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Surveyor Tripod, UA or Oberwerk

Started by Steven lynn, 07/29/2006 06:55AM
Posted 07/29/2006 06:55AM Opening Post
I have a question for mounting 8+ lbs of 25x100mm binoculars. I just closed a deal on a Universal Astronomics T-Mount. That is a heavy duty short parallelogram mount.

Now for the tripod. Has anyone compared the UA to the Oberwerk surveyor tripods. Should I bite the bullet and get top of the line or will middle of the line do?

Things that are important to me: ergonomics, ease of set up and take down. Nifty accessories, such as carrying handles, or what have you.
Thanks,
Steven

Ignorance is the night of the mind, but a night without moon and star.
-Confucius

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Posted 07/29/2006 08:14PM #1
Steve,

Ed's advice is right on - you need to chose your tripod based on total weight. You will probably need both 5 lb. CW's on the T-Mount, so the total weight carried by the tripod will be over 30 lbs. Another aspect is that you may wish to mount significantly heavier binoculars at some point in the future, which would still be well within the capablilty of your T-Mount.

For these reasons, I believe the HD surveyor tripod would be the best bet. The UA version has a carry handle built into one leg, and you should also check with Larry about options for a more convenient leg spreader.

Don't throw away the stability of the mount with an undersized tripod!

Good luck,
Milt
Posted 07/29/2006 10:38PM #2
Thanks for all your answers. And thanks esp. to Ed for his great in-depth reviews over on CN. The one thing I couldn't find over there was a comparison of UA and Oberwerk surveyor tripods.

Based on what the responses here and other ideas I've read, I'm leaning to a top-of-the line surveryor tripod from UA or Oberwerk. Or--to change midstream (sorry) a heavy duty Bogen with a geared center column. I know, I got you all looking in one direction and now I've changed the "subject." Sorry!

I tried the 25x100's on a Majestic tripod. It worked but it made me very nervous that it would tip over. Not secure at all! One clumsy move and it's over. I also did not like squeezing into the center of the tripod.

The Majestic is a camera tripod for use with large format cameras; it has a geared center column. They go on "that" auction site for around $100-125. I would say it's a nice tripod for up to the 70 or 80 mm binoculars size.

Any feedback on the Bogen/Manfrotto alternative?

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