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Lightweight Tripod and Tripod Head? (1 Viewer)

S

S Crisp

Active member
I would be grateful for any advice on lightweight tripods / tripod heads capable of allowing reasonable performance with my Kowa TSN 824. My Manfroto 055XV and 701RC2 are too heavy to take to America with all the other luggage required. I need both tripod and head to be as light as possible. Suggestions?

Many thanks.
 
Considered buying a cheap but decent tripod once arrived in the U.S. ?

Maybe you could find a used one here on BF?
My own Cullman Magnesit broke after one year and I got myself a Velbon VEB-3 dirt cheap. (will use it permanently if it is OK, or for a while and then as a spare)

//L
 
Back in September I bought a really light Manfrotto tripod which answered exactly my need for a compact support for my 50mm Nikon 'scope. It was £50 reduced from £100 - a real bargain until, that is, it fell apart in March. I see it's no longer available so I'd guess the design was faulty in some way. I saw a reasonably compact, if somewhat heavy for its size, Hama tripod in a large branch of Currys recently. It was, I think, £69, but unlike the Manfrotto was very solidly built. The best I've seen so far is a lightweight RSPB tripod (£72 I think) which when collapsed is 54cm (i.e. hand baggage-able). However, if you've got rather more money (£120+) look at the new Benro 'flat' tripod range (easy to Google). As the name suggests, they fold flat so are easy to pack and, as I recall, are pretty light weight,
 
I, too am thinking about changing my tripod. I have a velbon Vicotory 350. In fact I believe it is the only tripod I've ever had and I started birding with it about 20 years ago! It's light enough to travel with and quick and easy to set up, which I need as I take one or two big trips a year where I need a scope. However, two little bug bears with it. The head easily comes loose from the column when panning and I need to keep tightening it and secondly, I find that there is a bit too much wobble in it to digiscope effectively in less than still conditions. I also need to use it for photography and hopefully videography so I'm looking for as stable a platform as possible without adding much if any weight.

What would folks recommend? Would the Jessops model above be a good chioce for me? Would I need to buy another head for it? Any other models out there I should consider?

Cheers

Jo
 
I bought a Slik Sprint Pro II recently and although I've not used it extensively yet it's been really good. You can get a version with a 3 way head but I got the standard ball-head version and fitted my manfrotto 3 way head in its place (the shop even threw in an adaptor to suit when I asked about replacing the head).

It's really light but quite sturdy - with the supplied head it was less than a kilo and pretty compact but still extends plenty high enough. My brother was really impressed by it too and he's difficult to please!
 
John Cantelo said:
Back in September I bought a really light Manfrotto tripod which answered exactly my need for a compact support for my 50mm Nikon 'scope. It was £50 reduced from £100 - a real bargain until, that is, it fell apart in March. I see it's no longer available so I'd guess the design was faulty in some way. ,
Click to expand...

which Manfrotto model broke, I am getting ready to purchase one and would like to avoid a poor design prone to break. Thanks
 
statestat said:
which Manfrotto model broke, I am getting ready to purchase one and would like to avoid a poor design prone to break. Thanks
Click to expand...

It was a Manfrotto 393 Photo-Movie Kit QR. I have since replaced it with a Cullmann Nanomax 260 which although a little heavier seems more robust and has a better maximum height which means I can use it without the central column fully extended,
 
Take a look at the Gitzo broke my lens thread before you decide on Gitzo...

I have a Manfrotto 055 for sale in the appropriate section here, but it's about to go on ebay, so be quick if you want it :)
 
The Manfrotto 190 is certainly a good tripod and I'm sure that the head is of similar qualit, but for me at c2kg it's a tad on the heavy side for a 'light weight' tripod. Also I think that in its collapsed state it may be too long to squeeze into a carry-on bag,
 
kittykat23uk said:
I, too am thinking about changing my tripod. I have a velbon Vicotory 350. In fact I believe it is the only tripod I've ever had and I started birding with it about 20 years ago! It's light enough to travel with and quick and easy to set up, which I need as I take one or two big trips a year where I need a scope. However, two little bug bears with it. The head easily comes loose from the column when panning and I need to keep tightening it and secondly, I find that there is a bit too much wobble in it to digiscope effectively in less than still conditions. I also need to use it for photography and hopefully videography so I'm looking for as stable a platform as possible without adding much if any weight.

What would folks recommend? Would the Jessops model above be a good chioce for me? Would I need to buy another head for it? Any other models out there I should consider?

Cheers

Jo
Click to expand...

You'd definitely want to change the head. Ball and socket heads are very light, and relatively cheap. I use one when I use my Nikon 50mm but I do use a Manfrotto head with my 65mm Zeiss.
 
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