Brendan's review and the whole very informative exchange before he bought his rig were indeed lost in the great crash of 2005.
Both the Gitzo 2380 and the Manfrotto 501 are good heads. I like (and use) the Gitzo for its simple and elegant locking knobs and exceedingly sturdy construction. There is exceptionally little shake and vibration, and the head stays aimed where you intended it to aim better than any of the others when you lock the movements. Contrary to what was said above, I find the handle a bit short, and as it comes out of the box, it is also not bent enough. For myself, I bent it some more to get an angle I like. Also, the handle can work loose more easily than in the 501. It is true that the friction adjustments don't work as well (read= do not offer as much of a range of true adjustment - one where the movement remains smooth while friction increases) than you would like, but then, neither does any other moderately priced video head I know of.
The 501 has a longer handle, perhaps slightly better friction controls (at least, they have slower action. On the other hand, the horizontal friction control wheel is awkwardly situated under the mounting platform so you need to tilt the head to get to it, and the controls again don't seem to have much range before the movement becomes jerky). On the negative side, the head has plenty of plastic parts to lessen the quality appearance (not necessarily the functional quality), and the pan and tilt locks are less intuitively situated.
There is also a new Manfrotto 503, which is a spring-loaded version of the 501. I have not tested it yet, but externally it looks almost identical with the 501, with the same strengths and weaknesses. However, a head stands or falls by its action, and it is possible that the 503 with its spring loading would be superior to the two we have been discussing. If you try it with your rig mounted on it, you should pretty quickly be able to tell.
And lastly, although I may sound like a broken record here, even video heads vary unit to unit because the precise amount and distribution of the silicon fluid (grease) and the precise amount of pre-tension of the bearings determine how light/stiff the movement is at minimum friction setting. For my telescope use, I chose a Gitzo with smoother and lighter than average action, and some of the others I have tried out in the field have been (at least to me) much less pleasing to use than mine. If the horizontal movement is a little too stiff, you can lighten it up by giving the head a couple of dozen rotations in the same direction. This evens out the silicon grease. Don't overdo it (check periodically to see if the movement is what you like), because you cannot reverse the process without dismantling the head - which I do not advice.
Vertical movement cannot be manipulated by this trick, obviously, since you can only rock the bearing back and forth.
Kimmo
