What's a decent Price for a Bogen 3021?

<p>I'm in the process of buying an entry level tripod. I have a 20D/300D and light prime lenses. I would be using it for macro and portraits.<br />I was considering buying a 3021 bogen but I'm a little unsure of a decent used price. According to this article <a href="../learn/nature/bogtri">http://www.photo.net/learn/nature/bogtri</a> from '97 the 3021 should be <100$ but recently I've seen people asking a fair bit more. Am I possibly getting confused between the pro and non pro versions?<br />How much should I pay for a 3021? Also any other recommendations? I'd rather spend less on the pod and more on a geared head.</p>

<p>I do not know anymore. I tried to sell mine awhile back and got no takers, so decided to keep it. It is a great entry level tripod.<br>

<br /> A quick check here on the photo.net classifieds finds one Bogen 3021 with head and QR for $110.</p>

<p>Simplest place to dig up info is Ebay's completed auctions function under the advanced search option. This logs the previous past two weeks of transactions on Ebay.</p>

<p>Naked 3021 tripods have sold typically for $ 81.00 and $ 83.00. With pistol grip head, 3way head, 3026 head, 3028 head or 3047 head the price goes from $ 113.81 up to $ 207.50.</p>

<p>While auctions sometimes have diltzy bidders, at least it shows some common trends.</p>

<p>Jim</p>

<p>Ah thanks guys, very informative.<br>

D N: Thanks. I have an aversion to the classifieds search function. It dosn't really seem to work as expected so I never really put much time into it. For instance searching on keyword 'bogen' will not yield expected results but but either bogen or 3021 in the model or manufacturer box it seems to work. I guess it just strikes me as unpredictable and therefore unreliable.</p>

<p>Jim: Thanks, I use ebay a fair bit but I had never realized there was a way to search finished bids. I'll take that under advisement.</p>

<p>They are made by Manfrotto in Italy and labelled Bogen. Great stable tripods for the price. You might try Manfrotto 190 or other models as well. I have extra heads, if you ever find a headless one.</p>

<p>Zeb, if I can make one recommendation: Get the quick release head that has the hex plates (I think it is a 3047). It is a little bit of money, but it saves me countless hours in the field and even some shots where I could instantly mount a camera or lens before the scene disappears.</p>

<p>For example, the other day I was out in some beautiful pastureland to shoot some horses that were normally there. When I got out of my car, I heard a thundering sound. Got out my tripod, and was able to mount a Hasselblad on it to get the shot of the herd of 16 horses coming around the corner on the trail, dust flying everywhere. It was very impressive. I got exactly three frames off with my Hasselblad EL/M before they went by. Only one was the perfect shot. I could never have made it without the quick release head. I have plates mounted on all my cameras and all my long lenses.</p>

<p>Depending on taste, if the 3021 is a size and weight of legset you like, you might consider a couple of others. The 3221, generally more expensive new, sometimes shows up cheaper used, for reasons I cannot guess. It's about the same size, with leg spikes and often with non-corrosive alloy fittings. When searching, try "tracker" as an alternative search criterion, especially if you don't mind getting a green one. Later 3021's and 3221's will have different leg locks from the earlier ones (sometime in the late 90's is where I think they change) and a slightly different hub as well. The older ones work all right but the leg locks are not as nice to use or adjust, and most parts are now discontinued, so I'd discount for the sort that twist instead of flipping open.</p>

<p>If you don't mind thumbscrews for the legs, the 3011 is also the same size as a 3021. Older ones have only one leg spread position, while later ones share the independent spread mechanism of the 3021. Again, watch out for that difference, but 3011's should be cheaper than others, and if you don't need the independent leg spread, an old style 3011 is very simple and very strong, and if nothing good shows up used, a new 3011 might be worth looking at.</p>

<p> </p>

<p>In the days my 3021 was made the 3221 was identical, just black rather than silver.</p>

<p>The 3021WN is a newer, different model.</p>

 

<p>One other comment: Go with the Arca-Swiss quick-release system. Those hex plates Bogen sells might be OK to keep your canoe from drifting away, but have no business being on anything smaller than a large medium format of large format camera.</p>