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The great tripod & head thread!

Sold my Arca Swiss D4. Now looking for a Cube, for studio work no issue. But is it also a good idea to use it for outdoor work (landscapes) ? Who is using the Cube outdoors and indoors? And is the new Cube GP (geared panning) worth the additional couple of hundreds of cost versus a regular Cube?
thanks for informations...opinions..experiences..
 

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kdphotography

Well-known member
The AS Cube is fantastic on location! When portability and weight is not much of an issue, Id rather have the Cube on my RRS TVC-33 tripod over any other combination. (Graham Welland tripod head quick release system makes it easy to swap).

If I were buying a Cube new, I'd probably go ahead and opt for the new geared panning. Not that much more....

Ken
 

jng

Well-known member
What Ken and Joe said. Last year I was out in a sand storm with the Cube. It was a choice between getting the Cube a little messy or getting the shot, and I chose the latter. I was able to clean most if not all of the grit out of the gears using Q-tips and compressed air. The Cube has worked without issue since then. Some people have cleaned their Cubes by taking them into the shower, but that's just too kinky for me. :p

I suppose that one advantage of the exposed gears is that you can at least see - and easily access - where the sand and dirt wound up. For me, the weight and theortical limitation of using it in adverse conditions are worth the stability and precision movements. If I didn't already own a Cube I'd go for the new geared panning version, but I've so far resisted the urge to upgrade. So far.

John
 

kdphotography

Well-known member
.... Some people have cleaned their Cubes by taking them into the shower, but that's just too kinky for me. :p

....
John

OMG! The Jack Flesher "love my Cube" shower method! I think a search here on GetDPI will turn up that thread.

Blast from the past. Good times.

:ROTFL:
 

dchew

Well-known member
I am another who uses and abuses the cube in all conditions. 8 years with no issues.

Dave
 

Hausen

Active member
Well still waiting for my L60. Purchased from arca-shop.de on 15/2 with the hope I would have it before I travel to Australia on Friday. 3 emails and Website contact form and I have heard nothing.
 

jotloob

Subscriber Member
David

As I mentioned before in this thread , the ARCASHOP is no official arca agent . It is a self proclaimed
" ARCA DEALER " .
www.fotopartner.de has all three versions of the L60 in stock .
Mine arrived three weeks ago .
 

Don Libby

Well-known member
OMG! The Jack Flesher "love my Cube" shower method! I think a search here on GetDPI will turn up that thread.Blast from the past. Good times.:ROTFL:
I have it on very good authority that the shower method does work. Please don't ask how I know this...
 

Hausen

Active member
That is annoying, I should have read that properly. 10 mins after I posted this I got a message from UPS. Theoretically it arrives tomorrow. I have message from UPS but zero communication from Snap. I will know for next time.

David

As I mentioned before in this thread , the ARCASHOP is no official arca agent . It is a self proclaimed
" ARCA DEALER " .
www.fotopartner.de has all three versions of the L60 in stock .
Mine arrived three weeks ago .
 
Quick question, I've been looking at photos of the P0 Hybrid and it looks like the only bubble level is on top. Are there bubble levels on the sides as well?
 

Alaarx

New member
Yes. And it does.



Matt
To both Matt and anyone else who has used RRS / Novoflex tripods, how do you feel about the quality comparably? Im looking to get something a touch bigger than my TQC14 yet still packable. Price is a wash here in Australia. So far the Triobalance 4 section carbon tripod and RRS 24L have my eye but id love to hear opinions. RRS seems to come in a bit lighter in comparable tripods but not outrageously so.
 

Alaarx

New member
Also doesn’t anyone know if you can get the L60 leveller without an arca release? I’d love to put a Novoflex Q-base QR on instead.
 

tylerallenmohr

Active member
Also doesn’t anyone know if you can get the L60 leveller without an arca release? I’d love to put a Novoflex Q-base QR on instead.
You can easily remove the Arca quick-release clamp on the leveler. But, do so with much care. There is a flat disk between the head and clamp fitted with very small metal beads that facilitate a subtle click stop during panning. Those beads are kind of held in by friction and will almost certainly pop off and be lost forever if you disassemble the unit. Trust me!

Then there’s another issue. The Arca head is threaded with an M6 hole on top. Meanwhile the Novoflex clamp is going to be Non-metric 1/4” and therefore incompatible. I’ve spoken to Novoflex about this recently and they were willing to work with me but I haven’t received the custom drilled clamp yet. If you’re flexible, you might look into a RRS clamp. I think several have a non-threaded center hole so, you’d just need to fit the M6 screw originally supplied with the L60. Mind you, I haven’t tried mounting the RRS on top but myself but I’ve seen them on top of Arca cubes several times.
 

Alaarx

New member
Im surprised Novoflex use imperial being from Germany but I guess the US is a huge target market. That sounds quite risky to be honest, its a shame because the Q-base is probably my favourite release ever.

Has anyone used the Alpagon geared stuff? Any good?
 

danlindberg

Well-known member
Has anyone used the Alpagon geared stuff? Any good?
Yes! I have the works and the overall feel is as usual brilliant! If anything, on the heavy side if you use many of the different components. That's why I today 'only' put on the levelling base and pano-top. My concern was if it would be difficult to find the right resistance on the levellinghead with the mighty MAX on top for a quick levelling and lockdown.
In fact, it was superb with the circular bubble on top it was deadeasy to find the centrespot and lock it in place. And as seen in the attached snap, the weight is no issue whatsoever. Stable as anything.

This is how I am going to use it on hiking.
If the car is close or if I'm doing interiors, then all components will come along. The flexibility is just brilliant!
 

Alaarx

New member
Thanks guys really appreciate it. To be honest the L60 probably suits me (and most people) the best but I've had to send a p0 hybrid back twice now with substantial play in the axis knobs and I'm just not sure if I want to beta test a first gen product. That being said no one else on here seems to have had the issue so I could just have a lemon.

So many great bullheads out there but once I experienced gears that was pretty much it for me. Could always look at a D4 again I suppose.
 

hcubell

Well-known member
Yes! I have the works and the overall feel is as usual brilliant! If anything, on the heavy side if you use many of the different components. That's why I today 'only' put on the levelling base and pano-top. My concern was if it would be difficult to find the right resistance on the levellinghead with the mighty MAX on top for a quick levelling and lockdown.
In fact, it was superb with the circular bubble on top it was deadeasy to find the centrespot and lock it in place. And as seen in the attached snap, the weight is no issue whatsoever. Stable as anything.

This is how I am going to use it on hiking.
If the car is close or if I'm doing interiors, then all components will come along. The flexibility is just brilliant!
If a tripod set up could be considered “investment grade” this would be it.
 
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