Acratech GV2 Head and its practical use with heavy lenses

So I've had my eye on the Acratech GV2 Head as a general light weight and yet heavy capacity ball head that would also double as a gimbal head. That said I've been wondering about its stability with a heavier lens (say a 120-300mm f2.8 with teleconverter on a 7d). With the lens and camera held to the side on the tripod collar I wonder if in this mode the tripod itself might become unstable; I'd hate to have a setup that was only practical with a lighter long lens and that otherwise would be at risk of toppling over whilst in use.

So has anyone used the head with heavier lenses to give some feedback.

A 120-300mm f2.8 with teleconverter on a 7d is a heavy combo. I'm sure the Acratech can handle the weight, but you probably will need to keep a tripod leg under the lens. If not, I can see bad things happening.

Overread wrote in post #16901866
So has anyone used the head with heavier lenses to give some feedback.

Wont break a sweat with the 120-300 f2.8. Mine is on there all the time. No issues in gimbal mode what so ever. Is stable with my tripod though no doubt terrain and foot placement might be worth considering.

I have in a pinch used it with the sigmonster (300-800mm) though was only as a ball head (think it exceeds Acratechs recommended gimbal limit)

I'd get a proper, real gimbal for something that heavy. The Acratech head is OK with lighter lenses, but you can't beat the real thing when you get to proper glass.

I agree with Hollis. Even if the ballhead is strong enough (many are), I'd be concerned about the balance with a heavy lens.

Justaddwata - thanks for the input from someone who's tried it out.

I do agree with the rest of you, a real gimbal is the ideal and best solution. The problem for me though is two fold:

1) The gimbal's are generally all a lot more expensive than the ballhead

2) The only head I have right now is a junior geared head; which is fantastic for macro/landscape/still things and not really much use for anything else that I shoot.

So I'm hoping that the Acratech can suit general use and also work with the heavier lens that I've got till I can really justify and save for the pure gimbal

I can't speak for the head you're talking about, but I've used my 500 with a Kirk BH1 (where travel made a gimbal difficult). It is possible as long as you're careful, I wouldn't want to leave a large lens on a ball head unattended.

A gimbal is preferable though.

Why don't you call Acratech and talk to Scott? He will answer all of your questions. A really great company with really good products. I'm a happy GV2 and Ultimate user, both with the gimbal features. I do not hesitate to use it in the gimbal position with a gripped 6D and Tamron 150-600.

Needs - I'll drop them an email (phone call would be pretty expensive from where I am ). Still its good to hear feedback from users as well; the more input and experiences teh better.