Spotting scopes + Gitzo Series 1 tripods? (1 Viewer)

[mskb]

Hello Everyone,

If you have any experience coupling Gitzo series 1 (mountaineer/ traveler/related) tripods with a 60-65mm, and upto ~85mm scopes, could you please share your thoughts?

Thank you,
Kumar

 

[johnf3f]

I do have a Gitzo Series 1 tripod - but it is a traveller, a Mountaineer would be better. Realistically though I find my 2 series mountaineer (GT2531) nice and light but not very good for scope use.

I find scopes to be far more demanding of tripods than even the longest, current, Canon/Nikon lenses - the Canon 800mm is the one I use.

My personal choice would be a Gitzo 4 series Systematic, though these tend to be pricey and are not light. Before I had my 4 series I used to have a Gitzo GT3530LS, if you want a good (best?) compromise between weight and stability then this is the one in my experience. You can put anything on it, including you as mine was happy with 110 kilos, it is remarkably rigid and weighs only 1.8 kilos.

You will have to look on the used market (E Bay etc) but they are well worth searching out.

P.S. forgot to mention the GT 3530LS is only 300/400 grams heavier than my 2 series Mountaineer but vastly more rigid.

 

[stuartelsom]

Hi Kumar,

I've been using the Gitzo 2545T on my tours for about 3-4 years now. Personally I think its the best lightweight tripod I've ever used. It's by no means cheap, but its done many overseas tours now, and its as good as the day I bought it - and unlike many others, it has not started to fall to bits after the constant travel use, which includes vibration from minibuses, car boots and of course long-haul flights. I have the 2720QR head and use it with either the 65mm or the 85mm ATX.

Link to spec on WEX site here.https://www.wexphotovideo.com/gitzo-...ripod-1578628/

Stu

 

[mskb]

Hello @johnf3f and @Stu,

Thank you for the great advice, and sharing your experience! I can definitely see that series 2/3/4 from Gitzo / RRS / Promediagear are up there in their stability. They do come highly recommended new / used when the budget allows. I am quite interested in grabbing a 2-series amongst those too at some point.

However, I read somewhere people have had success with the series 1 Mountaineer with ~60mm scopes. So I was specifically interested in how much one can "push" the Gitzo series 1 Mountaineer / Traveler / very related models with scopes of varying sizes. Hence the original question and my interest in gathering a bit more information on that from you all.

Cheers,
Kumar

 

[forent]

1 series Gitzo legsets and even more their respective heads are IMHO far too light for scopes. If you are pressed to use one, don't extend the legs (it works if you accept to sit on the ground behind the thing) and damp the unit with your left hand on top of the scope body.

 

[mskb]

Thanks @forent. I am genuinely curious about the rave reviews the series 1 Gitzo mountaineers get. I have ordered a used copy to try out. I will update the thread on anything I find interesting.

Cheers,
Kumar

 

[johnf3f]

Hello @johnf3f and @Stu,

Thank you for the great advice, and sharing your experience! I can definitely see that series 2/3/4 from Gitzo / RRS / Promediagear are up there in their stability. They do come highly recommended new / used when the budget allows. I am quite interested in grabbing a 2-series amongst those too at some point.

However, I read somewhere people have had success with the series 1 Mountaineer with ~60mm scopes. So I was specifically interested in how much one can "push" the Gitzo series 1 Mountaineer / Traveler / very related models with scopes of varying sizes. Hence the original question and my interest in gathering a bit more information on that from you all.

Cheers,
Kumar

A Gitzo 1 series mountaineer will be better than the majority of what other birders use. I do get a bit puzzled when I see people using top of the range scopes on "El Cheapo" tripods. They tend to get a little confused when they get better viewing out of my rather old Kowa on a decent tripod.

I would honestly suggest the Gitzo 2 series (GT2531 in my case) as a minimum. I remove the centre column (saves weight and improves rigidity) and hang my backpack off the bottom of it - this works well. However, if you can find one a Gitzo GT3530LS is the best combination of light weight + stability I have yet found. 4 or 5 series are more stable - but they get heavy!

Just my observations.

 

[marcsantacurz]

The series 3 systematics are much bigger than your regular tripod. They also stand very tall without a center column, so that means the leg spread will be more than you likely are accustomed to.

The GT3530LS has a folded size of 26.4" / 67cm (no head). That might be too big for your travel bags, you should make sure it will fit in your suitcase. It will be about 5.5" - 6" diameter at the top plate.

I use the GT3541LS for photography. Same tripod (within an 1" or so of max height), but with 4-section legs instead of 3-section. It has a folded size of 21.7" / 55cm, which is still very big compared to the smaller travel tripods.

I think the current version is the GT3543LS or GT3533LS.

I think the series 3 systematic is great for super heavy loads or where you need to weigh it down and dampen vibrations. No center column helps a lot too. But I think for on-the-go bird watching, especially if backpacking in gear or trying to fly with it, the series 3 systematic is going to be a major piece of kit. Too much, I would say. Try to see one in a store, they really are much bulkier than your normal tripod.

If hiking with the tripod, you will need a more serious backpack and use the waist and sternum straps. The systematic will be top heavy and tend to twist or pull the pack at your shoulders unless balanced well. You might also need to remove the head as that will torque it even more, which means even slower setup. With head, it will be a 24"-26" (more or less) conic section that is 3" - 6" diameter and top heavy. Think about how you would strap that to your pack. I have the WH-200 gimbal, so mine is super top heavy -- maybe I am making too much of this.

