Gitzo GT2531
RRS BH40 LRII
RRS L-plate for camera
RRS lens plate for 100-400mm
Got an automated e-mail saying that some of this may be out of stock :pissed. None of the items showed "out of stock" on the site, but the ball head also did not show "in stock" -- there was no designation. I am hoping the e-mail statement is a CYA on the part of RRS and that "may be out of stock" does not mean "is out of stock."
That e-mail kind of put a damper on what was otherwise a pretty exciting evening. I have to wait until tomorrow to call and find out what the status is...
I use both. I have an L plate on my D200, and a conventional plate on my backup body D70. I use an Araca Swiss B1 (I think it is the smaller model for 35 mm and medium format bodies), and have borrowed (to compare)the RRS unit. I think the RRS is easier to use, and it is lighter and appears to have the same ridigidity as the Arca Swiss. I know several shooters who sold their AcraTechs for RRS. Hope this helps.
Stan
Once you get all those goodies, you're going to love them.
All the stuff has arrived, and it is all wonderful. On my first outing, however, I had trouble with a couple of things coming loose and would like the benefit of your collective experience and wisdom:
The ballhead seems to unscrew too easily for my liking from the tripod base (Gitzo 2530) - I wish there were a keyway or something like that to keep this from happening. As long as the pan screw is loosened, I am O.K. but if the pan is screwed down and I happen to forget, there is not much resistance to unscrewing the ballhead from the tripod. Should I just torque the poo out of it? I generally am very careful with threaded stuff when the threaded parts are not hardened steel. I do not believe the Gitzo stud or the RSS threaded hole are made of the sort of stuff you can just torque until you bust a knuckle... Has anyone else experienced this problem? Is there a fix other than just tightening more or being more careful not to apply any reversing torque when the pan screw is tight on the BH? It just seems way too easy to apply enough reverse torque to undo this connection.
The RSS lens plate loosened up while I was out shooting this evening. Unlike their camera plates, this one does not seem to have anything other than friction to resist relative rotation between the lens foot and the lens plate, which strikes me as a problem easily designed around. They did it with the camera plates; why not with the lens plates? Again, I prefer not to torque this screw with all my strength. I have stripped too many hex head drives like this, and this screw appears to be stainless steel (at best), which is notorious for hex-head-stripping. Any thoughts?
Should I "go gimbal" and add a Wimberly Sidekick to the BH if I want to shoot birds in flight from the tripod? I am using the Canon 100-400; not exactly a howitzer as Canon lenses go...
The RSS lens plate loosened up while I was out shooting this evening. Unlike their camera plates, this one does not seem to have anything other than friction to resist relative rotation between the lens foot and the lens plate, which strikes me as a problem easily designed around.
The rear end of the plate should be turned up at a right angle, forming an L. The lens foot needs to be shifted all the way back so that it's snug against the L. It absolutely will not budge this way and needs no excessive torque at all on the mount screw to do so.
2. Should I "go gimbal" and add a Wimberly Sidekick to the BH if I want to shoot birds in flight from the tripod? I am using the Canon 100-400; not exactly a howitzer as Canon lenses go...
I've a full Gitzo/RRS setup and yet always hand-hold my 100-400. The IS on this lens is a wonderful thing. If you want to use a tripod on it, then a sidekick is a great way to go.
The rear end of the plate should be turned up at a right angle, forming an L. The lens foot needs to be shifted all the way back so that it's snug against the L. It absolutely will not budge this way and needs no excessive torque at all on the mount screw to do so.
quote]
Thanks, kdog. Yes, there is a lip at the back of the plate, just as you say, and I did have the foot pushed up snug against it. And it (absolutely) did budge. If the plate had a proper hole instead of a very long slot, then this would work to prevent rotation. The problem is, that unlike their camera plates which are custom made for a particular body, this is a one-plate-fits-many design. Thus the slot, and thus the problem.
I may see if I can come up with a modification that will fix the problem...
The rear end of the plate should be turned up at a right angle, forming an L. The lens foot needs to be shifted all the way back so that it's snug against the L. It absolutely will not budge this way and needs no excessive torque at all on the mount screw to do so.
quote]
Thanks, kdog. Yes, there is a lip at the back of the plate, just as you say, and I did have the foot pushed up snug against it. And it (absolutely) did budge. If the plate had a proper hole instead of a very long slot, then this would work to prevent rotation. The problem is, that unlike their camera plates which are custom made for a particular body, this is a one-plate-fits-many design. Thus the slot, and thus the problem.
I may see if I can come up with a modification that will fix the problem...
You could contact them and ask them about the problem, as well.
Thanks, kdog. Yes, there is a lip at the back of the plate, just as you say, and I did have the foot pushed up snug against it. And it (absolutely) did budge. If the plate had a proper hole instead of a very long slot, then this would work to prevent rotation.
Below is a picture of what mine looks like, so we can be sure we're talking about the same thing. The plate simply cannot twist with the lens foot wedged into the L as long as the screw in the slot is tight. Now I do know from experience, if the foot isn't tight against the flipped-up L, then it will twist and loosen. I played around with mine on the tripod, and I can't make it budge.
The only thing I can think of is that you have an extra long screw on yours and it's bottoming out in the hole on the lens foot before it gets tightened down. I have about 1/4" protrusion on mine.
Below is a picture of what mine looks like, so we can be sure we're talking about the same thing. The plate simply cannot twist with the lens foot wedged into the L as long as the screw in the slot is tight. Now I do know from experience, if the foot isn't tight against the flipped-up L, then it will twist and loosen. I played around with mine on the tripod, and I can't make it budge.
