Originally posted by pid ... the DFA*85 is with hood 1.355 g without tripod mount.
The D FA* 85/1.4 is a couple of inches shorter than the D FA 70-210/4, but is almost a full pound heavier. It loads the camera body a lot more than the 70-210. Pentax doesn't seem to think it needs a tripod mount.
I'm not sure where this fetish for tripod mounts comes from. They are certainly required for some lenses as some lenses are heavy enough to bend the camera body. If the camera and lens are mounted via the tripod socket on the camera, there will be less vibration, so this should be the way it is done when possible.
If the tripod head sags, then it isn't robust enough. The solution is to get a better head, not find some contraption that allows the rig to balance on something too flimsy to support it properly.