs make those sorts of mistakes, and because we're not amateurs, we'll never make those mistakes ourselves. But I know my crew and I know myself better than that. I wouldn't classify anyone I work with as reckless, and if I ever did, I would refuse to work with them. But getting distracted during a light hang, forgetting you didn't tighten that one clamp down all of the way, and then being certain the electric is ready to be flown up to trim height -- that doesn't take an act of purposeful recklessness; it takes working in an environment where sometimes there are distractions that require a person to regularly shift their attention to something else for a brief moment.
> 
> There are many better reasons to use safety cables than to avoid legal ramifications. I trust my coworkers and our student employees, but certainly not more than I trust myself, and I know myself better than to naively think I don't occasionally forget to tighten a clamp down. That means I also know better than to think my coworkers will never make that mistake. I even know better than to think a mandate that all fixtures be inspected before electrics fly out will make a difference (because fixtures will slip through the cracks, or at one point in time or another someone will simply forget to do a once-over before flying everything out to trim height.
> 
> ...


 
Others than I can better classify various safety codes, or be silient for this necesity. Often a question of yea... it has a safety cable but is it in mounting to the fixture at a weak spot, or how it's rigged if that will do any good? Often yes given a drop load as opposed to shock loading - this assuming the power cord or light given out isn't sufficient notice of a failed fixture.


Assuming a failed clamp, and it's plugged in, what's the weight of the fixture in cord whip plugged into something sufficiency to retain that fixture that hours upon hours after tension decides to fail?


Don't get me wrong, I'm a big fan of safety cable and do so, but track lights, lamp bars etc? 
To some extent we as an industry consider them as per an architectural fixture which is similar to church perminant install applications. You need to safety the bar but don't have to worry about any of the six fixtures on the bar. Track light, etc. mounted stuff even if Unistrut... often without safety to individual gear or in an install condition that don't get a safety cable.


Church in my opinion might be correct in if install, they dont need safety cable. Would be better off to do so but as a dogmatic sense, it might be a condition where they don't need such a thing.

Advice, go slow in safety cabling the gear - different classification I think for your case. See if the Church will invest in a crimp tool as per investment in making your own safety cable. After that ability to make your own, no longer a problem of necessity in allowing you to do so.





Safety cable a good thing but I believe not perhaps necessary for application or should I say required. To add in working with the church instead of requiring them to do something perhaps better tactic. Where you can improve, never attempt to require as that forces a fight. Work and strive towards a goal instead.


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## jstroming (Feb 6, 2011)

ship said:


> To add in working with the church instead of requiring them to do something perhaps better tactic. Where you can improve, never attempt to require as that forces a fight. Work and strive towards a goal instead.



This is exactly the approach you need to take. You can't blame someone who has absolutely no experience in technical theater for asking to be provided with a law or legal documentation to determine necessity. In fact, that is EXACTLY the correct approach to take for someone with the purchasing power but not unlimited bank roll.

Understand that everyone can jump behind a safety banner to get pretty much anything they want, from the janitors needing a new floor buffer so they don't scrape up the floor and cause a tripping hazard, to the organist who needs a padded bench so they don't have chronic back pain after each service. It is the administrators job to determine ACTUAL need. Some might seem ridiculous to you, but it's a blurry line.

This could be an over $1000 investment for the church. In their opinion they don't understand why that much money needs to be invested in something that they've never had any need for perhaps for the last 50 years, through maybe a dozen other technical directors. Very reasonable assumption for someone with no technical expertise.

The people that make decisions on what you do or don't "get" are much more likely to purchase what you need if you approach them in a reasonable fashion. Definitely the way to go.


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## Synchronize (Feb 6, 2011)

Perhaps telling them how cheap the solution is might help. You can get 18" safety cables on eBay for $2.50 a piece (including shipping), even less if you purchase in larger quantities. I'm my experiences with churches, they don't mind spending $100 on safety.


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## derekleffew (Feb 6, 2011)

nx27lei said:


> ... if I could provide them with legal reasoning to make the purchase (ie, an osha standard or quoted law) I am having an absolute bear of a time trying to find anything to present to them. Anyone have an idea of where I can get something? ...


I doubt you'll find any sort of code, mandate, or guideline requiring the use of a safety cable with a stage luminaire. 

What Rigger? said:


> Would it help if we CB'ers pointed out to them that safety cables on anything over peoples heads is industry standard? (ETCP folks, help me out here.)
> Or that every play, concert, etc...in every venue (theoretically) safeties all things overhead? Lights, speakers, truss, motors, etc....


It's kind of a double-edged sword. There's no requirement mandating their use because there haven't been any significant injuries caused by fixtures falling (faked, "comical" YouTube videos notwithstanding). Yes, it's "standard industry practice" and yes, everyone should use safety cables. But do it because it's prudent and cheap insurance, not because a regulation forces it.

Dr. Davidson's book, referenced above, contains but a brief mention, in the paragraph *Redundancy Necessary in Fastening Instruments Overhead*, on page 381.

