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Fast and lightweight tripod + head for ATC (1 Viewer)

S

Sergeant Sidonia

Member
Netherlands
I was wondering if anybody has some good advise on a tripod and head for my ATC.

I have a digiscoping set up with an ollin magnetic scope adapter and an iPhone 15 Pro. Although the ATC really does work well ‘spotting out of the hand’ I need more stability for the digiscoping part. However, I do not want to compromise the flexibility and speed of the lightweight compact scope. I really enjoy being in the field, making long hikes while spotting birds and capturing them. I this context I would like to be able to get a bird in view fast with the spotting scope with a set up that I can take along.

The ideal set up would be lightweight and fast (in terms of seconds) to put up. There is no limit to the budget in this matter.
Any experiences/advise?
 
Your quest is one many share, but I for one have not found a good answer.
The best I've found is the Magview Spotting Scope adapter, which clamps the phone to the scope magnetically, so no screws or big holders.
The weak spot is that alignment is lost whenever the phone is removed from the scope and it takes careful fiddling to achieve it, so it is not quick to set up.
If you can find a good solution, please post it here.
 
etudiant said:
Your quest is one many share, but I for one have not found a good answer.
The best I've found is the Magview Spotting Scope adapter, which clamps the phone to the scope magnetically, so no screws or big holders.
The weak spot is that alignment is lost whenever the phone is removed from the scope and it takes careful fiddling to achieve it, so it is not quick to set up.
If you can find a good solution, please post it here.
Click to expand...
I did find a very nice solution for the digiscoping adapter! Ollin: Magnetic Spotting Scope Adapter System. It is very fast and works just perfect. It is not cheap though, but I can definitely recommend it.

The question I had was to match this set up with a lightweight and fast deployable tripod + head. Any ideas about this?
 
Thank you for the Ollin lead, it looks promising, although my Samsung Note is not among the options listed.
Re tripods, I've been happy with my Velbon Ultra Luxy, now replaced by the Velbon 455. These have a latchless mechanism I've found reliable.
I use a RRS 35 ballhead knockoff rather than a full featured head with handle. That is quite adequate for the little Nikon ED50 scope used and is lighter.
 
Moo said:
Have a look at the ulanzi u-190 head, I use it with a gitzo traveller series tripod.
Click to expand...
Thanks! The Gitzo traveler series seem quite popular here, that’s a good thing! What’s your opinion on the speed to deploy this tripod? Quick enough to get that bird fast? And did you try the ‘standard’ ballhead of the traveller series, or you just bought it without the ballhead?

Thanks again.
 
etudiant said:
Thank you for the Ollin lead, it looks promising, although my Samsung Note is not among the options listed.
Re tripods, I've been happy with my Velbon Ultra Luxy, now replaced by the Velbon 455. These have a latchless mechanism I've found reliable.
I use a RRS 35 ballhead knockoff rather than a full featured head with handle. That is quite adequate for the little Nikon ED50 scope used and is lighter.
Click to expand...
Thanks, still considering a ballhead as well. Mainly because of the weight.
 
Sergeant Sidonia said:
Thanks! The Gitzo traveler series seem quite popular here, that’s a good thing! What’s your opinion on the speed to deploy this tripod? Quick enough to get that bird fast? And did you try the ‘standard’ ballhead of the traveller series, or you just bought it without the ballhead?

Thanks again.
Click to expand...
Yeah i find it pretty quick to set up. I bought the gitzo legs only and used to use a sirui ballhead.
 
Ballheads are not ideal for a scope. You want a head that allows motion but when you let go the scope stays where its pointed at. I use a gimbal (ProMediaGear Katana Jr) on a Gitz GT90TT Traveler Titanium leg set with my Meopta Meostar S2+ 82 HD, but for a compact setup like the ATC I'd look at the Traveler GT1145 with either the very unique Flexshooter Mini, a double ball head that behaves like a counterweighted gimbal, or the Gitzo GHF2W fluid head designed specifically for birders.

