ATH
Well-Known Member
Modo by Manfrotto - Video and Photo Camera Supports and Accessories
I heard about this tripod on another thread a couple months ago on here. I had been thinking that the cheap chincy tripod I'd acquired somewhere was light yet not easy to use for long spotting sessions and marginally stable enough for my Nikon spotter.
The price was good, which made me nervous that this tripod would also be of cheap quality, but I rolled the dice and ordered one. Boy was I pleased when I opened the box.
This tripod, IMHO, is light for its functionality and stability. The head is a novel design, with a handle that allows you to cant and pan much easier than the standard photo tripod lever. The head is mounted on a swivel that allows either travel in all directions, or flat panning only, depending on a setting you can flip. When you find something of interest, you pull the trigger to lock the scope solidly on target. Leg adjustments are quick and easy.
The only negatived -- you need a screwdriver to attach the quick-detach mounting to the spotting scope. This is a negative because I also wanted to use the tripod in case we get a setup that allows use of my video camera for the shot, but it does not appear to be practical to use both (still playing with that). While the folded size is compact, it is a little "fatter" than I would like due to the bulk of the sturdy leg locks and will not fit in the side pocket of my pack where I hoped it would.
Overall, these are pretty small negatives to a very positive evaluation and easily acceptable given that this tripod is WAY cheaper than the alternatives I was looking at.
I heard about this tripod on another thread a couple months ago on here. I had been thinking that the cheap chincy tripod I'd acquired somewhere was light yet not easy to use for long spotting sessions and marginally stable enough for my Nikon spotter.
The price was good, which made me nervous that this tripod would also be of cheap quality, but I rolled the dice and ordered one. Boy was I pleased when I opened the box.
This tripod, IMHO, is light for its functionality and stability. The head is a novel design, with a handle that allows you to cant and pan much easier than the standard photo tripod lever. The head is mounted on a swivel that allows either travel in all directions, or flat panning only, depending on a setting you can flip. When you find something of interest, you pull the trigger to lock the scope solidly on target. Leg adjustments are quick and easy.
The only negatived -- you need a screwdriver to attach the quick-detach mounting to the spotting scope. This is a negative because I also wanted to use the tripod in case we get a setup that allows use of my video camera for the shot, but it does not appear to be practical to use both (still playing with that). While the folded size is compact, it is a little "fatter" than I would like due to the bulk of the sturdy leg locks and will not fit in the side pocket of my pack where I hoped it would.
Overall, these are pretty small negatives to a very positive evaluation and easily acceptable given that this tripod is WAY cheaper than the alternatives I was looking at.
