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Tripod Head for Nikon ED50A (1 Viewer)

cassowary

cassowary

Well-known member
Greetings,
I am having difficulty finding a nice lightweight tripod head for this scope. I was looking at the SLIK AF-1100E but haven't seen much feedback for this head (with scope use) . It is also a little heavier than I would like but not too bad. If you have knowledge of this head or can recommend a lightweight head please let me know
 
You don't need a head w/panhandle. Use the lightest weight ball head you can find with ~500g maxload specification. Velbon makes a few with QR plates.
 
If you wanted a head with a panhandle, I use the Cullmann 2710 Video Head for my ED50- the head is lightweight (0.31 kg) and inexpensive, and I've been reasonably happy with it, although the head's action for both pan and for tilt is pretty much either very loose or locked, with not much in between if you know what I mean (not sure of the correct terms here).

As you may know, Gitzo has just come out with 2 new "birdwatching" tripod heads with a single control for pan and tilt- the GH1720QR might be overkill for a tiny scope like the ED50, as it is rated to support 4 kg, but it is reasonably lightweight (0.46 kg), and at least its larger sibling the GH2720QR sounds really quite good in Henry Link's first impressions of it on this thread:

http://www.birdforum.net/showthread.php?t=175425

The real downside of the GH1720QR would be price, abt. $300 USD. Ouch.
 
If you do go for a ballhead, make sure it has adjustable friction. The cheap heads, which are either loose or locked will be a pain if used with a scope. A separate pan facility would also be desirable.

John
 
John, SEOW and RJM thanks for your replys.

The GH1720QR looks great (if a little heavy) but the price doesn't, especially for a scope that I pretty much only use as a backup on holidays and on rare long hikes!

I am already using an OK velbon tripod head on this scope but it is jerky and not at all fluid.

I hadn't really thought of using a ball head, but if there is a quality light weight ball head with a quick release plate out there that allows a somewhat fluid movement this might be the way to go. Now to find one!
 
John Russell said:
If you do go for a ballhead, make sure it has adjustable friction. The cheap heads, which are either loose or locked will be a pain if used with a scope. A separate pan facility would also be desirable.

John
Click to expand...

I use either the Velbon QHD41 or QHD41Q and tighten the ball just enough so the scope doesn't flop over when freestanding. I pistol grip the head with my index finger and thumb around the scope foot. Movement is done with a twist of the wrist. Very smooth, very precise, very easy.
 
I have the same scope and use a Manfrotto 391 RC2 head attached to a Manfrotto 728B tripod that I carry all day over my shoulder using a binocular strap. Works great.
 
Tripod Head for ED50

I prefer a fluid head with a pan bar to a ball head, and spent a lot of time trying to find the lightest one around to use with my ED50, and ended up with the Velbon FHD52Q.

After reading the comments on the new Gitzo 1720QR on this thread and following the link I was interested to see how similar it was to my Velbon FHD52Q, so I had to compare them :

Velbon FHD52Q Gitzo 1720QR
Weight 482g 460g
Separate Pan & Tilt friction/locks YES NO
Price £19 (Microglobe) £209.95 (Warehouse Express)

So for an extra £190.95 I could save 22g, and lose the separate pan and tilt friction locks I like. For my money the Velbon FHD52Q wins hands down ! If anyone is looking for a fluid head for an ED50 I'd recommend a look at the FHD52Q.

Mark
 
Sorry for the delayed reaction, 4John, but if you're still around, I take it you like your FHD-52Q quite a bit, then? How're the smoothness of the pan and tilt actions?

By the way, for those still looking for possible ED50 support options, here is another lightweight (and pretty cheap- abt. 40 USD) pan/tilt head one might consider for such use- can hardly find any reviews on it, though:

http://www.vanguardworld.com/index.php/en-GB/pv/products/photo-video/detail-1-4-24-147.html

Anyone on birdforum have any experience with this head, by any chance? Or even with its larger cousin the Vanguard PH-31?
 
SEOW,

No problem. Yes I am pleased with my Velbon FHD52Q. The pan and tilt are smooth, and I can lock the tilt and free off the pan, which I use a lot. It ticks all my boxes for a tripod head. It seems to me to be a better fit with the ED50’s value-for-money ethos than a head costing £200+, but everyone has a different cost-benefit analysis.

I had a look at the Vanguard head via the link you posted. I couldn’t get my head round the “1-way fluid pan head with handle”. Whilst I could just about see how they got a fluid damper in the pan part of the head, I couldn’t see how/where they managed to fit one on the tilt mechanism , and were able to lock it with the pan bar. Any ideas ?

Mark
 
Hmmmm... not sure about how the Vanguard head could work, don’t know much of anything about what makes tripod heads tick.

Thanks for the feedback on the FHD-52Q. It’s one of the heads I am now thinking about as a replacement for my Cullmann 2710, which is starting to annoy me more with its very small range between locked and totally loose (especially with the tilt action), and with the fact that the locks for pan and for tilt are too far away from each other to be quickly manipulated one after the other with one hand. The FHD-52Q seems unavailable from US stores, though- looks like I’ll have to order it from somewhere in the UK if I decide to go for it.
 
SEOW,

The 'Details' page for the Vanguard says it has a 2-way panhead, so the 1-way looks like a typo/translation error. Still can't see it having much fluid damping on the tilt axis though, but it's probably cleverer than me !

Have a look at the Velbon FHD-41Q. Its 480g and it looks like it has separate pan and tilt friction controls - if that's your preference. I think someone on this forum had a problem with one, but it may have been fixed. Suggest you do a search.

The other thing to bear in mind is that it's easy to get hung up on weight. The Manfrotto (Bogen to you ?) 700RC2 is only 30g heavier at 520g. I certainly wouldn't notice that much of a weight difference. Not sure if the pan handle will go on the left side as well as the right side if you prefer the left. You might find it easier to find one to try out in the US because it's a mainstream manufacturer.

Regards

Mark
 
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