Anybody using Amvona tripod?

[nsurit]

Wondering what users think of these tripods? Like many, I have bought the wrong tripod more than once and would like to know what others think of these favorably priced units. Bill Barber

 

[David A. Goldfarb]

I bought a horizontal copy arm with four camera mounts, so you can use it to mount more than one camera on a tripod as well as for copy work, and for the price (something like $25) it's okay, but I wouldn't buy anything else from them. It's kind of flimsy.

 

[Sirius Glass]

I have one. I lost a couple of screws when I first got it and have a devil of a time to get them to send replacements to me. They did and I have had not problems. Note: they are not set up to easily send replacement parts.

The tripod and the bag are will designed and well built although it gains weight the longer it is carried on the hike. If you are going to take the tripod on a hike, consider getting one with carbon fiber legs.

If you do not want to make a mistake and buy the wrong tripod:

1. Select the tripod that can easily handle your camera with the heaviest lens you think you will ever own.
2. Select the tripod head features that you want, not was looks ok based on impulse.
3. Think about the choice for a day or two.
4. Buy the tripod.
5. Do not beat yourself up later.
6. If then you feel that you did not buy the right tripod, please remember that the economy will not recover unless you stimulate the economy. Therefore go back to step 1 and repeat the process as often as necessary.

I did my part in stimulating the economy by buying a Hasselblad 903 SWC. Now do you part, please!

Steve

 

[2F/2F]

Amvona is no name stuff that someone decided to slap a name on...literally. The stuff smells of stuff that is mass produced by companies paying their labor crap per day with no benefits and probably unsafe factory conditions, then sold in bulk to companies like "Amvona", and finally labeled as if they were actually a company that makes photo equipment, when in fact, they are just a reseller.

I was given a bag years ago. It is OK. It broke almost immediately, but I tied the strap. It works. In fact, it is one of my normally circulated camera bags, so I use it quite a bit. I would not actually pay for it, however, and I would certainly not even try something like a tripod. There is a big difference between a bag and a tripod. Quality matters a lot more with the latter.

These are general statements. There might be a decent product here or there, but in general, I would say a used tripod from a reputable company is a better choice when it comes to getting a deal.

 

[MattKing]

I have an Amvona Tripod with a "pistol grip" type head, an Amvona ballhead that I use on a smaller, more portable tripod and a largish Amvona bag.

All three were bought through eBay auctions. I paid relatively little for each of them. I think that they are worth more than I paid for them, but are worth less than some of the top quality brands.

I like the fact that both of my tripod heads use the same quick release plates, and that extra quick release plates were inexpensive, but dislike how difficult it was to actually order those extra plates at the same time as the tripod/ballhead orders (to save on shipping).

Their customer service staff were seemingly overwhelmed when I dealt with them about two years ago.

To date, everything has worked well except one quick release plate, which had part of the tightening knob break.

I would buy from them again, if I could get an appropriate price.

Matt

 

[Sirius Glass]

Like Matt, I brought mine on an eBay auction at a minimal price. Later I ordered extra quick release plates.

I would buy from them again, but I would get a lighter weight model.

If I used a tripod extensively or bought an LF camera, then I would buy a tripod from one of the premier tripod manufacturers.

YMMV

Steve

 

[removed account4]

i almost got a job working for them years ago.
boy am i glad i didn't.
their stuff isn't what i would pay $$ for,
and their sales and support staff is less than knowledgeable
about the products they sell ... it took a few weeks and
a dozen email through their support system to let me know something
wouldn't fit a flash head i have ( speed ring for one of their light boxes ) ...
it doesn't surprise me that steve has had the trouble he has had
getting replacement parts ..

i guess it is hit or miss about quality ...

 

[DWThomas]

I bought a four section leg set via ePrey a year or so back. It's a carbon fiber unit rated for 17 pounds and carries a "DynaTran" label. With the smallest leg sections extended, it's not all that solid, but with just the three larger ones used, it's pretty respectable. With the Bronica and WLF, three sections is more than enough height. I got it for about $65 plus shipping at auction; at that it was a good deal. I've since seen them asking about four times that amount in their "store." I use Bogen/Manfrotto QR heads on it, originally a ball head, more recently a three axis pan.

It would be true but not particularly meaningful to say "It's the best tripod I've ever owned."

DaveT

 

[Gerryphoto]

Amvona is a disaster

A carbon fibre tripod for under $200. Seemed like a good deal until the quick release dropped a Canon 7d and lens onto concrete. Cost of camera and lens $2400. Now the tripod has cost me $2600. Even my Gitzo was not that expensive . This head has no model # just the name Amvona.com/wholesale. The quick release plate is sloppy and loose when latched. Showed it to a service tech who said it was worst piece of junk disguised as a tripod head. Amvona is garbage in my view.

