Recalcitrant equipment

Maybe it's just me. I dunno, but I've never found a tripod that is totally acceptable. The only thing that I hate more than buying tripods is trying on pants. My first was a small Leitz used to support a Leica M3. Good tripod but after I ran over it with a truck I couldn't find a replacement. There was something called a Star D that was a poor exscuse for a tripod. Then there was the Majestic. Carrying this thing wore a groove in my shoulder. Then a Bogen with some sort of quik release plate. The legs were good but a pox on all quik release attachments. Back to a Majestic bought at a pawn shop in South Philly(don't ask). I found out that the grooves were still in my shoulder. So I went for it. A Ries. A thing of beauty, but with this tripod I follow the advice of E Weston,"if it's more than fifty feet from the car it is not photographable". Then a metal Gitzo with a ball head. OK until it was appropriated from my office. Now in my Loft office sits a just arrived Gitzo 1228 with a Manfrotto 450 head. The ball head is heavier than the tripod. But I think this is the one to support the Zone VI 8x10. Right? Am I a malcontent? A nattering nabob of negativism? or does anyone else have a particular piece of equipment that has been fighting them throughout their life.?(excluding cable releases of course, we all know that they simply will fail whenever possible)
JACK B

A Saltzsman or Cambo studio stand would shoulder your witticisms true though they may be.

I keep looking at other tripods, but I like those cam lever locks on my Bogen legset. I'd buy a Gitzo if it didn't have twist locks. I've never liked the Bogen QR systems, though. I've settled on various Arca-Swiss type clamps and plates.

Know what was a brilliant idea? I have a little Linhof Report tripod that I use mostly with lightweight cameras. It folds flat with all three legs in the same plane. The legs have snap locks with twist locks only on the thickest section so you can level the tripod. Nothing sets up faster. Just pull out the leg section, and it snaps into place. I use a small Linhof ballhead on it, but without the head, it can support a 4x5" camera, as long as you don't need to tilt it up or down in an extreme way. I think that some of the larger Linhof tripods from the 1950s also had these snap locks.

I agree that the old Leitz table-top tripod was a delight, even though I've never had one. For 8x10, however, the best tripod is one that is heavy enough to require two porters to carry it in a sling suspended from a longish pole. That approach has the added advantage of creating notches in the porters' shoulders, not yours.

As an alternative, you might try the Barker Bipod, shown here with the optional mountain stabalizers. Unfortunately, it's not well-suited for LF work.

"does anyone else have a particular piece of equipment that has been fighting them throughout their life.?(excluding cable releases of course, we all know that they simply will fail whenever possible)"
JACK B[/QUOTE]

Cable releases with their well-earned reputation for inopportune failure are no match for the truly recalcitrant synch-cord!

Barker Bipod

rbarker said:

I agree that the old Leitz table-top tripod was a delight, even though I've never had one. For 8x10, however, the best tripod is one that is heavy enough to require two porters to carry it in a sling suspended from a longish pole. That approach has the added advantage of creating notches in the porters' shoulders, not yours.

As an alternative, you might try the Barker Bipod, shown here with the optional mountain stabalizers. Unfortunately, it's not well-suited for LF work.

Click to expand...

I gotta have a Barker Bipod! I hope they are not being produced in a limited edition
Jack

My Majestic is heavy and it is worth carrying.

Whewee, just think a Barker Mountain Bipod and a Jim Galli shutter a feller would be on his way to artistic fame and an unlimited fortune..........
This is what dreams are made of!
Charlie..................

I've kept the same wife since 1975 so that means I can look at and own as many tripods as I want. The Ries is still the no holds favorite. After I sell a few pictures for what they're REALLY worth, I'll hire a sherpa to carry it.