first decent tripod

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ian lincoln - 17 Mar 2006 19:30 GMT

asked for the biggest meanest tripod going. Manfrotto 190PROB and 141rc
head. Only thing missing was spirit levels built into the head. There ya
go. Is that really a big issue?

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JTS Brown - 17 Mar 2006 20:12 GMT

> asked for the biggest meanest tripod going. Manfrotto 190PROB and 141rc
> head. Only thing missing was spirit levels built into the head. There ya
> go. Is that really a big issue?

You didn't get the biggest or the meanest tripod going. You probably got what
was in stock.

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Pete D - 17 Mar 2006 20:23 GMT

>> asked for the biggest meanest tripod going. Manfrotto 190PROB and 141rc
>> head. Only thing missing was spirit levels built into the head. There
>> ya go. Is that really a big issue?
>
> You didn't get the biggest or the meanest tripod going. You probably got
> what was in stock.

Mind you they are pretty good.

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ian lincoln - 17 Mar 2006 22:06 GMT

i agree. was originally planning to buy the carbon fibre version of the
base. However that was £299 on its own. The whole lot in this instance
cost £145.

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Espen Stranger Seland - 17 Mar 2006 21:48 GMT

>asked for the biggest meanest tripod going. Manfrotto 190PROB and 141rc
>head.

It's actually a thin tripod with the worst head.

Look at something like this, IF you can afford (include everything you
spend on tripods and heads before you realize that this is what you
needed all the time):

http://www.nikonians.org/html/resources/non-nikon_articles/markins_guides/Super_
Gitzo2.html

>Only thing missing was spirit levels built into the head. There ya
>go. Is that really a big issue?

No. Compose with your viewfinder, not with the spirit levels.

-espen

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ian lincoln - 17 Mar 2006 22:07 GMT

>>asked for the biggest meanest tripod going. Manfrotto 190PROB and 141rc
>>head.
[quoted text clipped - 13 lines]
>
> -espen

Thanks. Quite an improvement on my jessops 550. rrp £50

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ian lincoln - 17 Mar 2006 22:11 GMT

>>asked for the biggest meanest tripod going. Manfrotto 190PROB and 141rc
>>head.
[quoted text clipped - 13 lines]
>
> -espen

current spending, £30 for typical plasticky tripod that eventually died.
sold for £10 with a hose clip to repair broken leg clasp.
so
£20
jessops 550 rrp £50 staff price £25
so £55. Then town and country bag to put tripod in staff price £12.
so £67 so far.
for video use a cobra bag for a velborn video tripod with oil filled head.
£70
so £137
manfrotto head and tripod £145
so £282 in total.
What does the perfrect gitzo you linked to cost?

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Espen Stranger Seland - 18 Mar 2006 10:57 GMT

>current spending, £30 for typical plasticky tripod that eventually died.
>sold for £10 with a hose clip to repair broken leg clasp.
[quoted text clipped - 9 lines]
>so £282 in total.
>What does the perfrect gitzo you linked to cost?

I have not gotten there myself yet! :-)

Now I have a Markins M10 on a 055. The 055 is somewhat better than the
190, but I'm going to replace it for Gitzo this spring (more $ down
the drain).

While it's a lot of money ($340 for the head and £3-500 for the
tripod), it's a system that would fit you needs and last i lifetime.

-espen

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Pentax Fan - 18 Mar 2006 21:57 GMT

>>current spending, £30 for typical plasticky tripod that eventually died.
>>sold for £10 with a hose clip to repair broken leg clasp.
[quoted text clipped - 18 lines]
> While it's a lot of money ($340 for the head and £3-500 for the
> tripod), it's a system that would fit you needs and last i lifetime.

For tonight's competition, Ladies and Gents, arrange the following words
into a well known saying:

Money, Than, Sense, More

First correct answer wins a Merkins tripod - with five Porsche Carrera GT's
for the runners up.

Terms & Conditions Apply

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David Dyer-Bennet - 17 Mar 2006 23:50 GMT

> asked for the biggest meanest tripod going. Manfrotto 190PROB and 141rc
> head. Only thing missing was spirit levels built into the head. There ya
> go. Is that really a big issue?

Depends what you're doing, but -- YES. For me. Depends what you're
doing with the tripod. (Actually, spirit levels built into the
*tripod top* are also important, mostly for things where you're going
to pan. You want the *top* leveled so you can use the head to pan
without tilting.) For just leveling the camera itself, a hot-shoe
level in the camera works fine of course.

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Jeremy Nixon - 18 Mar 2006 00:31 GMT

> asked for the biggest meanest tripod going. Manfrotto 190PROB and 141rc
> head. Only thing missing was spirit levels built into the head. There ya
> go. Is that really a big issue?

Only if it matters to you. I wouldn't miss it.

I just got a Gitzo G-0057. Neither big nor mean, but that's the whole
point -- it can fit in my bag easily, weighs almost nothing, and gets to be
the tripod I've got when I wouldn't have had a tripod at all. It's *just*
stable enough, as long as you don't touch anything.

What I don't get is why all the tripod companies insist on putting those
stupid center columns on everything. They're always the weakest link for
stability, even when not extended, and this tripod is no exception -- it
would be a lot more stable without the column, but it can't be used without
it. And I'm never, ever going to extend a center column. You can get a
base to replace the center column on the larger Gitzos, but not the tiny
ones. Oh well.

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Dave - 20 Mar 2006 16:18 GMT

>>asked for the biggest meanest tripod going. Manfrotto 190PROB and 141rc
>>head. Only thing missing was spirit levels built into the head. There ya
[quoted text clipped - 14 lines]
> base to replace the center column on the larger Gitzos, but not the tiny
> ones. Oh well.

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Dave - 20 Mar 2006 16:20 GMT

Jeremy,

I don't know about the carbon fiber Gitzo's, but they do make a plate
for the metal ones that eliminates the center column.

Hope this helps,
Dave

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Jeremy Nixon - 21 Mar 2006 00:40 GMT

> I don't know about the carbon fiber Gitzo's, but they do make a plate
> for the metal ones that eliminates the center column.

Yeah, not for the small models, though.

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eawckyegcy@yahoo.com - 18 Mar 2006 00:31 GMT

> asked for the biggest meanest tripod going. Manfrotto 190PROB and 141rc
> head. Only thing missing was spirit levels built into the head. There ya
> go. Is that really a big issue?

A level on a tripod itself is almost useless: it's really hard to
actually _level_ the thing (pulling in legs, making legs longer, etc,
frustration mounting, many seconds passing, cursing, swearing,
hypertension, etc). A far, far, better approach is to get a "levelling
head".

So if you think you need levelness alot (panoramics are the usual
excuse, but use of a Wimberly is a bit easier when things are level),
you should probably take your purchases back to whever you obtained
them and demand a Gitzo G1325 legset and a G1321 levelling head. Yeah,
it's gonna hurt (hitting high 3 digit prices), but you'll probably
never have to buy another tripod again.

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Joan - 23 Mar 2006 06:59 GMT

Get a double bubble spirit level for the hot shoe.

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Joan
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: asked for the biggest meanest tripod going. Manfrotto 190PROB and 141rc
: head. Only thing missing was spirit levels built into the head. There ya
: go. Is that really a big issue?

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