Anything built on an umbrella frame has identifiable weak points. In descending order, these are:
- The rib itself at the hinge point between rib and stretcher - much the most common failure zone as this is where the greatest strain is concentrated.
- The attachment point of stretcher to slider (wire tie-wrap, effectively).
- The attachment point of rib to headstock (similar wire tie-wrap).
With this in mind, and getting more than fed-up of the standard 'U' channel ribs collapsing where the stretcher applies the stress to the rib, I assiduously researched alternatives.
At that time (and it's only a very few weeks ago), Phottix were advertising their 80cm (32") Octagonal softbox as having "fiberglass ribs". Fiberglass is more durable than thin, folded metal I thought. So I ordered. What arrived was a frame with fiberglass rod INSERTS into the ribs, straddling the weak point - not the fiberglass ribs (spokes) advertised at that time. As a direct result of my complaint of misleading advertising, Phottix immediately changed the wording to "fibreglass rod INSERTS" - exactly what they had provided but not what was advertised at the time of ordering. In the 'To & Fro' of my complaint and their rebuttal, they asserted that fiberglass ribs were unstable. Here's the full text of their last, very polite reply:
Dear Philip Weston,
Finally , I got you problem , thanks for your patience to express the details of the complaint.
Actually , this is the misleading of the description on our website.
Fibreglass is built in the metal rib and why we use this design is that all the fibreglass ribs
can not hold the umbrella stably but the metal one can.
Thanks in advance for your best understanding on this situation.
Regards,
Team Phottix
My feeling now is that, while the wording of their webpage was quite specific originally, this was a translation problem rather than a deliberate attempt to mislead. I'm NOT happy about the situation but acknowledge that these misunderstandings can happen. On this occasion to my detriment, but c'est la vie.
There are a couple of readily-identified problems with this 'insert' solution versus the entire rib being homogenous.
- An insert increases the stiffness locally and merely shifts the point(s) of greatest stress.
- Additional stresses have now been placed on the stretchers, the hinges between ribs and stretchers and the attachment of stretchers to slider by this differential stiffness. All of these components remain standard design and material.
Hence, while a temporary fix has definitely been applied, I feel that it is unequivocably
temporary rather than a permanent solution. I can't accept that
"all the fiberglass ribs can not hold the umbrella stably ..." when they continue to use full-length fibreglass ribs on their much larger Para-Pro umbrellas
(albeit with 16 ribs). On the one hand fiberglass ribs are not stable, yet on the other hand they
are. Simply doesn't equate.
Image hosted by forum (
655099)
© Whortleberry [SHARE LINK] THIS IS A LOW QUALITY PREVIEW. Please log in to see the good quality stuff. The 'fiberglass rod insert' seems to be an expedient 'fix' rather than a permanent solution to a problem which has plagued many users of many brands of umbrella-based softbox. What Phottix have actually done is a slightly more elegantly finished version of my own fibreglass
splints on collapsed ribs of other makes of octagonal softbox. "We are not amused". Far better if going the 'insert' route would be to use full-length inserts of slightly thinner diameter; with appropriate terminations.
In fairness, the sofbox received has
so far proved collapse-free - but then I've only used it twice, indoors and very carefully so this cannot be construed as any indication of longevity or solution to the problem. I do know that it's a lot stiffer to put up than any other I've owned. We shall see if it survives but no wager will be placed
The really annoying thing is that I have
(had - 2 were purloined) 3 golf umbrellas custom-built on Hoyland Fox frames
(Samual Fox is reputed to have invented the steel-framed umbrella). These protected Brides in all sorts of extremely windy and stress-inducing weather for over 2 decades without a single collapse. They've been distorted and pushed out through small Church and limo doorways into appalling weather and have survived intact to this day. So a
durable umbrella frame is not beyond the whit of mankind - why is it so hard to incorporate into anything with "Photographic" in the name. Yes, I'm aware that Westcott now appear to be using fiberglass full ribs - I haven't seen one 'in the flash' but it may be the way forward.
As a consequence of the preceding debacle, I couldn't recommend Phottix in this instance. There's
perhaps the
vaguest chance that I may
just possibly be a
tiny wee bit biased in light of recent events. I reserve that right!
Phew!
L o n g answer for which I apologise, just wanted to give as full information as I could. When Tetrode said about me 'weighing in', even I didn't realise just how heavy the response would be.
