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Quality light stands for studio use

I am a longtime location still photographer and recently built a photo studio. I am interested in buying some light stands for use strictly in the studio, not on location. I am hundreds of miles from the nearest photo equipment dealer, so have to buy over the internet. I want BLACK stands with WHEELS, a maximum height of 9' or 10' would be fine. The main light that will be mounted on one of these stands is a Dynalite #4040 studio electronic flash head mounted with a Mola Setti (28") beauty dish reflector. I have a couple of the 40" MSE (Matthews) extension arms with grip heads; I would consider mounting one of these on the new stand (mainly to keep the light stand a bit further from my subjects). Can any of you longtime studio shooters recommend a specific stand/model for this application? The quantity of different stands on the various manufacturer web sites is overwhelming - on the MSE site alone there is too much to choose from, kind of like the grocery store. Thanks! Mark Weidman
 
Gee, I was disappointed not to get some feedback on this post. I did get some input on other forums. Here is an update with some of my own feedback re. lightstands.

I bought Matthews Aluminum Light/Heavy Triple Riser Kit Stand with Adapter Wheels.* For the price, the B387490 is a decent light stand. *But I found once I installed the Adapter Wheels (#387101) on the stands, once loaded with a light fixture, they become kind of wobbly. *The wheels do not track in a straight line, they really do not attach very cleanly, and they do not have a locking mechanism. The stands themselves were fine until I installed the wheel kits. I also bought a Matthews MALSBJTR Hollywood Baby Jr. Triple Riser Stand. *Though this stand is about $100 more expensive than the B387490 with wheels, it is substantially stronger, the wheels track in a straight line, and they have a locking mechanism. *This steel stand is not black, which was one of the criteria I originally provided, but it is far superior than the aluminum stands. *I am thinking about sending the aluminum stands back in exchange for more steel stands.
 

fotografz

Well-known member
Matthews steel all the way. Chrome doesn't make any difference.

For non-wheeled stands in studio I use all C stands.

-Marc
 
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