----
I disagree with ship's suggestion to buy a swage tool and manufacture one's own safeties. I also would be leery of no-name or imported safety cables from eBay. 

See also the threads
http://www.controlbooth.com/forums/lighting-electrics/7887-safety-cables.html
http://www.controlbooth.com/forums/question-day/6419-safety-cable-not.html
http://www.controlbooth.com/forums/question-day/2290-safety-cables.html
http://www.controlbooth.com/forums/...tures-integral-safety-attachment-point-2.html


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## Synchronize (Feb 6, 2011)

derekleffew said:


> I also would be leery of no-name or imported safety cables from eBay.



Actually, they come from a trusted, well known supplier. I use them on everything including rental units and new installs.

BLACK SAFETY CABLE 30" ALTMAN ETC STAGE LIGHTING DJ - eBay (item 120565795864 end time Feb-28-11 15:15:05 PST)

These are the 30" cables. They also have Buy it Nows for larger quantities that are a little cheaper per cable.


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## WooferHound (Feb 7, 2011)

How much does it cost to get a safety cable ?
Now, how much does it cost for a light to fall on the childrens choir ?


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## gafftaper (Feb 7, 2011)

Idaho is the only state in the country that has OSHA laws covering theater. Federal OSHA does not have theater specific laws. So, unfortunately you have to result to morally reprehensible and potentially criminally negligent for not having them. What's worse spending $100 on cables or killing someone because a clamp shatters and fails? 

How about $2.06 each for silver cables from Production Advantage a great dealer and sponsor of the CB Wiki! They also have black for $2.50.

If they give you a hard time give the pastor a disclaimer letter to sign that reads: "I have been warned by "Nx27lei" that it is dangerous to not have safety cables on our lighting instruments. I have chosen not to follow his advice to and purchase them. I understand that my decision could result in serious injury or death should a clamp fail. I accept full responsibility for this decision and relieve "Nx27lei" of any responsibility for this decision. Signed _________ "

Tell them you won't work until it's signed. 

Or you could just print out this thread.


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## Kelite (Feb 7, 2011)

To the original poster-

How many safety cables are you needing? I work for a theatrical lighting manufacturer and will donate safety cables if it prevents someone from losing their job or worse, someone getting injured from falling equipment while at your church.

Please contact me at [email protected]


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## gafftaper (Feb 8, 2011)

Kelite to the rescue!


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## DiscoBoxer (Feb 9, 2011)

I would have some big personal issues with fixtures I am responsible for, not having security cables. I get the analogy regarding architectural installation vs. theatrical lighting, but that doesn't suffice for me. In most applications, architectural lighting is installed and rarely touched until bulb replacement is required, and the mounts are typically permanent. In regards to Unistrut, my understanding is that the clamp bolts are made to slightly cut into the metal to prevent back-off (please correct me if I am wrong on this). Also, in most cases, unistrut is hung utilizing multiple clamps, thus sharing the load to some degree. 

In the case of "stage luminaires", it is common for the fixture to receive regular adjustment that would increase the chance of human error. I would also consider the fact that building structures are good at hosting vibration and when you add large sound systems in the mix, plus maybe a few moving fixtures, you increase the potential risk, especially if on a unified truss system.

Many churches struggle with their budgets meeting their needs. I wouldn't jump to believing that they are being irresponsible as much as I would think they are just uneducated about the circumstance. Especially in today's economy, tithings are down and need is up. It could be that the system has worked for many years without cause and they have a lot of congregants and community needs they are trying to accommodate. I am in charge of some ministry and it is not uncommon for me to get approached about a family that doesn't have food in their fridge. Would that take priority over the light, yes, but it would be delt with asap.

I would like to hear more about lighting clamp failure. Is this common and is there a technique to where the safety cable is wrapped around the clamp to prevent it from falling or is the clamp's attachment to the fixture considered sufficient redundancy (if fixture has safety cable).


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## gafftaper (Feb 10, 2011)

The use of safety cables has been fairly well discussed around here. So do a search. Check out this thread for Gafftaper's Safety Cable Solution. I've been using this technique to safety fixtures for 2 1/2 years now and I've never had a time it didn't work. Yeah it takes about 10 seconds longer to put on and take off, but it's FAR safer. You can have both the c-clamp AND the yoke fail and your instrument will not fall. Best of all, you are guaranteed to always have a safety cable as there's no way for it to be accidentally removed from the fixture.


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## BillESC (Feb 11, 2011)

Safety cable - $ 2.50

Law suit - $ 2,500,000.00

Pick one.


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## Kelite (Feb 11, 2011)

Yep, it's a no-brainer Bill.

Good to see you up and around this morning!


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## MNicolai (Feb 11, 2011)

BillESC said:


> Safety cable - $ 2.50
> 
> Law suit - $ 2,500,000.00
> 
> Pick one.



How cool would it be if that was true? Instead, we learned here that the value of a human life is actually just $19,800.

(I'm being just a little bit cynical.)


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