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Red Tripod

Brandon H

Brandon H

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I was wondering if it was even possible to get a good tripod for the RED for around $2000

Some of the prices I've seen are ridiculous! $10,000??

I will only be using the RED 18-50 for a while so I won't have huge amounts of weight... Definitely under 50lbs.

Thanks!
 
Hehehe, I paid much more than US $10k for the head alone, that is, without the sticks. I don't regret it for a second.

Quick answer is, no, you can't buy half decent tripod+head for $2k. You may be able to buy an old beaten, 20 year old second hand head for that.

It also depends on your intended use of the head and weight of your rig. I sugggest you visit a rental house, like Abel, and try various heads first. You will see what is what and why.

But, as usual, you get what you pay for.
 
Bah I'll just shoot everything cloverfield style and save money...

:biggrin:

I guess I'll need head over to Burbank... Do they have RED's on tripod's or something of similar weight so I can really try it out?
 
if your looking for something that doesn't have to carry more than 35 pounds you could try the manfrotto 526 head. it comes in a combination package. It is what I have ordered as a temporary until i can afford something more appropriate to my future plans. it ran about 2 grand. no doubt not even close to the quality of what Pawel is running here, but possibly useable under your circumstances. mine should be here this week. I'll report back.
 
Oh and Pawel is a great guy. i would take his word over mine. just sometimes you get desperate.
 
It's possible to use head and sticks with heavier cam then they are rated for, just DON'T leave the camera on the tripod and walk away and expect it to stay standing! ..did that once, broke the rental cam, and tipped over the other rental cam next to it ... expensive learning. Now I use 130 lbs rated head and tripod all the time :)
 
Get a miller arrow 55. It is not under 2k but it is reasonable and can support 50lbs or so.
 
I'd recommend the O'Connor 1030HDS just order it from O'Connor (Through your dealer) with the film style tuning. A good head/tripod combo will cost you $5K but you won't be disappointed, at least till you try a 2575. There are very few other investments other than lenses that will have as direct an impact on the quality of your shots than your tripod head.
 
I bought a used Oconnor 1030B with 35L legs for under 3k, works great.

Also seen good used deals on Sachtler system 18 and 20.
 
Pawel Achtel said:
Quick answer is, no, you can't buy half decent tripod+head for $2k. You may be able to buy an old beaten, 20 year old second hand head for that.
Click to expand...

Not always,

I got stupidly lucky on ebay. I found a guy selling an Arrow 55 in mint condition for $1800 (not a single scratch/scuff. Not stolen either, I checked the serial #). He'd just taken over an office space and it was left in the cupboard, original owner had long gone, and the new one had no idea what it was. Was selling it as a SLR photo tripod.

:w00t:
 
You can get a great tripod w/head for 2K without offending some of the gear snobs around here:

Head: OConnor 50 Fluid Head (It may be old, but it works like a charm and can handle a loaded Red w/o an ounce of worry). Visual Products sell them refurbished.
http://www.visualproducts.com/store03.asp?ID=49&Cat=48

Legs: Cartoni H601
http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/188663-REG/Cartoni_H601_H601_Aluminum_1_Stage_HD.html

Stay away from Manfrotto if you can - terrible build - parts don't hold up and their heads make your pans look like you panned on gravel. Hope this helps.

Nick.
 
I went with the arrow 55

my red kitted out at about 33-35lbs with mattbox and 18-50 lens
if you ever need a bigger lens, ect ect you could see that weight go up a lot


the o'conner 1030 hd is a good head but i believe maxes out at 35-38lbs
which will work for a red setup (edit i see it's actually 41lbs)

the o'conner 2060 can handle a lot more wieght

the arrow 55 is good for 55lbs and is about $4000 give or take and to me is an excellent head

but really unless your finding used deals....budget $5000 min

if your looking for something that doesn't have to carry more than 35 pounds you could try the manfrotto 526 head. it comes in a combination package. It is what I have ordered as a temporary until i can afford something more appropriate to my future plans. it ran about 2 grand. no doubt not even close to the quality of what Pawel is running here, but possibly useable under your circumstances. mine should be here this week. I'll report back.
Click to expand...

the 526 is rated for 15kg....
for me that would work without mattbox possibly, but it is already at it's weight limit running just the red...so I respectfully would not recommend this as you may end up ordering another head as well....
it may work for you temporarily like you said...and as always budget is a concern....
 
