New Tripod

Needed to upgrade my tripod looking forward to some great shots with this one how does everyone go with the 055

I made a very tough tripod decision recently.
I'll begin with these words.
Read both 1 star reviews and 5 star reviews.
Unfortunately.
A few negative 1 star reviews showed photos of a famous tripod brand with broken parts.
" Pulled the center column up, the plastic rotator collar snapped."
"When a retaining clip comes off the collar it explodes into pieces."
The thought of my camera equipment crashing to the ground made me compare several brands.
What I compared when looking at several brands and designs.
Not listed in order of importance.
1. Cost.
2. Weight.
3. Maximum load.
4. Ability to reduce vibrations.
5. Metal vs carbon fiber weight.
6. Accessories
7. What is included.
I personally chose a model that can be used with or without a center column.
1. The Sirui SR-3004 aluminum tripod.
Tripod alone $299.99 $317.98 special sale at the camera store.
Weight: 5.5 lb. Load: 55.1 lb
2. Optional SR-66C accessory.
Weight:1.1 lbs Load 66 lbs.
$150.00 total free 2 day shipping.
3. I purchased the Sirui K-40X
$174.75 total.
Weight: 1.5 lbs
Load 77.2 lbs.
It included a padded zippered carry bag and strap. Plus other stuff.
A carbon fiber tripod I returned was not better than my older aluminum Manfrotto.
Final Thoughts or Final Decision.
I will email the company and ask them to make a horizontal accessory accessory to fit the tripod spider.
Grand total cost me $69.75 more than the famous brand carbon fiber tripod alone.
Tripod. Center Column and Ball Head.
https://www.siruiusa.c​om …raphic/sr.html?​cid=2&id=4
https://www.bhphotovid​eo.com …tion_aluminum_t​ripod.html

vision35 wrote in post #19217725
I made a very tough decision recently.
No particular order.
Its what I compared when looking at several brands and designs.
1. Cost.
2. Weight.
3. Maximum load.
4. Ability to reduce vibrations.
I personally chose a model that can be used with or without a center column.
The Sirui SR-3004 aluminum tripod.
Tripod alone $299.99 special sale at the camera store.
Weight: 5.5lb. Load: 55.1lb
Optional SR-66C accessory. Weight:1.1 lbs Load 66 lbs.
Then purchased the Sirui K-40X Weight: 1.5.lbs
Load 77.2 lbs.

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forum: Tripods, Monopods & Other Camera Support

Hosted photo: posted by vision35 in
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forum: Tripods, Monopods & Other Camera Support

I feel that we are over charged here in Australia as the 055 is around the $500 and up

Yes. Photographic equipment can be very expensive.
I would have to dig the 24 year old receipts out.
This very reliable Manfrotto tripod has no large plastic parts to fail. (model number removed from image) $250.00
Notice the horizontal column option feature.
The 3047 tripod head was $150.00
I was eating bean soup for several months.
The United States federal minimum wage for covered nonexempt employees is $7.25 per hour.
Manfrotto 055 carbon fiber $539.99 USD Weight: 4.4 lb
Aluminum 055 $ 208.87 USD
Weight: 5.5 lb

Bogen... Back in the 1980s, I purchased a couple of them. The ones there on the left. I still have them but haven't used them for years. The monopod and the three Dolicas are long gone.

Steve

roycobb4570 wrote in post #19217734
I feel that we are over charged here in Australia as the 055 is around the $500 and up

Duties and VAT?!

New tripod? How about the waterproof Leofoto LP-324C. It's the same folded size as a RRS TFC-14 Mk2.

peter_n wrote in post #19228465
New tripod? How about the waterproof Leofoto LP-324C. It's the same folded size as a RRS TFC-14 Mk2.

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forum: Tripods, Monopods & Other Camera Support

The Manfrotto legs are *decent", functionally; but their QR mounts are less widely supported for peripherals (L-brackets and other QR plates, other tools) and their customer support, at least Stateside, is abysmal. I'm not sure how they are down there.

Ultimately, I would look into any of the Gitzo knockoffs, like the one Peter shows above and a good Arca-Swiss style QR head. Also, twist locks are easier to maintain and less prone to loosening/slipping than the lever locks.

My history w/ tripods: 055 legs > 190XPRO legs > Markins P-40 ball head > Benro C2980T 3-section CF legs > MeFoto A1350 w/ head (for smaller packing/travel > PD compact 4-section CF setup

I still make regular use of the Benro and the PD compact; the Benro is much more solid and more useful for car trips and short/mid length hikes, where it can double as a walking pole. The PD is great for longer hikes and for packing for air travel or taking walks where conditions are not particularly demanding.

• Back in the 1990s, it seemed that almost everyone loved Manfrotto legs, and paired them often with Arca QR-compatible heads...sold in the US as the Bogen 190 hiker's tripod and the Bogen 3221 general tripod were then current and good low cost:high benefit.
  
• Then Manfrotto took on direct distribution of its tripods in US, and the Manfrotto 055 was the replacement for the 3221.
  
• Along comes carbon fiber, and the Manfrotto CF tripods were priced way higher than the popular aluminum Manfrottos, making their tripods not the best game in town in cost:benefit.
  
• Then the many Far East knockoffs entered the market and changed the whole game with apparent high quality and low weight at relatively low cost.
  
  I still think the Manfrotto 055 aluminum legs are great deals and as highly competant as they were in the past; but now some of the Chinese carbon fiber offerings are very well regarded and provide carbon fiber at nearly the same price as aluminum.
  

I just purchased a Peak Design carbon fibre travel tripod. very light, and I had my doubts about its strength.the ends of the legs are very thin, scary thin. however, using it for two outings so far, it is amazingly steady. I had to order a universal adapter for my Wimberly gimbal, and so far so good.

I have heard good things about this but I don’t trust it to put my birding gears on it. A lady with a Gitzo series 3 got knocked over with her 600/4 with 15/20mph wind

Respectfully, I don’t think I’d walk away from a 600 f4 when it’s windy, no matter what tripod is under it! When the wind is up there can be local gusts that are very powerful. I’ve seen people be unlucky with this before...

Naturography wrote in post #19231214
I have heard good things about this but I don’t trust it to put my birding gears on it. A lady with a Gitzo series 3 got knocked over with her 600/4 with 15/20mph wind

Any kit can be a casualty of the wind if left unsecured by hand or tether; not really a disqualification of the hardware. That said, while the PD is actually a very nice piece of gear to have on hand, the feature set and design are both targeted at enthusiasts; who are a little more likely to deal with the somewhat fiddly nature of the single control point ball head. I wouldn't recommend it for someone just looking for a general purpose tripod, for that reason. While it works well, it requires some foreknowledge of what you are trying to accomplish with your kit. I, also, would not recommend the default head for larger birding gear; you'd want a gimbal mount like shown above. The head is steady enough with, up to a 5D4 + 100-400, but I would not be comfortable going any heavier than that.

SailingAway wrote in post #19231268
Respectfully, I don’t think I’d walk away from a 600 f4 when it’s windy, no matter what tripod is under it! When the wind is up there can be local gusts that are very powerful. I’ve seen people be unlucky with this before...

Especially when the lens hood is attached. That will act like a sail.

vision35 wrote in post #19217740
This very reliable Manfrotto tripod has no large plastic parts to fail. (model number removed from image) $250.00

If we're talking about modern Manfrotto's the plastic isn't really the point of failure, it's the metal.

Taking inflation into account that $250 buys over $400 today, almost enough for the carbon fibre or quite a lot of money saved on the aluminium version.