Cineflex V14 Custom Snout/Sunshade with internal light baffle

Description

We just sold our V14 and the buyer was a news station where the V14 is used in a very conventional way, so they didn't need or understand this piece or why I had it made. When we first bought the rig, we were doing low level work in the good light. Low sun backlit work meant low contrast and the bouncing flare. I did the factory course at Axxys and asked them about the problem. They were surprised to hear about it. The system was designed for news and surveillance, so it was always at altitude and with the camera pointed down at 45º. This was my solution, and it worked really well for me. I had it done by a master machinist in Los Angeles. He was busy and it took ages. Then when he got it done, the fit was perfect, but the front glass wasn't tilted. So I had it cut and welded.
The idea is simple. A longer snout to provide a lens shade and an angled front glass to deflect the sun bounce so that it doesn't hit the front element of the lens. You take off the glass it mounts perfectly to the front. The sunshade mounts to the front of the snout. I've provided the same screws as the factory. It keeps the environmental protection as opposed to leaving front glass off.
It turns out there's another issue if light gets down the barrel. The aluminum gimbal cage is not anodized, so it reflects off the inside of the glass. The angling solves this, but if you have the flat glass on for any reason, I made cardboard baffles that go right on the front of the cage around the lens with mounting screws that already exist.
Lastly, I made this for our lens, which was the
Fujinon~ HA 42 x 13.5 13.5mm to 1134mm. There were no vignetting issues, but I never tested it with the 9.7, so I don't know about that.
It was a lot of hassle and expense to get it made, and it made a big difference. I'm not sure if GSS changed the snout in any way, but there's a chance it might work on theirs too. They could tell you.  Thanks for reading!