[Markovo]

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So i need a new tropod for my k30 (and maybe something havier in the feature). What i have now is this cr*p - Professional Tripod Mount Stand for DSLR Canon Nikon Sony Camera Camcorder New | eBay and it is cr*p indeed. I've come across this chineese tripod, and it looks solid to me ( Amazon.com : Flexzion Q999 Professional DSLR Tripod - Ultra Portable Travel Compact Tripod Magnesium Aluminium Adjustable Legs Monopod With Ball Head Pocket Kit For Digital Camera Canon Nikon Sony Olympus Pentax : Camera & Photo ) What is your opinion about this tripod, is it any good?

[officiousbystander]

Here it is for $A60 which suggests it was never priced at $268.
https://www.kogan.com/au/buy/professional-camera-tripod/?
From your post it looks like you're not in the market for another cr*p tripod. I've never seen or used one but the way it's promoted doesn't inspire confidence. Not sure if you could trust a tripod with 'flex' in the product name.

[Markovo]

I'm reading very nice reviews for the q666, q668 (and so on) tripod models. It appears they have great build quality.

[markcphoto]

That seems to be a bit of a copy of the tripod i have

Amazon.com : Benro IT15 iTrip15 Flip Lock Aluminum Travel Tripod Kit with Head (Black) : Camera & Photo

The benro is reasonably good. having the monopod option is a nice added feature.

To me just looking at the pictures of the two on amazon the benro does look to be far better quality for only an extra $20

[grhazelton]

I've been pleased with Manfrotto's products. Mine is a 3001, IIRC; it doesn't seem to have a model number on it. 3 sections, twist locks on the legs, center column. I have a 3030 pan tilt head with quick release fitting. I heartily recommend a QR of some sort. Just make sure that you can buy additional plates! This combo is happy with my medium format gear, a Pentax 645n, a YashicaMat, and the Bronica S2a, a weighty stainless steel beast.

Many of us go through the c**p tripod phase. I did. You might look into used tripods; they are easy to evaluate, and any scratches they may have won't hurt their use. If you buy new you'll scratch it up anyway.

[Billk]

I've been pleased with Manfrotto's products. .

+1

Have a 055 tripod (aluminium) with a Manfrotto joystick ball-head. Heavy combo but steady and my bird, moon and star shots have all improved since I got it a few months back.

[bm75]

Me too. That's a great product.

[jrpower10]

In my opinion, you get what you pay for. If you want to save money on tripods, get a known quality product the first time instead of running thru 2-3 garbage products first. As stated above, Manfrotto makes good tripods. I've been happy with my Mefoto Globe Trotter (I think that's the model name). Vanguard, Really Right Stuff also make excellent tripods but are quite a bit more expensive. I'd say we should have a forum-wide push to add reviews to the accessories database so folk like the Op have a better resource to use. I'll review my tripods this weekend.

[mattb123]

I'm also a Manfrotto fan. I had one bad tripod before moving to something higher quality. There are surely decent cheaper tripods, but I was ready to stop messing around.

I have Manfrotto 190CXPRO3 and a Manfrotto 498RC2 Ball Head that I have been very pleased with.

Not cheap, but it sure saves me a lot of frustration that the crap tripod gave me.

I use it for my K-3/K-5/K-S2 as well as a 645 and it's worked out well. Extra QR plates are a good idea and the cheap knockoff ones seem to be very good.

[bm75]

I also used 190 family and 055 family (always metal) ones for some equipment at work and find them really strong and durable . You can storage them without care in a car with lot of other packs and bags of equipment. But some colleage told me to beware because carbon ones are much more sensible to hurts. Sound strange but it was other people's field experience. Great equipment in my experience. Matteo

[mattb123]

I also used 190 family and 055 family (always metal) ones for some equipment at work and find them really strong and durable . You can storage them without care in a car with lot of other packs and bags of equipment. But some colleage told me to beware because carbon ones are much more sensible to hurts. Sound strange but it was other people's field experience. Great equipment in my experience. Matteo

I think this is a concern for situations when the CF is under more stress like a bike frame. A small ding can make the structure fail catastrophically under heavy load. I doubt the kind of loads we put on them with cameras would be anything close to the stress required so I wouldn't worry about it. My tripod goes in bags with light stands, in the bed of my truck (short trips mostly), and on my pack and it's only got a few scratches.
Metal is good too but I use mine in the cold a lot and metal makes my hands cold in winter, even through cloves.

[Ex Finn.]

My go-to tool...Manfrotto 475B Pro Geared Tripod with Geared Column 475B B&H
Then I put the 150-450 on it, not sturdy enough

[goldenarrow]

Been looking at the model one step up from this one. Sirui any good??? They use forged aluminum in many of their tripods. This one is a little too short for my needs.
Sirui T-1005X 5-Section Aluminum Tripod BSRT1005 B&H Photo Video

[Markovo]

I was thinking something around 60-70$ for the tripod and the head. I have 100mm f2.8 D FA, Tamron 17-50 and Auto Chinon 50mm 1.4, not very heavy lenses and a rarеly use tripod, but it happens and it's good to have one in the bag.

[pacerr]

If you don't mind doing a little custom work on the head, there's some hell-for-stout, used surveyors tripods built for heavy duty use on e-bay and in second hand/pawn shops -- many possible options in wood and aluminum for $50-100. Some time ago I had one that I only had to glue (J B Weld) a photo head to for hard service in the field. (Actually only consisted of a plate with 1/4"- 20 bolt adapted to ball-head mount.)