tags:
Stage Rigging
Overhead Rigging
Tips & Tricks
Working with truss and motors always involves a lot of careful planning to make sure everything goes smoothly and your points are rigged safely. A lot can be happening on the pre-rig which could pull your attention away from some things and over to others. Without the proper tools you might resort to utilizing unsafe methods just to “make it work”. It’s important to walk into any truss and motors pre rig with a plan to make sure your whole team is on the same page and you can manage your build.
Let’s chat marking out your motor points and dive in to how to get the perfect overhead pick for your points based on stage markings below.
Plot Your Points
Start by plotting your rigging points using a scaled stage drawing—Vectorworks makes this easier with precise measurements. This helps you align picks with beams, identify floating points that need spanned support, and ensures you order the right gear ahead of time.
Mark Your Points on the Stage Floor
During a pre-rig, it's crucial to verify stage and beam measurements—lasers, tape, and 3D files (if available) help ensure accuracy before marking motor points. Once marked, label clearly using tape and sharpie for durability and simplicity, prioritizing consistency over industry symbols.
Pinpoint Your Hanging Positions With a Laser
Spot beam lasers are used to align ground marks with overhead pick points, ensuring accuracy when hanging motors. When spanning is needed, the laser stays on the motor pick point so grips can align any part of the span with the laser—no need to mark span ends, just the motor points.
Interested in seeing what our truss & motor layout kit looks like? Check out our article What’s in my truss and motors stage layout kit? where we dive into all the tools we carry to make layout easy.
Additional reading and resources:
by:
Brendan Riel
