Tridods?

[ericyoung]

...I have never been comfortable with Vinten since a lock slipped once and the camera and teleprompter went crashing to the floor. Naturally it was the leg across from me so I was grabbing at air as the camera went away.

To be fair to Vinten though, this sounds like either the camera & teleprompter wasn't balanced front and back on the sliding baseplate (easy to forget if adding a prompter to a previously balanced camera), and/or the balancing spring wasn't turned up to match the weight of the whole load, and/or the total weight was out of the spec of the head's balancing spring.

Vinten tilt locks really aren't designed to be "hard locks" taking the weight of an out of balance load. If it was in balance, it would just stay in place when the tilt lock is released.

[Blair S. Paulsen]

I just picked up an O'Connor 1030HD head and put it on Cartoni single stage CF legs (A303). Perhaps its my suspicious nature but I chose not to follow Gibby's advice to buy used and ate the full cost of buying new. I used a vendor who I buy a lot of gear from and send customers to, who gives me great deals. I have also found that buying things new and taking meticulous care of them results in a predictable user experience and, gives me great confidence when selling my services.

Right now I have a Sony D-30 head with DVCAM back, Fujinon B4 zoom lens, Anton brick and matte box/CF rods up on the head - roughly 25lbs. The 1030HD head is like butter - I am in love.

The Cartoni CF legs weigh only 5lbs and are rated to hold 132lbs. The stage locks are particularly sweet - very quick and easy to use with a lever lock style that feels very solid when shut.

I certainly agree with Gibby that when you are loaded up with Cine accessories or a monster zoom the lighter rigs are overmatched - fortunately those are just the kind of gigs where the cost of a tripod rental is unlikely to be an issue.

[Tonaci Tran]

Yo Blair, you know I'll be over to check it out. congrats!

[Peter Richardson]

I'm probably going to go with the Oconnor 1030HD and their 35L Carbon fiber sticks with the quick release. I have an O'Connor right now matched with teh Miller Solo legs and love it, but it won't handle the Red.

Does anyone have experience with modern iterations of the 35L's, or comparable sticks? I used a set in film school and loved them, but sometimes the teeth on the legs would get gummed up and they wouldn't deploy properly -- not exactly an exciting proposition for a lot of field work. I wonder if they've fixed this problem.

I'm curious to know, for those who are going with Oconnor, who their preferred vendor will be. I foresee myself calling around a bit for price quotes, but am going to hold off till my Red has a delivery date.

Peter