[panoguy]

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Just when I thought ball head knockoffs couldn't get any crazier, check this out:

Really Right Stuff BH-55. Probably the best-reviewed "large diameter" ball head out there.


Sunwayfoto XB-52. A Chinese brand best known for lens and camera plates (I guess like RRS way back when).


The specs and mechanics look eerily similar, but so are the prices! ($415 for the RRS with screw-knob clamp, and $410 for the Sunwayfoto on eBay!)

Wait, what? Are Chinese brand knockoffs now only $5 cheaper than the original? These two heads may be functionally equivalent, I don't know, but in the case of the RRS head, I can see why it costs more than a mid-range ball head (mechanical and industrial design, fit and finish, well known brand), while the Sunwayfoto frankly has me... confused. I mean, I see exposed screws on the outside of that knockoff!

Someone tell me I'm missing something big here... like the Sunwayfoto comes with a tripod or something.

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Last edited by panoguy; 07-02-2013 at 09:14 AM.

[Ubuntu_user]

That is crazy! I don't know what to say... When I first started reading your post, I thought, "oh good, a knock off that will be almost as good at 1/2 or 1/3 the price!"
Only $5 less? I definitely know which one I'd buy...

[interested_observer]

I only have to say that apparently the Chinese are no longer interested in leaving $200 on the table on each sale.

However, lets take a look at RRS - 5 year warranty. Acratech - 10 year warranty. Kirk - 5 year warranty.

As an example lets look at Acratech's warranty

All Acratech products are fully guaranteed for 10 years to the original purchaser. This covers all manufacturing and material defects.

Lets see about SUNWAYFOTO - It looks like they engaged a New York City law firm to write it.

“Standard Warranty”: defined by the law in force in the country.
“Limited Conventional Warranty”,offered by SUNWAYFOTO as a special extension of the “standard” Warranty. SUNWAYFOTO “Limited Conventional Warranty” is free of charge.

Notes:

1. This warranty is only for SUNWAYFOTO products by our company.
2. Please keep all the warranty certificates carefully; they will be required when you need service.
3. All warranty certificates shall be stamped by the sellers to take effect.


“Standard Warranty”
The period of validity of this standard Warranty is defined by the law in force in the country, state or region where the product is sold - for example, for retail sales in the EEC this standard warranty is for two years from the date of sale to the original purchaser.

This warranty does not cover any defects or costs caused by:
- Misuse and subsequent damage. Misuse is defined by, but not limited to, the cases described here below, in the additional documentation and in the instruction manual included with the product. (Especially the water enters, broken or damaged by human being)
- Modification, alteration, repair or service of this product by anyone other than SUNWAYFOTO;
- The irresistible power (just like flood, fire, earthquake and so on)causes the malfunction or damage
- Any use of the product other than that for which it was designed;
- Failure to comply with care and maintenance instructions accompanying the product.
- Physical abuse to, overload of, or misuse of, the product or operation thereof in a manner contrary to the instructions accompanying the product;
- No warranty card and the warranty card has been altered.
- The products presented are not listed on the warranty card
- The date of purchase not be seen or without the seller seal on it.
- Shipment of the product to SUNWAYFOTO for service.

SUNWAYFOTO “Limited Conventional Warranty”- 5-year limited warranty extension
Beyond the standard compulsory coverage outlined above, SUNWAYFOTO offers an additional 5 years’ limited warranty extension in accordance with the terms and conditions as below. The SUNWAYFOTO “Conventional Warranty” is free of charge and does not affect the compulsory “Standard Warranty”.


How to get the SUNWAYFOTO 5 year free “Limited Conventional Warranty”
To take advantage of the “Conventional Warranty” extension scheme, you must register with us within 1 month from the product purchase.

How to Register Your Purchase and get the 5 year limited warranty extension.
a) You can register your purchase and answer the questionnaire online at Warranty Card Register - Sunwayphoto-a superior photography accessories manufacturer in Shenzhen China
b) you must keep the warranty card, sunwayfoto customer information card and your receipt as proof of purchase for the warranty to be valid: you will need to resend the cards and the receipt when you service or repair your product under warranty.
Terms and Conditions of the SUNWAYFOTO Free "Limited Conventional Warranty"
The “Limited Conventional Warranty” offered by SUNWAYFOTO warrants, to the original purchaser only, is that this product will be free from defects in materials and workmanship under normal and proper usage for an extra 5 year period above and beyond the standard period imposed by the law in the country where the product was sold.

