Gimbal Head and Tripod

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Oztours

Well-known member
Supporting Member
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I am on an extremely tight budget and have been using an Optex Tripod with a pistol grip ballhead for at least 10 years or more. It has served its purpose but now I have more time on my hands to travel (well, after Covid), I am considering upgrading to a Gimbal Head. Even second hand, Wimberley/Gitzo products would appear to be out of my price range so I have been looking at Benro, Movo and Leofoto, as well as others. Does anyone here have any experience with these or any good recommendations at all?

If I was to blow the budget for both items on just a good second hand Wimberley, could I get away with using my current tripod, albeit, somewhat precariously, until such time I can pick up a better tripod?
 
Have you considered a decent ball head and a Wimberley Sidekick? This would give you a traditional ball head when a gimbal is not needed and then you could use the Sidekick when you need a gimbal. It is an option to consider and Wimberley does sell blemished products at a discount.

Good luck,

--Ken
 
I second the Sidekick recommendation assuming you have a pretty good ballhead to mount it on as it relies on the panning action and overall solidity of your existing ballhead to work well as a gimbal mount.

I've used the Benro GH2 and it's a good Gimbal head that's very similar to the Wimberley at about half the price. When properly adjusted (Steve has a good video on making those adjustments) it does exactly what it needs to do and provides great stability and the tracking capabilities of a gimbal head. My only nit pick is that the panning and tilt motions are pretty much on/off with the copy of the Benro I used whereas the Wimberley has a bit more fluid feel with a tiny bit of drag (a good thing) when the knobs are loosened.

I'd save money or defer the Gimbal head before skimping on the tripod legs but with the glass you have listed in your byline you'd be fine with one of the Feisol, Sirui, Leophoto or similar tripods which are a bargain compared to Gitzo or RRS. As always buy legs that can handle at least twice to three times the weight of your expected setup and buy legs taller than you think you'll need so you can work on irregular surfaces, hillsides and can get the camera mount up high when you need to work at steep angles. Also avoid center columns so you can splay the legs and get low when necessary.
 
I use the Induro GHBA Sidekicjk style gimbal on my mefoto ballhead and it works well with my 200-500 Nikon lens. Reasonable price.
 
i have a kenro carbon gimbal bought OB for 50% off as i had been looking at the neewer and andoer stuff on amazon, my tripod is 3 stage aluminium one from Redsnapper ive had it years and no issues. gimbal was £120 and the tripod new and still is around £70
 
Thanks for all the suggestions. Initially, I had thought of just buying an el-cheapo gimbal just to get me started and if I got anymore than 12 months usage out of it, so be it. Taking all your ideas onboard, I have decided to spend more time in research before making a decision. Once again, thank you all for your input.
 
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