The Gitzo ball head is serviceable but not exceptional for the price. The main reason to buy it is that it allows the legs to be folded completely.
 
I use the manfrotto befree live tripod, light and easy to carry fully deployed for rapid use. The tripod is a little flimsy, but I have a 60mm scope on fine, I hold the scope (to focus) and the head handle which helps stabilise it. I would suggest using the cable tie finder as well so you can get on target faster.

Peter
 
Sergeant Sidonia said:
I was wondering if anybody has some good advise on a tripod and head for my ATC.

I have a digiscoping set up with an ollin magnetic scope adapter and an iPhone 15 Pro. Although the ATC really does work well ‘spotting out of the hand’ I need more stability for the digiscoping part. However, I do not want to compromise the flexibility and speed of the lightweight compact scope. I really enjoy being in the field, making long hikes while spotting birds and capturing them. I this context I would like to be able to get a bird in view fast with the spotting scope with a set up that I can take along.

The ideal set up would be lightweight and fast (in terms of seconds) to put up. There is no limit to the budget in this matter.
Any experiences/advise?
Click to expand...
This is what I have; CCT tripod and CTH head both by Swarovski Optik. Light and very stable for digiscoping.

I slides out the plate to the front of the head when I do digiscoping and you also can adjust the counter balance with the head for your ATC56 scope

IMG20240220175143-01-01.jpegIMG-20240207-WA0050-01.jpegIMG20240305080653_20240417083305-01.jpeg
 
What about this tripod:

tricer.com

Tricer-AD

The Tricer-AD is a fully functioning sit to stand tripod. Utilizing an inverted leg design the 33oz AD is the strongest tripod in its class. Long gone are the days of using a photography tripod with pencil thin legs on the ground. The inverted AD has a 3 section leg with the largest 1 1/8” leg...
tricer.com tricer.com

32oz, carbon fiber, and unique leg design w/ good sectional area.

They have another model coming out soon that is 3lbs, and they have a patented design where you can insert optional steel inserts to add weight in the legs and the center column if you want something heavier for the wind - so one tripod, multiple weights for various conditions.

Anyone have any experience / thoughts on these other light weight tripods?
  • Oben AC-1321
  • Sirui ET-1204
  • FLM CP26-TM2
  • Manfrotto MT190CXPRO3 (the heaviest of this list)
Not sure about a head yet - I'm still gathering my research as I'm looking for the same. Here's what I've seen under 1lbs.

The SmallRig CH-10 looked ok - but I read some negative experiences with it in other threads.
There seem to be several clones of that as well, expect them all to perform about the same then.

So maybe next up the ladder would be something like the Ulanzi U-190? It looks to possibly address some of the niggles of the CH-10?
Or how about the two Leofoto Mini Fluid heads? Anyone used the SW-01 or SW-02? Or the Innorel F20?
Not a fluid head - but the Leofoto VH-30 2-way comes with a 12" handle and is a similar price / weight.

Up in price but not weight, would be the Field Optics Research FPH-ULP - anyone have experience with that? Its 10.7 oz!

At that price point, but a little heavier - Leofoto BV-1R fluid head - anyone have experience with that?

Could also go with the RRS PG-01 gimbal head, yeah - its a higher price but only 1.1 lbs for a gimbal.

Tricer also make 2 heads that are both very low weight:
Chuck / @chill6x6 - you've recently documented some of your journey going from a nearly 10lbs rig to an under 5lbs rig - might you share any more thoughts and experiences here?
 
Those Tricers look quite interesting for anyone in the States. Though the shipping and duty costs to the UK, for instance, makes them a bit uneconomic here.
 
Last edited:
tx2ad said:
Chuck / @chill6x6 - you've recently documented some of your journey going from a nearly 10lbs rig to an under 5lbs rig - might you share any more thoughts and experiences here?
Click to expand...
Absolutely..... I'm kind of in a crunch for time so I'm thinking I'll have something about Thursday,,,
 
I don't have an ATC but a similar sized travel scope. I really like my Sirui Traveler X tripod (AT-125). The kit comes with a very lightweight video head, which I replaced with the very smooth and damp SmallRig CH-10 fluid head. You can get the tripod kit for about $120 online, the SmallRig head for $50.
 