The only thing I can think of is that you have an extra long screw on yours and it's bottoming out in the hole on the lens foot before it gets tightened down. I have about 1/4" protrusion on mine.
Quite correct. It cannot twist as long as the screw in the slot is tight. When the screw is not tight, however, it can and will move. I don't think my screw is bottoming out, but I may just not have tightended it enough. What is happening is that the screw is coming loose. I have torqued it down pretty good and plan to be out shooting all day tomorrow, so we will see. Have you walked around with the camera on the tripod slung over your shoulder much with this lens on the camera?
By the way, thank you very much for taking the time to take/post that shot. Yes, it looks just like mine does.
David, thanks for the suggestion. I did try to contact RSS during business hours today, but got a recording. I did not have a chance to get back with them to discuss this. I will post back here after tomorrow's outing.
My pleasure, and glad to help. My guess is you'll be fine after you tighten that one bolt. I know how that goes. The first outing with my brand new $600 Gitzo legs, a foot dropped off during my travels and rendered the tripod unusable. Man was I pissed. Turned out they were all loose. Once tightened, of course I've had no problem since. The things we learn.
I had an incredible day of shooting birds on the upper Texas Gulf Coast. Spent all day traipsing around Bolivar Flats, Anahuac NWR, and High Island Smith Oaks Sanctuary. And, as kdog suspected, I seem to be O.K. after man-tightening that screw on the lens plate. I also really torqued the BH-to-tripod connection. Neither loosened up on me at any point during the day.
I also experienced the same loose tripod feet syndrome on my Gitzo 2531 that kdog described. As with kdog, all of mine were loose, which I noticed the first time I went to telescope the legs in. I screwed the feet in as hard as I could by hand, and did not have any further trouble.
The bottom line: I could not be happier with my recent purchases:
Canon 100-400mm
RRS BH 40 Ball Head
RRS B2 LR II Clamp
Gitzo 2531 Tripod
B&W Filters
RS-60E3 Remote Switch
Thank you to those here who steered me toward the RRS gear. This stuff just reeks of simple quality and ruggedness. As an engineer and as a photographer, and even just as a human being, this stuff is a joy to operate.
Comments
Ordered from RRS this evening:
Gitzo GT2531
RRS BH40 LRII
RRS L-plate for camera
RRS lens plate for 100-400mm
Got an automated e-mail saying that some of this may be out of stock :pissed. None of the items showed "out of stock" on the site, but the ball head also did not show "in stock" -- there was no designation. I am hoping the e-mail statement is a CYA on the part of RRS and that "may be out of stock" does not mean "is out of stock."
That e-mail kind of put a damper on what was otherwise a pretty exciting evening. I have to wait until tomorrow to call and find out what the status is...
http://www.chrislaudermilkphoto.com/
RE: conventional vs. L plates.
I use both. I have an L plate on my D200, and a conventional plate on my backup body D70. I use an Araca Swiss B1 (I think it is the smaller model for 35 mm and medium format bodies), and have borrowed (to compare)the RRS unit. I think the RRS is easier to use, and it is lighter and appears to have the same ridigidity as the Arca Swiss. I know several shooters who sold their AcraTechs for RRS. Hope this helps.
Stan
All the stuff has arrived, and it is all wonderful. On my first outing, however, I had trouble with a couple of things coming loose and would like the benefit of your collective experience and wisdom:
I've a full Gitzo/RRS setup and yet always hand-hold my 100-400. The IS on this lens is a wonderful thing. If you want to use a tripod on it, then a sidekick is a great way to go.
Link to my Smugmug site
Dgrin FAQ | Me | Workshops
Below is a picture of what mine looks like, so we can be sure we're talking about the same thing. The plate simply cannot twist with the lens foot wedged into the L as long as the screw in the slot is tight. Now I do know from experience, if the foot isn't tight against the flipped-up L, then it will twist and loosen. I played around with mine on the tripod, and I can't make it budge.
The only thing I can think of is that you have an extra long screw on yours and it's bottoming out in the hole on the lens foot before it gets tightened down. I have about 1/4" protrusion on mine.
Link to my Smugmug site
Quite correct. It cannot twist as long as the screw in the slot is tight. When the screw is not tight, however, it can and will move. I don't think my screw is bottoming out, but I may just not have tightended it enough. What is happening is that the screw is coming loose. I have torqued it down pretty good and plan to be out shooting all day tomorrow, so we will see. Have you walked around with the camera on the tripod slung over your shoulder much with this lens on the camera?
By the way, thank you very much for taking the time to take/post that shot. Yes, it looks just like mine does.
David, thanks for the suggestion. I did try to contact RSS during business hours today, but got a recording. I did not have a chance to get back with them to discuss this. I will post back here after tomorrow's outing.
Link to my Smugmug site
I also experienced the same loose tripod feet syndrome on my Gitzo 2531 that kdog described. As with kdog, all of mine were loose, which I noticed the first time I went to telescope the legs in. I screwed the feet in as hard as I could by hand, and did not have any further trouble.
The bottom line: I could not be happier with my recent purchases:
Canon 100-400mm
RRS BH 40 Ball Head
RRS B2 LR II Clamp
Gitzo 2531 Tripod
B&W Filters
RS-60E3 Remote Switch
Thank you to those here who steered me toward the RRS gear. This stuff just reeks of simple quality and ruggedness. As an engineer and as a photographer, and even just as a human being, this stuff is a joy to operate.