Manfrotto 190 tripod & new 701RC head (1 Viewer)

i use the 190 with my ATS80hd and the plate, a fantastic light weight setup with nothing working loose at any time. i use it for watching raptors so a lot of sitting down which suits me fine. i wouldnt like to sea watch in a gale with it but horses for courses. i go light weight, wouldnt dream of taking aladder and if there was that many people watching i wouldnt go anyway. i have a heavy tripod as i call it (manfrotto 200) for stand up steady work but find even this will vibrate when digiscoping so you have to pick you picture taking days & find a good spot pref out of the wind.

marek_walford said:

I was going to get the Manfrotto 190 with the 128RC head but am now much more keen on the new 701RC head. My question is, are the Manfrotto 190 tripod and the 701RC head up to the job of supporting the Swarovski ATS80HD scope + Coolpix?

If I'm going to spend a small fortune on a lightweight scope I don't want to add loads of weight with a tripod. Money will be too tight to stretch to a carbon fibre tripod. The 190 seems a reasonable compromise between weight and stability.

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I have a ATS 80HD which i also digiscope with but use the manfrotto 055 tripod with 128 rc head. This i find is a good compromise between weight & stability & far more stable than my freinds 190. Anything lighter is a waste of time in even a slight breeze (including carbon fibre).You also have the advantage of not needing a quick release plate with this scope & head. In my opinion go for as heavy a tripod as you are prepared to carry & invest in a decent carrying strap (Optech for example.) I hope this is of some use to you.
Regards Rob. B

Hi Marek,
The 190 are a bit flimsy, my wife use it with a 128RC2 head and a GL1 digital video camera + 2X teleconverter and have some problem with the stability in less than ideal condition. You can go to the entry line of the model 055 of manfrotto (like the basic), they are cheaper, weight less (close to the new carbon mf 055 model) and are stable like the other of the serie. The 701RC2 head are very good and really help balancing the weight of the scope + camera.
Alain