I stopped in to Scheel's who carry the Tricer.
It seemed like all or nearly all of the display tripods has been put through the wringer by customers.
They had a bunch of other similarly priced models, as well as the Swaro Compact "Kit" (which is marked down in store $500 from list).

The Swaro Compact kit seemed both noticeably sturdier and noticeably heavier.
The Tricer did not have any head on it, so take that into account - I believe the Swaro is about 3.3 lbs to the Tricer's 2.1 lbs - add a head to the Tricer, and its still likely at or less than the Swaro Tripod alone.

The Tricer's smallest leg section was wider than all of the others in its price range; and the widest section seemed wider as well.
Because of this - it seemed to have the least amount of flex.

However... Its standard leg angle (at which it achieves its tallest height) - is narrower than any of the ones I compared it against.
Also, (this may be because it has already taken a lot of abuse), the leg position lock seemed to have a lot of give to it, it didn't seem to lock positively (had a lot of slop), and yet, it also seemed to be surprisingly hard to manipulate and adjust the position. I did a test where I set one leg about 8" longer than the other two, pointed the long leg straight forward, and give a push down on the tripod's center column. Instead of the legs flexing, they just splayed more and the tripod effectively lost a lot of height. Also, the Tricer video describes the twist locks as "quarter turn". The model I examined (both AD and BC) - the locks turned substantially further than that, at full loose - they were more than a full rotation. Would a quarter turn make them go from fully locked to moveable? I guess?

As evidence of the abuse these floor models have taken - even the Swaro Compact wasn't in perfect working order - the smallest leg section pulled straight out / off after I loosened the leg lock and pulled. This was surprising as I expected it to reach some sort of stop. Again, floor models and who knows how abusive customers have been to these. But, when set up to the same height as the Tricer - the Swaro was noticeably stiffer and steadier (and wider). It didn't budge when I did the uneven leg test. And the leg locks were easier to operate and was easy to know when they were in the desired position.

They didn't have a unit in stock - but multiple salesmen at Scheels were singing the praises of the Tricer head. We can take them at their word or take it with a grain of salt - with no unit for me to display, I'm not able to share my thoughts.

One small tripod that seemed to be a bit better quality than the others they had there - was a Leupold Alpine CF-425. It seemed to operate easily and be more stable than the other display models at its price point. It didn't seem to have any parts that were malfunctioning - everything worked. As I can't speak to the age or abuse of one floor model to another - this may or may not be indicative of the relative quality amount the models.
 
I've just purchased the predecessor to this tripod - a Novo T20, but to all extents and purposes, it is pretty much the same. It is a tall, full sized carbon tripod with wide leg sections and weighs under 2kg. I've been pretty impressed with it so far, including today when in use in a moderate (F3 - F4) breeze, seems stable and dampens vibrations pretty well (when used with a Manfrotto 128RC and 60mm Kowa). It's not quite as good as my Gitzo, but it is 1/4 of the price and about half the weight - seems ideal as a travel tripod.
I was interested to try one of the latest micro fluid heads (there are plenty available online, all look to be the same design but rebranded), and ordered a Neewer GM23 - it is astonishingly small and light (250g) but sadly I found the mechanism not particularly well dampened on either axis (probably due to over-loading), and it felt a bit too dainty with the 1kg Kowa. The construction is all metal and it takes SA plates, so may be a good option for those who use very light scopes (Nikon ED50, Kowa 501, Celestron hummingbird etc) and want to keep weight to an absolute minimum.
 
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B&H has some nice deals on Gitzo today; both new and used tripods with or without their ballhead: and their fluid head.

The GT1545T and GT2545T are $125 off list right now.


They also have one of each Swaro head used - 30% or 38% off


I picked up a GT1545T and the Slik Gimbal and the Slik SVH520 video head. Thinking I might give the RRS PG-01 a try when its back in stock.
 

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