SUNWAYFOTO’s obligation in this 5 year warranty extension is limited to replacing or repairing, at SUNWAYFOTO’s discretion, products or parts determined by SUNWAYFOTO to be defective in materials or workmanship.
If the original product has been superseded, replacement may be made with a current model of the same quality and equivalent function. Warranty of any replacement parts is limited to 90 days or the unexpired portion of the warranty period of the product on which the parts are being used, whichever is longer.

This warranty does not cover any defects or costs caused by:
- Misuse and subsequent damage. Misuse is defined by, but not limited to, the cases described here below, in the additional documentation and in the instruction manual included with the product. (Especially the water enters, broken or damaged by human being)
- Modification, alteration, repair or service of this product by anyone other than SUNWAYFOTO;
- The irresistible power (just like flood, fire, earthquake and so on) causes the malfunction or damage
- Any use of the product other than that for which it was designed;
- Failure to comply with care and maintenance instructions accompanying the product.
- Physical abuse to, overload of, or misuse of, the product or operation thereof in a manner contrary to the instructions accompanying the product;
- No warranty card and the warranty card has been altered.
- The products presented are not listed on the warranty card
- The date of purchase not be seen or without the seller seal on it.
- Shipment of the product to SUNWAYFOTO for service.


This additional warranty does not cover labor costs.
Unless local law in the country, state or region of purchase dictates otherwise, SUNWAYFOTO will under no circumstances be liable for any special incidental or consequential damages, including, but not limited to, personal injury, property damage, damage to or loss of equipment, lost profits or revenue, costs of renting replacements and other additional expenses, even if SUNWAYFOTO has been advised of the possibility of such damages.

To obtain the warranty service, the purchaser should return the product or the defective part(s), carefully packed and with proof of purchase date to the SUNWAYFOTO distributor in the country of purchase (for up-to-date addresses, see Contact Us - Sunwayphoto-a superior photography accessories manufacturer in Shenzhen China) or to the shop/store where the product was purchased. All shipping expenses are the purchaser’s responsibility.

In accepting this extended warranty you agree that the terms and conditions of it are the entire agreement between us relating to the extension of the liability of us as the producer under the law of the country, state or region where the product has been sold. In particular there is no other express or implied warranty given by SUNWAYFOTO as the producer to you.

Storage, use and distribution of the information you provide.
By completing the registration form and questionnaire, you authorize SUNWAYFOTO and those companies directly involved in the fulfillment of our limited warranty extension to use the information you give for the following purposes:
- to fulfill our obligations under the limited warranty extension, in order to offer you a better service
- to keep track of product sales, production batches and defects, in order to improve existing products
- to perform statistical research and analysis of market trends in order to improve new products

Your information will be stored electronically by SUNWAYFOTO, and may be given to SUNWAYFOTO distributors for service or repair of your product under the limited warranty extension. You can write to us at any time to see a copy of the information from you that we have stored, and you can also ask us at any time to cancel all information held about you.

Notes:
1 If you have any questions about the warranty, please call our service hotline 0086-400 666 3766,
2 We will not reissue for you if you lose your warranty card.

Product registration
Thank you for purchasing our SUNWAYFOTO products. In order to provide better service, kindly suggest you register your product on our website [www.sunwayfoto.com] within 1 mouth from purchase. By simply submitting the product information and customer contact information, you will complete the registration, and get 5-year limited conventional warranty extension on certain series products.

[Hawki]

One of the funniest things I've read in quite a while ... The Sunwayfoto warranty that is!!

[cmohr]

Don't know about the price or way the warrenty is written, but I have a Sunwayfoto 36 ballhead, and there is nothing cheap about is build or quality. I can say that knowing whats actually inside and how tuff the thing is, I had an accident with my first ball head when my tripod fell over when I was packing the car, had it leaning on the side of the wheel, didn't see it and reversed directly over the ball head, got scratched up pretty bad but to my amazement the ball still worked OK but a bent the panning lock screw over at 90deg, my fleabay seller was great about it and actually replaced it for me ,great guy, so I took to the old one with a cutting saw to see what was going on inside, it took 2 blades, two hours and in the end, bashing the crap out of it with a hammer to finally part the bugger, tuff stuff.

The new one works as beautifully as the first did, but I certainly did not pay that much for it in the first place. Having said that I wouldn't pay 400 for a knock off head either be it Sunwayfoto or any other, actually I don't think I'd pay 400 for any ball head.

I would also think that theres a little more to the actual wording of the warrenty's of the other brands than is inferred here, but Chinese translations are always fun to read, better comedy than most comedy writers can make up in sum cases.

cmohr
Arrrrrrrr.

[panoguy]

Someone tell me I'm missing something big here... like the Sunwayfoto comes with a tripod or something.

