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Any idea what size legs are on the Novaflex? I just sold my RRS-TQC-14. It was a nice light package for travel, but the legs were too small for my current needs. I upgraded to a 3 section PMG TR423 tripod which has 42mm, 38mm, and 34mm legs. The 5.8 lbs. weight is not bad, but the collapsed 26" length can be an issue for travel. To solve that I opted for the Benro 75mm Hi-Hat for non photo related travel since it is rock solid and only weighs 3 lbs 7 oz with a leveling base and quick connect clamp attached. The leveling base provides minor adjustment and the Benro is sturdy enough to handle a C1 GP cube for low angle shots. With the cube attached the base of the camera can extend as high as 16" which is high enough for most travel situations. For reference I am showing the smaller Leica tripod that I no longer use.
Yes it is the same one. I swapped mine out for an RRS quick release. Not too difficult. You just have to be careful not to lose the little ball and spring. The top plate is held in place by the same screw that holds the clamp on, so when you remove the clamp, you have to hold on to the thin top plate or the little ball bearing will go flying into Nevernever land. The RRS clamp doesn't have the registration pins that are on the A/S clamp, so you have to center everything up when tightening the RRS clamp down in order to get that ball detent to work right. Might take a try or two. The thin plate sits on top at ~ 1.9-2" on the ruler:
Superb info. Much appreciated. Did you put a clamp with a bubble on? I think the L60 comes with that, yes? Thanks Dave!
It does come with that, but I went with the smaller RRS clamp that doesn’t have a bubble level. My camera pretty much obscures the bubble on the clamp so it is useless to me.
I do a lot of ground level stuff, too, and when I know positively that's all I am going to do, I use the RRS carbon fiber Series 3 Ground Tripod. But I so rarely have the confidence that I won't need something else, that the little guy tends to stay at home or in the car.
But it's two+ pounds lighter than your PMG rig [which for me is a huge difference]. More comparable to your PMG rig would be the 3-section TrioBase. Also stuck at about 26+ inches in length.
Thanks. Agreed with that shortcoming when the camera is on it, but . . . during setup, sure can be nice to have. And both my spare RRS QR mounts have bubbles, so what the heck. I may also consider the possibility of a Novoflex Q=Base. I already have one on order to try out this suggested rig. To the point of earlier posts here, will it be limited in its adjustments without messing with the legs? Yes. But will it be more compact, lighter, and still sturdy? Yes to that as well.
Heh, I almost didn't see the little ball bearing at first. Picked mine up today, and I couldn't wait to get that dumb Arca lever off the darn thing. Dave, did you by chance use any thread locker?
Yeah, I used blue Loctite. I wouldn’t dare use red. Since there are no longer any registration pins, it seemed like a good idea.
Thanks Dave. Couldn't agree more about getting the screw locked down as tight as possible. Leverage changes dramatically with a camera on top.
My new Novoflex tripod and magic ball kugelkopf enjoying the view from Primrose Hill by Erik Lundqvist, on FlickrI got the medium, but I wonder if the mini would have been better. This setup is very very top heavy.
Same here. Though there are a few prototype reviews out there that are pretty positive, I put in a pledge, because it's the only real way to find out. I am thinking universal plus the A-S L60 leveler. I recently tried out a combo of Novoflex legs and various leveling heads, and was very pleased with how well they worked, and how compact they could be. If I have room and weight capacity, I still carry the RRS 33S, but if weight is hypercritical, the Novoflex now gets the nod. Until the PD proves its merit. And FWIW, the PD is priced at 289 [aluminum] and 479 [carbon fiber] on Kickstarter.On the other end of the scale from tripod rigs designed for heavy-ish medium format and long lens use, there are travel tripods. I have a couple of them, the best of which is the Sirui T-025x so far, but they're all really limited in capability and speed in the field.
My curiosity has been piqued by the new Peak Design Travel Tripod that was announced on Kickstarter recently: Kickstarter - Peak Design Travel Tripod
One of these, occasionally along with their optional universal head mount and my A-S Monoball P0, could be a brilliant travel kit, suitable for everything from the iPhone to my current usual travel camera (Leica CL with up to a 135mm lens). If it's stable enough... of course.
I put in a pledge. No other way to find out, really.
G
