Push came to shove and I've gone legit with the x-y Easel I've been talking about over here:
http://forum.luminous-landscape.com/index.php?topic=83550.0 Since that thread started in 2013 and was 4 pages (and the project started in 2011), I figured it'd make sense to start something fresh here, especially since I've used it now for several years.

I am hand-building these things in several different configurations. I can do it in the natural wood finish, or the ebony, manual movements or motorized, and the motorized has a hand-held keyfob control, or a programmable computer wireless control. I've now sold a few of them, and I use mine daily, so I'm confident the thing works and works well, and I can give some good advice and coaching on its use with almost any camera platform.
I've updated the site with the current information and some new videos, here:
https://xyeasel.wordpress.com/Still, after all these years on here haven't figured out how to embed videos, but here's the intro explanation:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fhInug51L7UI know a few of the guys who are using them are on LL, (or "LuLa" as you kids call it these days

) and maybe we can get some discussion going...
I can't seem to leave the design alone, and currently the computer interface is sort of in "beta" mode - it's Windows only, but if you're handy with Arduino and USB relays I figure you can drive it with whatever you want.
If you're interested, contact me and we can figure out what suits you best.
Cheers!