Starting up research on CF legs and ran across these brands but cant seem to find anyone using them. They are all very nicely priced compared to Gitzo which seems to be the industry standard. Also I'm noticing there are very few CF legs with a 75mm bowl? And lastly, all I've ever used on my aluminum legs is a flip lock...how are the twist locks in comparison?
Don't mind spending for the Gitzos but if it's not necessary...

Oh and this will primarily be for the XF300. My aluminum Manfrottos (028b & 355) make the rig heavy and not stable enough for my tastes. Also going for a new head but thats another topic. Really felt it after the 11 hours of shooting I did on Saturday!!

Flashpoint, Benro, Induro, Slik CF legs? (WTFAT?)

Gitzo which seems to be the industry standard.

Er, which industry would that be, then?

You're joking, of course?

You must be, 'cos there's not one on your list as figures on any industry list I've ever seen.

Boy, are you grubbing around with the bottom feeders.

You're going to put a brand spanking new XF300 on top of ANY of that lot?

I'm starting to think of turning this forum in and becoming a Tibetan Monk, this is just rediculous!


CS

Starting up research on CF legs and ran across these brands but cant seem to find anyone using them.

To try to phrase it less robustly than my Kiwi friend..!

The brands you mention are prevalent in the stills photography world, which is a whole different ball game to the professional video world. In photography, the camera needs to be still for a fraction of a second, which is easy and cheap. Video needs to be rock solid throughout a shot, and a head and legs combo needs to be smooth when panning, tilting, or doing both at once. It must be balanced for your camera so you aren't fighting physics, and it needs to not drift back at the end of a pan. When you take your hand off the pan bar, the tripod needs to stay exactly where it is.

In video, brands like Vinten, Sachtler and Miller are the ones to aim for. A basic set of Sachtler 75mm Speedlock CF legs in the UK costs around $1000 US (approx). I have used them and they are good, very good indeed, and rock solid, with minimal twist, and fast setup times.

Even with CF legs, my complete Sachtler setup weighed around 8kg, or 17lbs!

Ok Chris, be nice!

I saw two pro crews this weekend using Sachtler heads on Gitzo sticks and played with one and it felt very good. And it was a Sony F800 on top so I'd imagine they had a budget!. The head though probably weighed more than my camera and the head/sticks combo probably cost as much as my Ducati!


So you've answered why I can't find any info on the others and that's all I needed to know about those brands.

I will aim a bit higher!

Still want to know if there is such a thing as lightweight and rock solid.

Technically, B&H lists one Gitzo model in the Professional Video section that has a 75mm bowl adapter. The other models are column post designs.

There are 177 legs listed on B&H from $90 to $3900. Filtering them down to CF 75mm and 100mm bowl models, there's 33 from $400 to $2900.

"Rock Solid" is a function of various things. The XF is comparable in size (but not weight) with the EX3. This thread has information you may find helpful:
http://www.dvinfo.net/forum/tripod-sticks-heads/238564-tripod-sony-ex3-6.html

Thanks Les! That does help!

And I'll dial it back a couple of notches, sorry about that, but really............

There are plenty of 75 mm CF sticks out there, check out B&H, the reason you won't find any info on the ones you mentioned is because no -one will touch them with a barge pole, and with good reason.

The Gitzo's you mentioned are about as low as anyone would want to go for HD and even then, you're getting the Manfrotto 501 type stuff which is just rediculous for HD (IMHO).

For the XF300 you should be looking at the Vinten Vision Blue or Vision 3 AS (dependant on pimp level), the Sachtler FSB 4 or 6 (again, depending) and maybe the Libec RS 250 or 350 (again, depending).

Can't say about the Miller or Manfrotto as haven't tried either, but as you've probably gathered, camera support can actually be way more than the camera cost.

If you want a decent support you won't end up cursing the second day you use it, go for either of my first two suggestions, you can't go wrong if you get it right.

Fire a mail to both Peter ( Peter.Harman@VitecGroup.Com ) for Vinten or Babs ( Barbara.Joumann@VitecGroup.com ) for Sachtler with what you're after, and let them give you the real deal (they are the Product Managers for their respective companies, you're talking to the Organ Grinder with both, not a monkey).

(Don't call her Babs, she'll kill you and probably me as well!).

I hope that's a tad more usefull than my first effort.


CS

After scouring a few of the tripod forums I understand a lot more. And no worries on the comments Chris, I get passionate about a few topics I'm very well versed in too! I just wanted to make sure the intent of my question wasn't missed. I am a one-man-band and need gear to be light as possible. BUT I can't sacrifice the ability to get the shots I need.

I do need a serious setup and really saw the ugliness of my 503HDV in the stuff I shot this weekend. The Canon was a major step up from my previous camera and it's time to do the same for the support. Leaning towards the Sachtler

Sachtler 0450 FSB-6T with 75CF and Mid-Level Spreader 0450 B&H

Seems reasonably priced and not terribly heavy.

Sense, that's what I like.

Fire that mail to Babs (God, don't call her that, there's probably a hit squad after me already!) and see if she can line up a demo for you, somewhere close.

You really need to try this stuff first to make sure you're comfortable with it.

Don't forget Peter tho', as their stuff is equally good, just, er, different.

The one thing I can be confident of, you won't be dissapointed in either.

Wallet empty - yes, happy - maybe. Shots - superb.

Keep us posted.


CS

Does anyone know if the claw ball is removable on the Miller DS 10 or Sachtler DV 4 II?

And for more than you'd ever want to know about some very cool tripods and heads from Saltzman, Oconnor, et al with gobs of closeup photos: tripod.htm (http://glennview.com/tripod.htm)