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Really Right Stuff Ball Head 25 on M8


mitchell

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Used my new Really Right Stuff Ball Head 25 on my old Gitzo 1227 tripod. Great ball head.

 

10 degrees Fahrenheit today. Very nice to have a lever clamp, and just one simple knob to tighten when using gloves, and in this case kneeling under a low footbridge. Small, solid and smooth ball. Almost perfect for an M. Only disadvantage, no panning if you want to knit more than one shot together for a panarama.

 

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Best,

 

Mitchell

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Carsten,

 

I hadn't noticed this, but I checked after reading your post, and yes there is some jerkiness. It seems to be in only some areas of the ball, and by rotating the clamp I can avoid most of it.

 

Not a problem for me so far.

 

Best,

 

Mitchell

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The problem is that it shifts a little. I like the ballhead, but I am less thrilled with it than I thought I would be, after hearing reports of the 40 and 55. I also find its tiny base makes it hard to use in portrait mode on a tripod with a normal, larger base, since the camera or quick-release plate hits. Perhaps I just need to go to a 40, but that is much heavier. This was all meant to be a travelling setup for me.

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I use both the BH-55 and BH-40 on Gitzo tripods. The BH-40 LR is mounted on a G1227 MK2 and is an extremely stable yet very light shooting platform. I use it for location work with a DSLR and lenses up to a 180 f2.8 without any signs of shakiness. It is an ideal combination for the M8 also. The only smaller support that I use for the M8 is an early version Leitz table tripod and ballhead combination. This is much smaller than the more recent larger table tripod and ballhead from Leica which I also had but sold in favor of the older, more compact version.

 

The two RRS ballheads have been very smooth with positive locking. The BH-40 seems to be a perfect match to the Gitzo 1227 and is far better than anything Gitzo has for that tripod.

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Bill,

 

Thanks so much. You've made my day!

 

I noticed while posting that there is a blurring at the edges of the image. I think this was caused by a little tilt/crop I did for horizon correction in Raw Developer. I emailed them about it.

 

Carsten,

 

I find no movement at all once I tighten the lever knob. But, the lever knob does hit the plastic of the platform of the Gitzo so it limits how hard I can tighten it. This hasn't been a problem for me, but perhaps you are not able to tighten the lever knob enough. I wonder if you could unscrew the lever knob, and rotate it so it allows you to tighten it more. I think a call or email to Really Right Stuff might help. I think this is a very solid unit that should not shift.

A smaller base on the Gitzo would be nice. I wonder if there's something suitable?

 

Nick,

 

I have the BH 55 which I use with my DMR. It's great! But, I'm happy with the simplicity and light weight of the 25 for the M8.

 

Best,

 

Mitchell

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Mitchell,

 

Try pulling the lever out from the ballhead (it is spring loaded) and simply reposition it to any angle you want and it should lock in; that is how it works on the BH-40 and should do the same on the BH-25.

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Mitchell, the lever can be pulled out and re-positioned. There is a spring in there.

 

I find the 40+Gitzo 1258 and so on much too large. I was originally looking at the Gitzo 1057+25, as a travelling kit. I don't use tripods much, and when I travel, I need to keep my entire kit, including camera and tripod, clothes, and everything, to 10kg. That is a pretty tough requirement, but enables me to take my luggage on-board, and then to hike anywhere I want, including deserts, mountains, and so on. I thought about the Gitzo 1158T, I think it is called. The "traveller" version. Slightly larger and heavier, but very compact, since the top folds into the gap between the legs.

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My 25 is very smooth in all positions and I find it to perfectly match the camera size. I have it screwed directly to the center column on a Gitzo 1228 with the column base plate removed. I use it with the universal L plate and quick release. Fits perfect in carry on luggage. I had an Arca for my larger cameras but found it and the larger RRS heads cumbersome in this new world of high resolution small, light cameras.

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