 

[removed account4]

incase you folks hadn't realized this ..
amvona is no longer selling photo equipment.
they sold all their overstock (?) to henry's a year or more ago ...
and have continued on with their social networking thing ...
they were doing social networking long before other folks knew what it was ...
and it seems they were ahead of the curve when it came to outsourcing the manufacture
of their photo equipment ( they designed ) to the far east ...

if you go here --->>> http://www.amvona.com/about.html
you can understand why they don't / didn't sell replacement parts

 

[darinwc]

Most of the chinese-made no-name tripods I have seen are junk.
The legs are sturdy enough but heads are crap.
You need to force them down tight enough to not wobble or come out of adjustment.

 

[DWThomas]

Heh heh, a two year old thread reappears! I'm still happy with my Amvona/Dynatran tripod, but you may note in my old post that I am using a Bogen/Manfrotto head and QR. Partly that was maybe dumb luck, but also because I already owned a bunch of the Manfrotto stuff and needed better legs.

And yes, somehow/somewhere I became aware that Amvona had transmogrified into something other than photography gear -- strange are the ways of the world.

DaveT

 

[dphphoto]

Glad to hear these guys aren't around suckering poor photo folks out of their money. I bought one of their carbon fibers a couple of years ago. Great price, poor quality. One of the legs never locked right. Can't figure out how to fix or adjust it. Now I use it for a pair of astronomical binoculars. I don't think I'd trust putting a camera on it.

 

[Jim Henderson]

I purchased an AT-9609 Amvona tripod around 8-10 years ago that involved the head, legs and zippered travel bag. I don't recall whether it was through eBay or not. I don't believe it was. I shoot digital with a Canon 5D Mark II. Shipping was fast but unfortunately thieves had gotten to the package first and stolen the legs out of the box while it was in transit to me via UPS. The head was packaged separately in the box and was still present. I contacted customer service immediately and it wasn't long before another complete tripod was sent to me. I did not have to deal with UPS on an insurance claim and assume customer service at Amvona did that themselves.

Once I began to use the tripod I was impressed with its ruggedness, heft and sturdiness. Didn't take long for the zipper to go bad on the bag. Almost from the beginning, I found that the head, although visually impressive, was poorly machined and failed to lock sufficiently. As I had the original head plus the replacement head, I found that neither worked well. I replaced the Amvona head with a Manfrotto 3265 Pistol joystick.

After a number of years, one of the telescoping stabilizers (there are 3) that attach to the center column went bad, no longer will tighten. But the tripod was still useable so I didn't get too upset. Over this last weekend, I found that the center column lock no longer works, is permanently locked and prevents the tripod legs from folding together, thus making the tripod unusable for transporting to remote locations.

I googled a search for Amvona to see if they are still in existence and found that they now sell through eBay from a Canadian location. I contacted them through eBay inquiring whether spare parts are available. They replied that spare parts are not available.

I may be able to dismantle the two non-working parts and determine why they are not working correctly and attempt to affect a repair. As is, the tripod is still usable in my home studio...just not very portable. I will likely to looking for a replacement tripod. My advice regarding Amvona's tripod products.... spend your money elsewhere.

 

[Sirius Glass]

JIm welcome to APUG

 

[removed account4]

the interesting thing about amvona isn't so much that they oursourced and made
gear that looked OK and maybe wasn't as good as it looked, and that henry's ended up
biuying all their overstock ( mostly backgrounds ) and sold a few years ago, the interesting backstory
about amvona is the guy that started it.
if you go to amvona dot com you will be taken to a website that has all sorts of news flashes on it.
its for amovona's founder a young guy who is ( maybe he was back then too ? ) a greek orthodox priest and
investment banker/ hedge fund owner/runner.
when amvona was selling photo gear there was also a place on the website that was a christian forum where they
talked about news, current events, and the obligations of the faithful to make the world a better place ( from what i remember )
the camera booms and backgrounds are gone, and the owner no longer lives stateside ( from what the websites say ) he lives overseas but manages his fund
which is stateside. and he is well known enough in the investment circles, investment talk shows on TV &c that he is often interviewed
and people pay attention to what he says.
when this thread came back to life a few days ago i was kind of amazed that the guy whose office i sat in and talked to for a good 1/2 hour-hour
who had what looked like high school kids in the warehouse answering phone calls and shipping stuff out ( maybe they were older than high school
i am a terrible judge of age ) ... who managed to flood the market ( even today after his company is gone ) with gear people still talk about ...
was a hedge fund guru whose fund is one of the top ranking funds out there.