Tripod head question for large lens

Tripod head question is this , I've got a 100 x 400 canon lens attached to my 7D . I want to be able to support this lens but I'm not sure what type head to go with ? The gimbal is out of my price range so its between a ball head and a pan & tilt .. any suggestions would be greatly appreciated .... its going to be used for wildlife shooting for the most part .

The off brand gimbal mounts sold on Ebay are not bad quality and are ok for a lighter lens. The problem with that lens for any gimbal mount is that your center of gravity changes when you zoom out or in with that lens since it is a push and pull. As far as ballheads go I really like Markins quality for the price, hard to beat.

Between a ballhead and a pan and tilt I would say ballhead

Is there any reason your choosing a ball head over the pan & tilt for a long lens Thomas ?

Much more flexibility with a ballhead. Pan & tilt is too cumbersome in my opinion. The first head I ever bought was a pan & tilt. After going to a ballhead I will never go back except maybe for video. I do use it occasionally with the video camera. To each his own though. I think the bigger question would be why are you considering a pan & tilt? If there's something you like more about it go for it.

With that said, my Wimberly gimbal is the best in my opinion for my 500. But I was trying to directly answer your question and you had already ruled out a gimbal. And as Talaska pointed out, I don't think it would be a good solution for your lens anyway. Everytime you zoomed, you would lose the balance on the gimbal.

I have read that some folks have some difficulty with longer lens and ball type heads staying locked without them wanting to take a nose dive with the heavy weight ? I've got an antique version of a pan & tilt that I'm using now ... thats maybe why I'm tending to lean that way ...... but I've also have NO experience with the ball type mechanism .... all of these options are expensive and I'm hoping to make the correct choice the first time ! Is it only one knob which will either tighten or loosen the ball ? I can see that having one hand to operate the camera/lens and another to operate the ball would be a big advantage if they work like that ?
Again I greatly appreciate all input !!!!

I use to use a ball head with a 100 400. Always had some lens creep. After reflecting, I really think that head might not have been made to hold that kind of weight. I will also say while my new head is better considerably, every once i a while, the creep comes back.

That said, buy a gimbal and fit the lens at 400mm. Adorama has some that fairly inexpensive and get good reviews. Manfrotto also makes one that is heavy but very effective. With the ball heads, I think you'll find it easier to shoot in portrait perspective as opposed to landscape if you go that route. Tends to creep much, much less.

deer whisperer wrote in post #10744822
I have read that some folks have some difficulty with longer lens and ball type heads staying locked without them wanting to take a nose dive with the heavy weight ? ...

Well, when you get yourself a longer lens that weighs a lot maybe this will be a concern. The 100-400mm is a flyweight all day hand holdable lens that nearly any decent ball head can handle.

For any kind of moving subject you are far better off with a ball head than a pan and tilt.

That said if the options are "buy a new ball head" or "try the one you have", well just go out and try the one you have! It may be up to the task, and you may be able to live with the slow adjustment speed of a pan and tilt while shooting wild life

Gimbal heads are amazing, but they are totally unnecessary for the diminutive 100-400mm sized lenses. They really apply to lenses of the size and scale of the 300mm f/2.8 and larger,. much larger.

Talaska wrote in post #10743627
The off brand gimbal mounts sold on Ebay are not bad quality and are ok for a lighter lens. The problem with that lens for any gimbal mount is that your center of gravity changes when you zoom out or in with that lens since it is a push and pull. As far as ballheads go I really like Markins quality for the price, hard to beat.

I have one of the "off brand" Gimbal heads from Ebay, came from India, very surprised at the quality - GOOD - I have used it from everything from a 70/200 up to a 500mm, no problems.

I bought extra lens plates for each lens to enable fast changing.

Try here for starters, their & delivery to the UK was great.

Really Right Stuff BH-55 and the Wimberly Sidekick....

I own 3 Manfrotto #268 ball-heads (2 on tripods, 1 on Kirk Window Mount), with Kirk ARca-Swiss type receivers - they can handle anything that I have wanted to throw on them, so far.

I do plan to purchase a Wimberly Sidekick before winter - I'll be renting either a fast 400mm or 600mm to shoot elk on the nearby feed-grounds. The 268's would probably handle the big/long lenses, but the Sidekick will give me more versatility.

deer whisperer wrote in post #10744822
I have read that some folks have some difficulty with longer lens and ball type heads staying locked without them wanting to take a nose dive with the heavy weight ? I've got an antique version of a pan & tilt that I'm using now ... thats maybe why I'm tending to lean that way ...... but I've also have NO experience with the ball type mechanism .... all of these options are expensive and I'm hoping to make the correct choice the first time ! Is it only one knob which will either tighten or loosen the ball ? I can see that having one hand to operate the camera/lens and another to operate the ball would be a big advantage if they work like that ?
Again I greatly appreciate all input !!!!

Then they either had a cheap ballhead or one that wasn't rated for the weight. Yes, you can loosen the tension with one hand while operating the camera with the other.

THANK-YOU ALL ~ I'm going to plan on making my order for a manfrotto 055Xpro legs and a 488RC4 ball head to accompany it .. Thanks again for your input in this , its much appreciated

488 is pretty weenie IMHO.. with that little ball head, yes you will run into the problems you fear in your 3rd post.

Take a look at Markins,.
http://www.markinsamer​ica.com/MA5/category.p​hp?req=1

Or a larger Manfroto in the $200+ price range.

OK ~ any suggestions on the model ?