samcisa Posted January 5, 2007 Share Posted January 5, 2007 I have this bracket for about month and still find it little hard to use. First, the bracket itself is heavy. The grip, if mounted by instructions, comes to the right side of camera (looking from behind) and I don't know what is the purpose of that. Normally, you need right hand on camera by release button all the time. If it was on the left side, you still need your left hand on the lens to zoom or sometimes help focusing, but I think, it would feel a little better. At least, when you finish zooming/focusing, you can grab the grip help with balance and hold the whole thing much steadier when pressing the release button. I tried to mount camera the other way, but then the grip comes to left side behind the body which makes really hard to get to the viewfinder, especially for vertical shots. Other than that, bracket is built really good and with a little anti-twist adapters feels sturdy and compact. Flash is centered exactly over lens in horizontal and vertical position etc... This is my first bracket and I am not sure if I am doing something wrong or just need some more time to use to it. What are your opinions on this bracket and did anybody try some kind of modification with success? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
m3rdpwr Posted January 5, 2007 Share Posted January 5, 2007 That's the one thing that bothered me about my CB Junior. Custom Brackets now has the CB Digital-S (Short?). http://www.custombrackets.com/scripts/prodView.asp?idproduct=112 The arm is on the other side and is a bit lighter. I believe it's short in the sence I can't use my 20D with the handgrip on this if I really wanted to. (There is also a CB Digital-T that will accept the height of a handgrip, but the handle is annoyingly on the grip side as well.) It's only about $50 or so and you can use all the other pieces from your JR. (I'm thinking about purchasing this as well as it works out better from a tripod point of view.) The brackets are build like tanks which I like. What bothers me about all them is that you need to keep a quarter or short screwdriver handy to attach them... -Mario Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
m3rdpwr Posted January 5, 2007 Share Posted January 5, 2007 * Correction on the CB Digital-T. The grip can be used on either side. As I mentioned, it would have enough height for the vertical grip on my 20D... -Mario Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
m3rdpwr Posted January 5, 2007 Share Posted January 5, 2007 As always I forget one other thing. I find it annoying that I have to remove the bracket when I need to change the battery on the CB Junior on my 20D. I found this out the hard way when I needed to change the battery in a hurry a couple weeks ago. That was the other reason for looking into the new CB Digital-S or Digital-T. I was going to inquire with CB to ask some questions... -Mario Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
m3rdpwr Posted January 5, 2007 Share Posted January 5, 2007 I asked CB some question and got a quick reply. Their support and responses have always been great... -Mario Mario, You are right the CB Digital S is for small cameras and the CB Digital T is for tall cameras. The CB Digital T can be used with the grip on either side (it has a longer camera base, so your hand will fit next to the camera grip), however the CB Digital S has a shorter camera base and this would not allow a fit for most hands on the camera grip. These brackets do not have height adjustment like the CB Junior, they are "fixed" (one piece). The flash bar on all three brackets are the same spring loaded design. I would recommend the CB Digital T over the CB Digital S, as the CB Digital S will not work at all with your added battery pack. The CB Digital T will work for both ways, but without the battery pack on it, it might be off just a little in portrait mode. Let me know if you have any further questions. Pat Custom Brackets Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rob valine Posted January 5, 2007 Share Posted January 5, 2007 Try a Stroboframe QuickFlip they're great ! Very easy to use. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
samcisa Posted January 5, 2007 Author Share Posted January 5, 2007 Mario, Thank you very much for all your work. Your informations made me feel better in a sense that I think I am not too 'slow' or too weak : ) , but I don't feel really good neither, because I spent money on something that isn't very useful. I didn't have chance to try any bracket before buy. I found only good reviews (?) on this one on the internet and the price wasn't too high. I guess, it is going to ebay. Thank you one more time and sorry for a slow response (my crazy work schedule)... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mark_jacoby___raleigh__nc Posted January 5, 2007 Share Posted January 5, 2007 I use the CB Jr on my S2 and have no problems. I mount it with the handle to the left so I can actually use the shutter button. I like it a lot. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
samcisa Posted January 5, 2007 Author Share Posted January 5, 2007 Rob, I heard about that bracket and it was actually my second choice. I may go with that one next time. Thank you. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
picturesque Posted January 5, 2007 Share Posted January 5, 2007 The grip is not a grip. It is just the vertical arm that flips the flash. It is designed that way so you can flip the camera to the left so the shutter button is on top. If you use a vertical grip on the camera, you will need this design or you wouldn't be able to use the grip's shutter button. If you are Ok with having the shutter button on the bottom when you turn the camera (turn to the right), then using a Quick Flip is probably fine. If you want something light, the Quick Flip is good, and so is the Folding Flip, but both have probems if you need to hang anything else off the bracket, such as slave transmitters, etc. A cheap but very sturdy similar bracket is the Stratos. I would give it some time. You will find that there is no such thing as a perfect bracket, although some come close. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
samcisa Posted January 5, 2007 Author Share Posted January 5, 2007 Thanks Nadine, I kinda waited for your response on this. Yes, with a vertical camera grip, it makes sense. I don't have vertical grip yet and I always looked to it from that perspective. Without grip, the other ones may be more convenient, but eventually not that compact and sturdy. Now I understand why they charge 3x as much for high-end brackets. Light, sturdy, camera rotating, etc... Maybe, one day... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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