Ball heads revisited - are thare any bargains out there?

<p>OK, we all know that I should have a Arca Swiss Monoball ball head, but I am not quite ready to fork out nearly $400 for one right now. I also know that I might regret this later......so don't get on about that.<br>

So what are the alternatives in the $125 - $175 range and the $175 - $225 range? My preferance is to have the Arca Swiss quick release system.<br>

Giottos seems to have some heads that fill the bill (and the price includes one plate). Kirk (BH=3) and Arcatech (Ultimate Ball Head) are slightly more than my price catagories.<br>

Are there any other alternatives and how good are they? Are the Giottos any good?<br>

Steve Young - in a corn field 3 1/2 hours south of Chicago<br>

Canon Elan 7, 200mm 2.8L, 50mm 2.5, 28mm, 2.8 and likely a 400mm 5.6 in the future. I want rock solid support and no movement when I tighten the ball. It is possible that I will just have to hold out for the A-S?</p>

<p>PS I was in Chicago a couple weeks ago and visited Helix camera in hopes that I could see some of these tripod heads but all they had were Bogen and Gitzo - very disappointing.</p>

<p>Hello Steve,</p>

<p>I used a Giottos MH1300 with the MH657 clamp/plate for a couple of years and found it to be an excellent ballhead. The head is well made and the controls are very smooth with little or no image shift when tightened down. After I started using a Canon 300 f4L + 1.4X, I found that the Acratech GV2 gimbal mount handled better so I sold the Giottos. I think the Giottos heads are very much underrated and I wouldn't hesitate to recommend the MH1300/657 for use with your present setup.</p>

<p>A bargain is something you pay a reasonable price for that gives you years of high quality performance which keeps you from spending money twice. By that criteria there <em>are</em> bargains out there: Arca-Swiss, Foba, Linhof, Really Right Stuff, Kirk and Acra-Tech</p>

<p>I've seen a clone (Amvona Dynatran ATH918) of the Manfrotto 222 grip ball head in the past on eBay, but I see that they no longer are selling anything. I'm guessing the lawsuits against them for infringement probably cooked their goose (<a href="http://www.photoflex.com/News___Events/News_Releases/Photoflex_Products__Inc.__sues_Amvona.com_for_patent_copyright_infringement_and_unfair_competition/index.html">link</a> ). Still, individuals may be selling their own copies, if you could find them. The prices were a fraction of the real thing.</p>

<p>Steve, I have never used a Markins head but I have been thinking about their Q3 for travel. It's not built like their M20 or even the M10 but for light/medium weight attachments, it seems to be fine. I would guess it sells for about $225 from the dealers.......</p>

<p><a href="http://www.markinsamerica.com/MA5/Q3.php?req=black">http://www.markinsamerica.com/MA5/Q3.php?req=black</a></p>

 

<p>i recently purchased a vanguard sbh-50 and sbh-100 ballhead for use with my new feisol tripod. my heaviest setup is currently a nikon d90 and sigma 50-150 - about 3lbs together, and both heads seem to be fine... the sbh-100 is a bit larger and inspires more confidence.<br>

these are my first ballheads, and i've only had them for a few days, so i don't know how they hold up in the long term, but they each cost only around $50. for that little money, one of these or their big brothers (sbh-200 or 300) may be worth a try. check adorama.</p>

<p>Ball heads are very popular. However they is another type of head out there that you might want to consider. They are the Bogen <a href="http://www.bhphotovideo.com/bnh/controller/home?ci=0&shs=bogen+410&sb=ps&pn=1&sq=desc&InitialSearch=yes&O=jsp%2Fgetpage.jsp&A=search&Q=*&bhs=t&Go.x=27&Go.y=3">410</a> or <a href="http://www.bhphotovideo.com/bnh/controller/home?ci=0&shs=bogen+405&sb=ps&pn=1&sq=desc&InitialSearch=yes&O=jsp%2Fproductlist.jsp&A=search&Q=*&bhs=t&Go.x=10&Go.y=10">405</a> mini gear heads. There was an interesting conversation recently in photo.net about them <a href="../canon-eos-digital-camera-forum/00StuJ">here</a>. Once you position the camera and let go, the camera will still be in the position you set it at. There is no shift in the camera position. Pin point positioning with a telephoto lens or for macro photography is very easy. Gear heads are best suited for taking pictures of stationary objects. You cannot easily track a moving object such as a bird or car. There is 3 gear controls (one for each axis) it will take a little while to get use to the controls but once you do point it is fast and easy. </p>

