Yeah, nothing gets respect like my Lil'Bigma 170-500 (1270g). Except maybe my Rubinar Makpo 1000/10 mirror (1760g). So what if it's nearly impossible to use?!? It's BIG! It's PRO! It's... a chiropractor magnet. Oh, my aching spine...
Another way to invite comments: A tripod. On the street. With an MF cam. Preferably a big 6x9 or 9x12 folder. Man-o-man, when I put the Kodak Monitor 6x9 onto a 74" 'pod and set up downtown, people stop & point & chatter, u-betcha!
But I recall a ride on the Copper Canyon train in Chihuahua. I've got my K20D and DA18-250 with the hood flaring, hanging off the vestibules, shooting the sights. And this well-dressed older Latino gentleman gets on, and he's tricked-out with some monster Canon gear hanging around his neck. All the while, he's just sitting there, fondling his stuff, looking self-important. And he never raises the camera to his eye. He never points a lens anywhere. Nada, nothing, nil. He's just showing off his bling. And he never looks at me. No "Nice camera!" there.
I also recall the old 2.5-km-high colonial city of San Cristobal de Las Casas, in Chiapas, not far from Guatemala. Not many Norte Americano (gringo) touristas there, but it's been on the tour route for Europeans for quite a while. After a few days, the national / cultural stereotypes kick in: French, Russian, USAnian, Canadian, Brit, German, etc -- they're pretty easy to distinguish. And the stereotypical German male: older, fatter, sweaty (but not as bad as Russians), wearing liederhosen, and carrying a BIG dSLR with a BIG lens that he pokes in everybody's face. The size of the gear doesn't seem professional, just arrogant.