Okay, I am here to resurrect my own thread on "high end ball heads."

Today I find that I've been guilty of "drinking the kool-aid" and "judging a book by its cover" and all the other clichés that caused me to slag the Sunwayfoto XB-52 in comparison to the RRS BH-55. Yes, it is still a very high price for a ball head designed and made in China (still $410 today), but now that I actually have both of these heads in my hands...



...if it was my $400+ to spend only once, I would spend it on the Sunwayfoto. Yep, there I said it! Call me whatever you want, or choose to completely dismiss me because what I write here flies in the face of "what the rest of the internet says" without actually trying them - but I *have* tried both of these heads out, and am in the process of some pretty extensive testing for full reviews of them. Both heads are/were new-in-box when I got them, and frankly the XB-52 beats the BH-55 in every category except looks.

Well, looking good means a lot in photo gear, right?

Without spilling the beans on my full review and comparison (which includes many other ball heads), and mainly to publicly acknowledge that I was mistaken about the Sunwayfoto XB-52, I will state these brief points:

• The Sunwayfoto uses a 52mm ball vs. the RRS 55mm ball, but this difference is pretty inconsequential when they are used to support heavy camera gear.
• While it might be hard to tell from the fuzzy photo above, the XB-52 is smaller in every dimension due in part to this smaller ball, but it holds the same amount (well, technically more, but I don't trust any mfr's load numbers).
• The XB-52 is much lighter than the BH-55, and this isn't just a spec sheet value, but a very real "wow did my tripod get top-heavy with the BH-55 on it" kind of thing. (My tripod is a Gitzo 3541; so not a small set of legs.)
• The Sunwayfoto is not just a little bit smoother in operation than the RRS, but is a lot smoother when moving the ball around under a load (2-3kg). Comparatively, the RRS feels almost "sticky," except that it is still better than most. The XB-52 is almost at Markins-level smoothness of motion (and they are the kings!).
• The BH-55 has a "friction range" of 0-9, with only 6-9 being useful for holding a camera (0-5 let my K-5 flop around!), while the unnumbered "friction screw" of the XB-52 seems almost exponential at first, and allows much faster and finer settings of minimum friction. Huh?

After this last surprise, I tried to figure out how this Chinese newcomer could beat the very highly respected RRS head in so many categories. What I discovered is that there is a reason for all of these things, and perhaps even the seemingly high price of the Sunwayfoto. It comes down to mechanics! The RRS BH-55 uses a split casing to "clamp" the ball from the sides for friction and locking (similar to Acratech heads), and this provides a very strong ball lock with very few parts. Conversely, almost every other ball head pushes a cup against the ball from the bottom, squeezing it against the top rim of the casing. This conventional method can provide a smoother and more controlled friction curve, primarily because the locking action has "more room" to be progressive.

Guess what? The XB-52 may look like the BH-55's ugly cousin (as a former industrial designer, I have to say this), but it is actually a very clever "conventional" ball head, applying pressure from below, like Markins and Arca-Swiss, and pretty much everyone else who has refined this to the Nth degree. Sunwayfoto just moved the controls and mechanics off to the side to allow the ball (and load pivot) to sit as close to the apex of the tripod as the RRS does. So, it isn't simply a knockoff of the BH-55... color me surprised!

All that said, I would recommend either head to someone who felt like spending $400+ on a ball head. The main difference is that XB-52 is better at the primary function of being a ball head for moving heavy camera gear around, while, in comparison, the BH-55 is a piece of functional sculpture that other photographers will immediately recognize and drool over, with just a few more compromises and frustrations added on.

[hawkdl2]

If I'm not mistaken, a major functional difference between the RRS and Sunwayfoto, is the latter has an elliptical ball.

[panoguy]

If I'm not mistaken, a major functional difference between the RRS and Sunwayfoto, is the latter has an elliptical ball.

This is true, and welcome to the Pentax Forums on your first post!

An elliptical ball in a conventional head (cup pushing the ball up) will gradually increase the "holding friction" (to keep the ball from moving on its own under the weight) as the ball is tilted away from being vertical. Arca-Swiss did this first, and it works with varying degrees of success in Sunwayfoto and Photo Clam heads (and possibly others, but I only know those three).

An unconventional, "side clamp" type head like the RRS BH-55 probably can't have an elliptical ball because the existing friction comes from all sides, not just a concave cup on the bottom. My guess is that an elliptical ball in a side clamp design would increase the friction dramatically as it neared the horizontal, and would probably lock up the head (requiring manual adjustment again).

BTW, I've heard from other RRS users who say that brand new BH-55 heads need to be "worked in" before they get to the best smoothness of ball action...