<p>Unfortunately the Bogen heads only come with a Bogen quick release plate. However in the photo.net discussion I mentioned above <a href="http://www.photo.net/photodb/user?user_id=587835">Joseph Wisniewski</a> provided a link on how he modified it to accept an Arca Swiss quick release system. I have tested the 410 up to its load limit (11lbs) and it worked fine. Joseph put 22lbs on a 405 which is only rated at 16 an it worked fine. The 410 currently goes for $220 while the 405 goes for $400. My 410 has gone through a lot of abuse in the last 10 years and it still works fine. These heads might be worth a look.</p>

<p> </p>

<p>You can get a used Kirk BH-3 or perhaps an equivalent size RRS on photo.net used for the range you mentioned (I just sold my BH-3 for $215); Kirk also sells new but blem BH-3s on the bay for $235 frequently. That's close enough to your range I'd save up a bit more to do it. Look at the posts; Kirk, RRS, Arcatech are all praised highly. Quality may cost more up front but it pays over the years.</p>

<p>You can replace the base plate/release system on the Bogen ballheads, it's discussed on the RRS website, perhaps on Kirk's as well. You can probably find Acratech products which would do the trick as well. The pan/tilt or grip action heads are harder to retrofit but not impossible. That can start to creep into the used prices for the high end ball heads, if not the new prices.</p>

<p> </p>

<p>Thanks a lot for all our your input. <br>

We really don't do a lot of the "best XXXX for a specific price range" on these forums like you can find in electronic components, but I appreciate all of your response.<br>

I really haven't decided with certainty, but I have looked into the Markins Q3 and am very interested. I thought that B&H or Adorama carried just about everything out there but neiher stock Markins, therefore , it wasn't on my radar until suggested above. From the reviews that I have seen, it just might be what I am looking for, although slightly out of the price brackets that I origionally suggested.</p>

<p>Good ballhead is a precision made mechanical product made from high quality materials. Switzerland and USA are expensive places to manufacture them. But they use good materials and make high quality products. Korea is a cheaper place for production, and Markins uses good materials. There is another Korean brand, recently started, that is much cheaper, but not at same quality. China would be a much cheaper place to manufacture, but unfortunately they tend to cut not only in the cost of labour but also in materials and in production quality. Italy is not that cheap either, surely a bit cheaper than Switzerland, but Giotto's has to cut a bit in materials and production quality as well, otherwise it could not be so much cheaper than Arca, Linhof, Kirk or RRS.</p>

<p>The cheapest ball head that can be considered functional is a Gitzo G-1377 Center Ball. At as little as $180 (with a screw type platform) it is very smooth with adequate holding power. You can replace the platform with a Really Right Stuff clamp, which is much more convenient to use. The Gitzo "Arca" clamp is a waste of money. Starting at a little over $300, the Arca Z1 is the best bargain, and arguably the best ball head in existence.</p>

<p>Vanguard definitely worth checking into.</p>

<p>i've had the same question myself.<br>

have not used either one, but the vanguard and the photo clam (made in korea, supposedly similar to markins at a lower price) have come onto the radar.<br>

i'd really like to see a comparison review of the vanguard.</p>

<p>Your biggest lens is (will be?) a 400/5.6, mine is a 300/2.8. Both are beyond what Markins calls 'small/med' lenses, the recommended size for the Q3. FWIW, I have emailed Markins regarding just how much lens this head can really handle. After all, the head is rated at 65 lbs, more than sufficient but of course, this is about balance.</p>

<p>If you are interested in the Q3, I have seen it available on that evil auction site for about $200, well within your budget. </p>

 

<p>Well, i picked up a RRS B-82 plate for my 200mm from eBay, and KEH had a a-S B-1 ball and a Kirk camera plate for my elan 7.<br>

At first, I was concerned about the weight of the ball but my miserable plastic Bogen weighed 1.2 lbs.<br>

I hope this all works out.</p>