I'm using the Arrow 55 here as well. I have two sets of legs for it -- the Miller 2-stage HD-920 CF legs (support 220lbs), very nice and robust, solid, but heavy, even for CF legs. Also have the Solo VJ legs for when I want a compact kit that can be strapped to a backpack or slung over the shoulder and I won't be building a huge camera rig.

The Arrow55 handles a full RED setup with Cooke 18-100 (12lbs of lens) just fine. In fact, it works with the Optimo 12x, but does start to push the limits a bit.

I owned a Bogen 526 for a couple days, but sent it right back. It was OK for some things, but the panning action was terrible and the head would "click" at one spot consistantly. The counter-balance mechanism is worthless. I bought the kit with the 2-stage steel tripod. What a piece of sh!t.

If I need something really big or I want the best ride for my rig in-studio or on a dolly or whatnot, I'll use an O'Connor 2575 I have access to. I'm looking to buy my own though.

IMO, fluid heads are definitely a market that needs to be shaken up. Most heads out there are all made by the same manufacturer and there is no reason they cost as much as they do.
 
I have a 2060 and an old O'Connor 100c. The 100c is just as solid and stable and almost as smooth as the 2060. Of course it is sans the 2060's very sexy adjustable counter balance but it only cost me 1k as opposed to the 10k I spent on the 2060. A good place to find used tripods is tyansilvania film.
 
With a limited budget I would certainly look at the used market,the Manfrotto is quite frankly crap. The old saying,buy cheap,buy twice,is so true,you will use it once and want to get rid of it,and then you'll have to take a big hit on the price.
I've been checking out the Miller,and I must say that they are very underrated,and great value for money. There was a group buy being organised with Abel,not sure if it's still going,or what the deal was,but worth looking into.
Tom.
 
I'm using the Arrow 55 here as well. I have two sets of legs for it -- the Miller 2-stage HD-920 CF legs (support 220lbs),
Click to expand...

I was in Korea about a month ago....
and saw this exact setup for sale...used $800 for both

they wouldn't break up the legs and head...I wanted the legs...since i just bought the head like a week before for $4000

anyway I have the guys card if anyone is interested...the head was in decent shape...not perfect but i would have bought it in a second...
i probably should have as the legs alone are worth a bit
 
I own multiple Miller 55 heads, and multiple sets of Miller 2-stage CF legs and Miller 3-stage VJ CF spreader-less legs - and I love them all.

In anticipation of use for even lighter RED One, Epic, and Scarlet loads in mobile production, I also just bought (used) a Miller 25 head with Miller VJ CF legs.

For maximum loads I have an O'Connor 2575, but frankly it almost never gets used.

IMO the Miller head line has the best performance to price ratio among pro tripod systems. If you can pick up a used Miller 55, 40, or even 25 (25 if you always do light setups) for a good price, my advice to you is "Do it!". Or for new Miller heads/legs/combos, just talk with a reputable dealer (Abel Cine Tech, B&H, etc.).

There is peer pressure in L.A. and certain other markets to use an O'Connor, so if you work those markets heavily, that's a consideration. But if you don't, do yourself a favor and check out Miller - it could save you a lot of money on a high performance head.

Beyond that, I enjoy being a non-conformist for the most part by owning Miller instead of O'Connor - although my O'Connor 2575 is a fantastic head/legs combo, it is seldom used and IMO still overpriced.

I agree that there needs to be a shakeup and correction in tripod prices.
 
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