Manfrotto 055mf3 & 701rc2 head (1 Viewer)

NeilRob · Apr 28, 2005

Hi
I am looking at purchasing a new tripod and head for my Leica APO Televid 77 scope. I like the look of the Manfrotto 055mf3 magfibre and the 701RC2 head. I was just wondering if anybody here has any advise on these items an there suitablility for the Leica scope. I dont do digiscoping at the moment but maybe will look into this at a future date.

Kind Regards

Neil

John Fleet · Apr 28, 2005

NeilRob said:
Hi
I am looking at purchasing a new tripod and head for my Leica APO Televid 77 scope. I like the look of the Manfrotto 055mf3 magfibre and the 701RC2 head. I was just wondering if anybody here has any advise on these items an there suitablility for the Leica scope. I dont do digiscoping at the moment but maybe will look into this at a future date.

Kind Regards

Neil

Neil
I have the 055 Nat3 tripod with the 701RC2 Head. To be honest the head is far more heavy duty than I need for my Pentax PF65. I previously had the Velbon Delta tripod and I preferred the single handle control of this head for pan and tilt. With the Manfrotto, you have to adjust the pan and tilt lock and friction separately which is not quite as convenient. I fnd that it can be a bit fiddly to get the desired amount of friction to ensure a smooth jerk free pan and/or tilt. The 701 has the sliding baseplate which may be useful for a heavy scope, but isn't a factor for my lightweight Pentax.

Like all Manfrotto kit the head is beautifully made and the handle can (I believe) be swopped over the left hand side for left hookers.

I think Andy Bright has published a review of the head elsewhere on BF and he was very impressed with it

Hope this helps

John

salty · Apr 28, 2005

i have the manfrotto 055 nat3, with 128rc head - leica APO televid 77 scope.

this is a perfect tripod for me, being around 6ft in height, i needed a tripod that was sturdy and compatible with my height so as not to get a sore neck.

a bargain at around £160. but get a tripod sling to go with it (£10-£20) for when your walking around etc.

using the scope, i notice how sturdy this tripod is, plus you get a choice of feet (supplied) normal or spiked for grass etc. been using it for a while now and im very happy with the results, plus you can have the confidence of zooming upto 60x mag and not getting a shaky picture, witch is magical - thumbs up from me.

heres a pic of it in action!

Jellyfish · Apr 28, 2005

Hi Niel

I'm in almost the same situation

but for a pentax ed 80.
I tried a 055 nat3 and it's solid like a rock beside it was a 190prob ( easier whit 1 kg ) and it was nothing near wobbling even on smooth floor. The difference as I see it is in the shoes on the nat 3 U see they are made for outside use and on the 190 and if u look at the 055mf3 u will see just some simple rubber ends.
On the other hand I don't really know if the loss of weight would cause a the tripod to bee less stable.
And is that - 0.8kg wort the double money? ( 055nat3 feels heavy! a bit )
Here look on the shoes of the 055nat3 and on the 055mf3
For the head :
I read a few not s good stuff about the 701 and I tried the 700 and the 128 rc in a shop the 700 (and probably the 701) moves easier smoother but the 128RC looks like it was made for field use simpler construction and not that much heavier than the others.
Tomorrow ill go back and see the difference between the two plate systems.

steve johnson · Apr 28, 2005

I love these tripods - very hard to beat for the money. However, it is really the head that matters most and here I have found that I much prefer the professional ball heads with friction adjustment. On my full sized Bogen tripod I use an arca swiss B-1 ball head and on my Gitz tabletop I use a davis and Sanford 32-F. The Arca has to be tried to appreciate. You dial in enough friction (drag) so the scope doesn't tilt when you let go, but you can still move the scope and yet with a simple twist of the other knob it locks rock (I mean rock) solid. The Davis and Sanford head is like a minuture version of the Arca, with the same drag adjustment. It is strong enough for any scope up to 80-100MM, but does not have quite the ease of use and smooth feal of the Arca which is not at all near it's limit with any birding scope and probably feels better because it can handle 3 or 4 times the weight of the scope.

Bill Atwood · Apr 29, 2005

Steve,

I use the AS B-1 for photography, but can't imagine using it for scoping. Without a pan handle I can't see how you can move the scope while viewing with it. How do you deal with it?

I wish to God Bogen would use an Arca Swiss style mounting clamp/plate on their video heads.

ulf · Apr 29, 2005

NeilRob said:
Hi
I am looking at purchasing a new tripod and head for my Leica APO Televid 77 scope. I like the look of the Manfrotto 055mf3 magfibre and the 701RC2 head. I was just wondering if anybody here has any advise on these items an there suitablility for the Leica scope. I dont do digiscoping at the moment but maybe will look into this at a future date.

Kind Regards

Neil

I have used the combination 055mf3/701rc2 for 6 weeks now, as a replacement for my old manfrotto 190/128lp. I have a Zeiss 85 scope.
Great improvement. Very pleased, nothing negative to tell.

Regards Ulf

steve johnson · Apr 29, 2005

Bill Atwood said:
Steve,

I use the AS B-1 for photography, but can't imagine using it for scoping. Without a pan handle I can't see how you can move the scope while viewing with it. How do you deal with it?

I wish to God Bogen would use an Arca Swiss style mounting clamp/plate on their video heads.

I never even thought of it as a problem. I set the friction to a point where the scope moves if you push on it, but does not tilt on it's own. I have generally used ball heads for the last few years and it seems second nature to hold the scope while moving it during viewing. I know manypeople use pan and tile heads with handles, but I find those to have a more jerky motion then what I get from the AS by this method? However, what ever works.

Jellyfish · Apr 29, 2005

I went back to the store and looked the whole stuff through again they still didn't have the 055mf3 so ill have to wait but looked the shoes again and discovered that the two tripods I tried before have the same spiked rubber feet ... so that was not the difference ... ( sorry ) The thing is that the 055 is much more stable than the 190 so now the question remains is this caused by the weight difference or the construction.
And is the 055mf3 somewhere in between?
Is the simple rubber feet as good as the spiked rubber one on the field?

The 701rc2 is what I'll be going for its just superb to the others mostly in the Price/value category.

Jelly

salty · Apr 30, 2005

you cannot go wrong with the 055 nat 3. very, very sturdy as i mentioned before.

as for the feet, you actually get 2 types included with the tripod.

one is the standard rubber feet. plus you get the rubber/spiked version, witch simply fits onto the bottom of the legs in a second or two.

the latter feet are the ones i keep on fulltime with my tri-pod, as they are great for when on hard ground such as concrete, then when you are on grass, you simply screw the rubber up, to expose the spikes, then you have a tri-pod that stays secure in wet ground too.

heres a shot of the two types of feet that are INCLUDED with the tri-pod. on the left, the standard rubber feet, in the middle the spiked feet with the rubber turned down, then again with the rubber turned up and the spike exposed. hope this helps.

Manfrotto 055mf3 & 701rc2 head (1 Viewer)

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