Need tripod recommendation (done the research)

I've read the stickies here and threads, but have still not come up with a clear choice.

I currently have the 486 RC2 ball head which seems solid enough for my purposes. However, I made a mistake on the legs purchase. I bought one of the manfroto models that has the center column neck that is split in half so the neck can be mounted as a horizontal bar to shoot straight down (which I never do). The split mount makes it weak. When I have the need to fully extend the neck, there is visible shaking. Just doing something like changing shutter speed (even gently) causes it to visibly vibrate and I have to wait until it calms down.

I would like a model that has a solid neck mount/clamp so that when the neck is fully extended to max height (or in windy conditions) the camera does not sway back and forth. Weight is a consideration because I often hike with the tripod. But "solid" is a priority. Any recommendations of legs that will work with the 486 RC2 are appreciated. /Dan

any tripod is shakier when the vertical bar is fully raised. That said, the gitzo explorer is a very solid tripod and you can tilt the arm for those low-angle shots. Whenever possible, I keep the arm down.

Very happy with my Feisol 3402 CF