You should also consider what head you put on. Having a system 3 systematic with a Sirui VA-5 is missing the point. That head is not built like that tripod. Get the 500AH or 502AH to go with a systematic. The VA-5 is better suited to the series 1 or 2 traveler or mountaineer.

You should figure out what will fit in your bags and how tall you need it to be and work backwards from there. You should also decide how sturdy you really need it to be. If it's your job to go out in all conditions and make observations, sure get a bigger tripod. If its a hobby and you need to hike in with the thing or pack it for air travel, I'd consider a series 1 or series 2 as others have suggested.

 

[mskb]

Hello @Marc, @johnf3f, thank you for your insights.

I have been carrying a 4.1lb CLT303 + 1.32lb BHD2 head, all from Induro, for our photography + scope so far for both hikes & cross-country airline trips. Although the 3-/4- series from Gitzo/related are no doubt great for extensive local birding out of a car, the Induro kit has taught me quite a bit of the weight I can and wish to handle, given other things. I find my thoughts to very much align with @Marc's and @johnf3f's: a 2- series is sufficient for the carry flexibility and for our purposes. This time though, curiosity got the better of me, and I wished to try the 1-series. We shall see if we find ourselves wanting to move up to the 2- series. I also wish to experiment how "unstable" things get with the 1-series mountaineer when I mount it with a 2.1Kg 150-600! The last time I tried with my cheap Dolica, the thing collapsed. :-D @Marc, for the head, it is probably going to be either the 128RC / the BHD2 for now.

I will update the thread on our experiences, good or bad.

Cheers,
Kumar

 

[johnf3f]

The series 3 systematics are much bigger than your regular tripod. They also stand very tall without a center column, so that means the leg spread will be more than you likely are accustomed to.

The GT3530LS has a folded size of 26.4" / 67cm (no head). That might be too big for your travel bags, you should make sure it will fit in your suitcase. It will be about 5.5" - 6" diameter at the top plate.

I use the GT3541LS for photography. Same tripod (within an 1" or so of max height), but with 4-section legs instead of 3-section. It has a folded size of 21.7" / 55cm, which is still very big compared to the smaller travel tripods.

I think the current version is the GT3543LS or GT3533LS.

I think the series 3 systematic is great for super heavy loads or where you need to weigh it down and dampen vibrations. No center column helps a lot too. But I think for on-the-go bird watching, especially if backpacking in gear or trying to fly with it, the series 3 systematic is going to be a major piece of kit. Too much, I would say. Try to see one in a store, they really are much bulkier than your normal tripod.

If hiking with the tripod, you will need a more serious backpack and use the waist and sternum straps. The systematic will be top heavy and tend to twist or pull the pack at your shoulders unless balanced well. You might also need to remove the head as that will torque it even more, which means even slower setup. With head, it will be a 24"-26" (more or less) conic section that is 3" - 6" diameter and top heavy. Think about how you would strap that to your pack. I have the WH-200 gimbal, so mine is super top heavy -- maybe I am making too much of this.

You should also consider what head you put on. Having a system 3 systematic with a Sirui VA-5 is missing the point. That head is not built like that tripod. Get the 500AH or 502AH to go with a systematic. The VA-5 is better suited to the series 1 or 2 traveler or mountaineer.

You should figure out what will fit in your bags and how tall you need it to be and work backwards from there. You should also decide how sturdy you really need it to be. If it's your job to go out in all conditions and make observations, sure get a bigger tripod. If its a hobby and you need to hike in with the thing or pack it for air travel, I'd consider a series 1 or series 2 as others have suggested.

I suggested the Gt3530LS because it is the best that I have used, and I have tried quite a few! Your point about the GT3541 makes a lot of sense when collapsed length is a consideration.

For scope use, where mobility is a concern, I do not recommend the newer Gitzo models. They are heavier, have a smaller footprint (doesn't help with stability) and they are much more expensive = in other words not as good IMO.

Certainly my GT4542LS is a great tripod for my long lenses, but for scope use, my (ex) GT3530LS was a better tripod + it was over a pound lighter!

I use the predecessor to the 500 series heads with a Kowa 77mm and have/had no issues with it being top heavy. A bit different with my Canon 800 and Wimberley 2 though!

Just my observations.

 

[bioscope]

I'm using the 2532S, it's a systematic without center column, so it's more rigid than the mountaineer. With the Opticron 60 it's a fine combo with less weight than the 85-Diascope on a 3530/2380. But with more than soft wind, it's shaky, the 3530 is better because of the weight (5.4 vs. 2.7). I don't think that a series 1 is a good choice for a scope, if you don't plan a bicycle tour through the nevada desert… You can read some details in my posts in the Jülich-forum. I'm very happy with my light-setup, but it has it's limitations.

Gitzo-fanboy
Manfred

 

[wdc]

I will update the thread on our experiences, good or bad.

Cheers,
Kumar

Kumar, Are you ready to share your experiences with a scope and the 1 series Gitzo? I'm about to test such an arrangement soon myself, as that is the tripod I have at hand. (Scope has not yet arrived).

-Bill