Getting Started

Congratulations on your purchase of the Pushstick Mini deck winch from Creative Conners, Inc. The Pushstick Mini is a compact winch designed from the ground up to meet the rigorous demands expected from professional stage machinery. The Pushstick Mini is a smart machine; the Stagehand controller is built in. Simply connect the 120v input power, Ethernet and Showstopper cables and you’ll be ready to Make It Move!

This manual will direct you through:

Unpacking
Installing & Testing
Operation Procedures

If you need help along the way, contact us!

Online: www.creativeconners.com
Email: support@creativeconners.com
Phone: 401-289-2942 x2

A Word About Safety

The Pushstick Mini is a fantastic machine for moving scenery. Do not let the “Mini” mislead you - it can pull large, heavy scenery across the stage with ease. Such power deserves a great degree of respect, as it can become a very serious hazard if misused. Proper deck rigging practices should always be employed when installing a Pushstick Mini.

The Pushstick Mini is constructed to be a rugged and versatile winch, used for deck tracks, traveler tracks, and other lateral motion applications.
Pushstick Mini winches are not intended for hoisting
Each Pushstick Mini has a label indicating its maximum line pull. This is the maximum linear force that can be continuously generated by the winch’s motor and gearbox.
The Pushstick Mini ships with a set of Lexan safety shields to prevent injury to personnel or damage to the winch. Although they are removable, these covers are intended to be installed whenever the winch is in service.

What’s included

Pushstick Mini winch
10’ power cable

Required Tools

3/4" socket wrench (cable tensioning)
9/16” wrench (pinch rollers)
7/16” wrench (fairlead adjustment)
3/16” hex key (fairlead adjustment)
5/32” hex key (drum cable termination)
9/64” hex key (limit switches)
Philips head screwdriver (safety shields)

Features

85ft cable capacity - mini winch, maximum distance!
36in/s max speed - the Pushstick Mini can keep up with it’s big brother, the Pushstick v2!
90lb line pull - enough for almost any traveler track, and it can still hold its own with pallets and smaller wagons!
Zero-fleet design - no fleet angle headaches!
External cable clips - rig and strip the winch drum in a flash!
Belt-driven power train - no more greasy chain!
Independant fairleads - rig only the amount of travel you need!
Onboard control - minimize footprint; the Stagehand is built right in!
120VAC 10A input power - run it in a classroom, or rehearsal space!

Overview

Stagehand Controller

There are multiple versions of the Pushstick Mini, though they are functionaly the same - they look slightly different.

Stagehand Motion Controller – The brains of the controller are located here.
1. Forward and Reverse Manual Jog Buttons – When pressed the Stagehand will switch to manual operation, allowing jogging in forward or reverse.
2. OLED Display – The OLED display shows information about the Stagehand’s status. When idle, it shows the current IP address and the network connection status to the PC running Spikemark.
3. Multi-function Jog Wheel – The Jog Wheel has two functions:
  1. If either the FWD or REV jog buttons are pressed, the knob functions as a speed dial.
  2. Clicking the wheel (it’s also a button) allows the user to set the IP Address.
Momentary Limit Override buttons – When pressed, the Stagehand will temporarily override the FWD or REV limits. This feature is intended to be used when manually jogging the motor.
Ethernet – The Ethernet receptacle accepts both the rugged Ethercon connectors as well as standard RJ45 connectors. The Stagehand Apprentice uses Ethernet to communicate with the PC running Spikemark software.
Showstopper Input – The E-Stop (Emergency Stop) receptacle is a 5-pin XLR connector (a.k.a. standard DMX cable). The E-Stop signal (24VDC) is provided by the Showstopper 3 Base. If the signal is present, the Stagehand is free to move, when the signal is interrupted all motion will stop.
Mains Power – This is the power input from the distribution panel, the connector varies based on the maximum capacity of the Stagehand
1. 1HP versions utilize a Powercon True1 (single-phase, 120V, 20A) connector

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Last updated 2 months ago

A Word About Safety

The Pushstick Mini is constructed to be a rugged and versatile winch, used for deck tracks, traveler tracks, and other lateral motion applications.

Pushstick Mini winches are not intended for hoisting

Each Pushstick Mini has a label indicating its maximum line pull. This is the maximum linear force that can be continuously generated by the winch’s motor and gearbox.

The Pushstick Mini ships with a set of Lexan safety shields to prevent injury to personnel or damage to the winch. Although they are removable, these covers are intended to be installed whenever the winch is in service.

What’s included

Pushstick Mini winch

10’ power cable

Required Tools

3/4" socket wrench (cable tensioning)

9/16” wrench (pinch rollers)

7/16” wrench (fairlead adjustment)

3/16” hex key (fairlead adjustment)

5/32” hex key (drum cable termination)

9/64” hex key (limit switches)

Philips head screwdriver (safety shields)

Features

85ft cable capacity - mini winch, maximum distance!

36in/s max speed - the Pushstick Mini can keep up with it’s big brother, the Pushstick v2!

90lb line pull - enough for almost any traveler track, and it can still hold its own with pallets and smaller wagons!

Zero-fleet design - no fleet angle headaches!

External cable clips - rig and strip the winch drum in a flash!

Belt-driven power train - no more greasy chain!

Independant fairleads - rig only the amount of travel you need!

Onboard control - minimize footprint; the Stagehand is built right in!

120VAC 10A input power - run it in a classroom, or rehearsal space!

Stagehand Controller

There are multiple versions of the Pushstick Mini, though they are functionaly the same - they look slightly different.

Stagehand Motion Controller – The brains of the controller are located here.

Forward and Reverse Manual Jog Buttons – When pressed the Stagehand will switch to manual operation, allowing jogging in forward or reverse.
OLED Display – The OLED display shows information about the Stagehand’s status. When idle, it shows the current IP address and the network connection status to the PC running Spikemark.
Multi-function Jog Wheel – The Jog Wheel has two functions:
1. If either the FWD or REV jog buttons are pressed, the knob functions as a speed dial.
2. Clicking the wheel (it’s also a button) allows the user to set the IP Address.

Momentary Limit Override buttons – When pressed, the Stagehand will temporarily override the FWD or REV limits. This feature is intended to be used when manually jogging the motor.

Ethernet – The Ethernet receptacle accepts both the rugged Ethercon connectors as well as standard RJ45 connectors. The Stagehand Apprentice uses Ethernet to communicate with the PC running Spikemark software.

Showstopper Input – The E-Stop (Emergency Stop) receptacle is a 5-pin XLR connector (a.k.a. standard DMX cable). The E-Stop signal (24VDC) is provided by the Showstopper 3 Base. If the signal is present, the Stagehand is free to move, when the signal is interrupted all motion will stop.

Mains Power – This is the power input from the distribution panel, the connector varies based on the maximum capacity of the Stagehand

1HP versions utilize a Powercon True1 (single-phase, 120V, 20A) connector