Gitzo legs rotating problem

Has anyone else had this problem? When one of the legs on my 3541LS is fully extended, the middle leg section rotates when I unlock the last section. I have tried disassembling the middle section and it looks just like the other sections. It's just not catching on whatever it should to keep it in place. Do I need new bushings? The tripod is about 6 months old and I have disassembled it once to clean and degrease. Any ideas?

Huh, that def should not be happening, none of those legs should be rotating in any way. Might be a call to Manfrotto in the future for you...

ben_r_ wrote in post #12576432
Might be a call to Manfrotto in the future for you...

Manfrotto handles Gitzo's repairs these days?

rvdw98 wrote in post #12576636
Manfrotto handles Gitzo's repairs these days?

Yep.

va_rider wrote in post #12576639
Yep.

You never stop learning. Do you have an address?

Well.... in the U.S., Manfrotto / Bogen takes care of Gitzo issues... I only know because I had to get the spring loaded hook at the bottom of the center column replaced on mine.... in the Netherlands, you might have a different service center... but... the parts I needed came out of New Jersey from Manfrotto / Bogen

AFAIK, Bogen is the distributor for Manfrotto and Gitzo in the US. To me, that's not the same as Manfrotto doing repairs for Gitzo.

Frankly, I never really understood why Manfrotto rebranded their lineup in the US as if it were manufactured by their local distributor and assigned completely different product designations as well. This makes for great fun when trying to find online reviews, and having to search for two different brands and and model numbers for the exact same product. Same with Canon's Rebel/Kiss/xxxD babel.

Yea and get this, Manfrotto in the US is the only one I know of offering the lifetime warranty on Gitzo products. Gitzo does not. So other countries dont get that luxury.

Well, I guess I do need to put a call in. It only happens when the leg is full extended. But that's the way I normally open it. Thanks for your help. I'll let you know how it goes.

ben_r_ wrote in post #12577306
Yea and get this, Manfrotto in the US is the only one I know of offering the lifetime warranty on Gitzo products.

Manfrotto or Bogen?

rvdw98 wrote in post #12576864
Frankly, I never really understood why Manfrotto rebranded their lineup in the US as if it were manufactured by their local distributor and assigned completely different product designations as well..

Perhaps it was the Bogen Imaging in USA was the distribution arm, and Bogen 'private labeled' the tripods sold in USA which were made by Manfrotto for a long time. Bogen not only distributed tripods but also lighting equipment and darkroom equipment--you've never heard of Manfrotto light stands, have you? Not unheard of to private label goods as an exclusive distribution company...in USA back in the 1960s Beseler (the enlarger company) sold the Topcon SLRs with the Beseler name clearly on the body, and with different model naming (for example 'Super D', instead of 'RE Super'), Honeywell's name was clearly on the Pentax camera line (although they did see to leave the model name alone).

In more recent years, in the case of Manfrotto and Bogen Imaging one company bought the other, and the 'Bogen' name and model designations disappeared.

Wilt wrote in post #12580430
Bogen not only distributed tripods but also lighting equipment and darkroom equipment--you've never heard of Manfrotto light stands, have you?

I haven't?
http://www.manfrotto.c​om …y/8373.16112.0.​0.0/Stands

Wilt wrote in post #12580430
Not unheard of to private label goods as an exclusive distribution company...

I didn't say it was unheard of, I said I don't understand why they did it as it creates confusion and unnecessary effort for the customer when comparing models on today's international market.

Roy, you previously stated, "I never really understood why " and I gave a response to 'why'. I just did a bit of research, and it gives the history behind the 'why'. http://www.takegreatpi​ctures.com …maging-by-jon-sienkiewicz

"Lester Bogen, a graduate of Cornell University, was a man of many talents, including proficiency as a photographer and writer. He acquired a small company that distributed darkroom supplies and photographic accessories in 1959 and founded Bogen Photo. In 1970, at the photographic industry’s premier biennial trade show in Cologne, Germany, Lester Bogen met Lino Manfrotto and the perfect storm of innovative camera support accessories and studio equipment was formed.

"Manfrotto, whose background included a stint as a photojournalist in Northern Italy, had developed an innovative line of lighting stands. After receiving strong, positive responses from professional photographers at a seminar in Switzerland in 1969, he decided to display his wares in Cologne at Photokina. Bogen recognized the U.S. sales potential and convinced Manfrotto to develop a separate manufacturing company. (Until that time, Manfrotto had been producing the equipment in a workshop he’d set up in his father’s garage in Bassano del Grappa, north of Rome.) That was the birth of Lino Manfrotto & Co. SPA.

"The history of Bogen and Manfrotto remains permanently intertwined even today. Lester Bogen insisted that Manfrotto manufacture a line of camera tripods. The first two models were the 028-TRIMAN (known as the 3046 here in the US) and the 058-TRIAUT (3051). Today, nearly 40 years later, Manfrotto produces more than a half-million camera and lighting supports each year."

Manfrotto started making light stands (I didn't know that Bogen sourced its lighting stuff from Manfrotto, too.). Bogen later was the one who caused Manfrotto to start making tripods.

Lester Bogen negotiated the sale of his company to Hasselblad before his death in 1988. Vitec purchased Manfrotto in 1989. Then Vitec purchased Bogen. In 1992 Manfrotto (parent Vitec) purchased Gitzo. In 2004, corporate parent Vitec created Bogen Imaging Ltd as a distribution arm headquartered in UK. Then In 2010, Bogen Imaging changed its name to become Manfrotto Distribution in all of its territories-Germany, France, Italy, UK, Japan and the USA.

Back to the original question, ie why is the user's leg rotating? I suspect that the 2 white bushings are NOT seated in the holes at the top of the tube. They MUST be seated. That keeps them at the top of the tube AND with enough space between them so that the key (2, 180 deg apart) on the inside of the next larger tube rides between the bushings. This is what prevents the leg rotation. Look at the Tripod Maintenance of Versa and Gitzo tripods on RRS's site. Pay particular attention to steps 15-16 (BTW, there is no "white arrow" on Gitzo tripods).

rvdw98 wrote in post #12576864
This makes for great fun when trying to find online reviews, and having to search for two different brands and and model numbers for the exact same product. Same with Canon's Rebel/Kiss/xxxD babel.

Best is when the reviewer reviews both and makes one "brand" or "model" come out much better without noticing that they have tested two identical products.