Tripods. Which one?

[MHO]

Have a goat hunt coming up this fall. Need some input from experience on what tripods you guys like. Taking my Swaro spotting scope but my two tripods are way too heavy. Weight is the main factor. Thanks for any input.

 

[Desertmafia21]

Of course you can go the most expensive route and buy an outdoorsman....But for a great combo and super smooth panning I would go with some slik legs and a manfrotto 700rc2 fluid head. You can get this setup right around 3 lbs and its as solid as anything. Cost wise would be right under $200 and even cheaper if you buy used

 

[MHO]

Thank you desertmafia. I will look into them. I greatly appreciate it.

 

[dmj]

Desertmafia21,
Please forgive me for being stupid, but when you say silk legs. Which ones? When I look there seems to be several. Thank you

 

[Desertmafia21]

Slik Pro 340DX Tripod Legs (Black) 613-339 B&H Photo Video
This will work

 

[dmj]

Slik Pro 340DX Tripod Legs (Black) 613-339 B&H Photo Video
This will work

Thank You. Appreciate the info.

 

[Desertmafia21]

Thank You. Appreciate the info.

You're welcome. It's been a great setup for me

 

[RandyinVa]

If in a high wind situation, suspend a light plastic bucket or let it touch the ground and keep taught to temporarily add weight. More important the higher the magnification. Fill with dirt, rocks, or what have you.

 

[Alan Berg]

Re: Tripods. Which one? - www.Secced.info

I personally would go with a Secced tripod from www.secced.info
They are made of Carbon fiber so they are lightweight and they don't cost to much.
I just checked and they seem to be offering a 3 year warranty and free shipping.
gun)

 

[Wedgy]

I prefer the twist style locking legs over the type that has the clips on every leg joint. One twist will lock or free all of them making it much faster.
That B&H Photo link has a filter on the left that you can choose twist or clip legs.

 

[mcseal2]

The Promaster 525C and Outdoorsmans compact medium are my favorites. The Promaster goes tall enough to stand behind if necessary. The Outdoorsmans seems a bit steadier at the same height but not much. The Promaster has a hook to add weight, and I pack a light mesh bag I can fill with rocks and hook there. They weigh about the same. I have both set up to use the Outdoorsmans heads and have both the pistol grip and pan head. I tend to use the pistol grip head with my 15x binos while my buddy I hunt with uses my other tripod with my STS 65 spotter and the pan head. Seems to be a decent system for us, he is colorblind and likes the real slow grid glassing picking stuff apart while I spot game faster and can glass a larger area faster. Our eyes work different and pick up different details so between the two of us we seem to do a decent job. Hunting solo I just pick what the best combo for that hunt is and pack it.

 

[Bravo 4]

Re: Tripods. Which one? - www.Secced.info

I have the same SLIK mentioned earlier as well as a larger one and have been pleased, been using them for several years. FYI, the small one is not exactly the steadiest when fully extended.

 

[Schaaf]

I've had Slik 634, Outdoorsmans Compact Medium, and now a Gitzo Traveler 1542t. The Gitzo is my favorite but barely better than the Outdoorsmans. Gitzo weighs the same as the Outdoorsmans but I'm also able to use it standing.

 

[claybreaker]

On the low end, I had a Vortex Summit SS-P its about $130, twist legs, weights about 2lb. (important to me), Leg angle has 3 different locking positions. I was happy with it, it got stolen and I will likely get another. Also has lifetime warranty.