Over the past 4 months I have been working with a customised version of the Swebo TCS20, built to my own specifications.
The stock camera is already a very compact and capable technical camera, but for my day‑to‑day architectural and interior work I needed something even more tailored to my way of shooting and travelling.
After discussing my requirements directly with Swebo, we ended up with a version that differs quite a bit from the standard TCS20, both in terms of dimensions and available movements.
The main issue for me was the focusing rail.
The stock rail is 25 cm long, which makes the camera surprisingly hard to transport and prevents it from fitting in many backpacks and smaller bags.
Since I never use lenses longer than a 72 mm, I simply did not need all the bellows draw offered by the standard rail, so that extra length was just dead weight and bulk.
For this reason I asked Swebo to add a shorter focusing rail of 18 cm.
This length is just enough to focus my Schneider 72 mm XL at practical distances, while at the same time allowing the entire camera to slide easily into my main work backpack and several other bags I use on location.
In daily use this single change transformed the camera from something I had to plan around into a compact tool I can carry everywhere without thinking about it.
The second limitation of the stock TCS20, at least for my shooting style, was the lack of rear swing.
I regularly use both front and rear movements to control perspective and plane of focus, so having swing only on the front standard would have prevented me from making many of the images I typically deliver to clients. To solve this, I asked the manufacturer to add a module from TC18 Pro that integrates perfectly with the TCS20 and gives the rear standard the swing movements I was missing.
With the reduced-length rail and the added rear swing, I ended up with a camera that is still relatively small and light, weighing just under 3 kg in the configuration shown in the photos.
It is compact enough to carry anywhere without special cases, yet offers the movements I need.
What makes it even more attractive is that this custom TCS20 costs roughly one third—or even less—than alternatives like the Arca‑Swiss Pico or the Cambo Actus Mini, while giving me exactly the feature set I want.
Of course, the customisations I requested do come with several drawbacks, even if, for my needs, they are acceptable and easy to work around. The most obvious limitation is that, in this configuration, it is essentially impossible to mount lenses much longer than a 72 mm and still focus to infinity.
I suspect that even a 90 mm would struggle to reach infinity focus.
Fortunately, this restriction can be managed.
Using an extended lensboard of at least 3 cm would already help, and Swebo’s shop also lists an additional extension module that further increases the available draw.
In theory, combining an extended board with that extension should make it feasible to use lenses of at least 150 mm, even though I have not tested this in practice because I currently have no need for such focal lengths.
I do not know if Swebo manufactures extended boards himself, as I simply design and 3D‑print my own, which work beautifully in day‑to‑day use.
Another side effect of the modifications is the extra height introduced by the rear swing module.
Because the rear standard has been raised to accommodate this part, the front tilt‑and‑swing module also needs to be raised to maintain proper alignment between front and rear.
This means the overall camera sits higher than a standard TCS20, which can make it slightly more awkward to fit into some shoulder bags or tighter spaces where the original version would slide in more easily.
A smaller but still noticeable issue concerns the lateral shift lock lever.
In its horizontal, unlocked position, the lever partially blocks the rear swing scale, which becomes annoying when working in tight spaces or when trying to read the markings accurately.
The workaround is to flip the lever into the vertical, locked position so the scale is visible, but this forces you to continuously lock and unlock the shift while working, which gets a bit tiresome over time.
It is not a deal‑breaker, but it is one of those small ergonomic compromesse that come with this particular configuration.
So, am I satisfied with this modified version of the TCS20?
Yes: despite these quirks and compromises, it remains the best balance I have found so far between size, weight, movements, and price for my way of working.
It is not a perfect camera, but for my real‑world use it is a highly optimised tool that suits me better than any off‑the‑shelf alternative I have tried.
