Concern regarding Arca-Swiss clamps.

Sirrith wrote in post #16914567
A less fiddly alternative is to switch to a lever clamp. It is very obvious when your clamp is locked or not with those, and you won't have to mess with a tether every time you take your camera on/off the tripod (which for me is very often).

^^^This^^^... I have a lever lock. There is no mistaking if it is tight or loose.
And it is quick to get it from one condition to the other. No screwing around..

ed rader wrote in post #16925779
I don't hate them but I also don't look for plates with safety stops. one flip of the lever and nothing is sliding. what am I missing here?

If they do not bother you, don't bother

I prefer screw clamps, and sliding the plate in and out, and that is not compatible with most of the safety pins. That is the way that works best, fastest and most secure for me.

Lowner wrote in post #16914678
What were you doing with the camera that it could slide off the plate? I'd imagine a tripod situation was very static and when not in use the camera would be the first thing to be removed?

You never have the head at an angle?

Simon_Gardner wrote in post #16930783
You never have the head at an angle?

No, I can match you for weird angles. No, I was meaning that my camera is never left on the tripod when I move from one set up to the next. It's always removed and replaced once the tripod has been set down in the new location. I would never dream of having the camera on the tripod while walking with it over one shoulder.

Lowner wrote in post #16930832
I would never dream of having the camera on the tripod while walking with it over one shoulder.

Oh I do that absolutely all the time. Stalking deer the other day for instance. And stalking plants for that matter. And most birders do it with a spotting scope too.

ed rader wrote in post #16925779
I don't hate them but I also don't look for plates with safety stops. one flip of the lever and nothing is sliding. what am I missing here?

Flip levers are very finicky when it comes to compatibility: RRS themselves only recommend their own plates with their flip levers AS clamps, and the others have a similar warning. Cost, availability, compatibility, and shooting requirements means I don't always buy plates from a single brand.

this is why i went with a lever clamp,you no your camera will never slip out and fall to its death! acratech and RRS are good ones and i use both.

yslee wrote in post #16931159
Flip levers are very finicky when it comes to compatibility: RRS themselves only recommend their own plates with their flip levers AS clamps, and the others have a similar warning.

No, in 2012 RRS upgraded their standard (60mm wide) lever clamps to be self adjusting to any plate. I use both models and they work very well on my plates from six different manufacturers. I'm not saying that all of their lever clamps auto-adjust, just the most popular 60mm versions which are the B2-AS-II and B2-LR-II models.

blanex1@netzero.com wrote in post #16931192
this is why i went with a lever clamp,you no your camera will never slip out and fall to its death! acratech and RRS are good ones and i use both.

I also use Acratech and RRS lever clamps and both work very well.