Gimbal head for Nikon 500 mm f/5.6 PF

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PCRATE

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Okay, I have a Nikon 500 f/5.6 PF which I use on a D750 body with a grip. I put a Wimberly AP 500 replacement foot on the 500 PF. I either use a Sirui 30 K ball head or a Sirui PH 20 gimbal. I've been happy with the performance of both of those heads. But I recently picked up a nice used TC 14 E II converter and when using the converter with the PH 20 gimbal I can't slide the whole rig forward enough to balance. The problem is the clamp of the PH 20 is quite long and the safety stop screw slots are short. I've solved the issue for now by using the factory foot and the long Sirui plate that came with the PH 20. Even before this, I'd been thinking about the Jobu Jr. 3 gimbal as a lighter smaller gimbal for the 500 PF. My question is, does anyone have a similar rig and use the Jobu Jr. 3 gimbal? Does the grip bottom out on the base of the gimbal and severely limit how high the rig can be pointed?

Thanks, Paul
 
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Hejnar makes a longer lens foot, I think. It might balance better than the one you have. I have been very pleased with my Wimberley gimbal. The longer lens foot might be what you need. Not sure how long the Wimberley foot is though.
 
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Okay, lets see if I can pot a photo
 

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IainD said:
Hejnar makes a longer lens foot, I think. It might balance better than the one you have. I have been very pleased with my Wimberley gimbal. The longer lens foot might be what you need. Not sure how long the Wimberley foot is though.
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It's pretty short. But the actual problem is caused by the very short safety screw slots on the Sirui PH 20 and it's a relatively long clamp. My friend has a Wimberly Sidekick, and it balances fine with room to spare on the sidekick with the Wimberly AP 500 foot.
 
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I do like the WimbeRiley gimbal. I don’t have the Sidekick, but the larger model. I was able to get the D5 with the 500 pf to balance well. Wait for some more recent opinions. My gear is mostly inscce at the moment, unfortunately
 
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I recently noticed a fellow shooting an 800mmPF. He was using his left hand cupping the end of the lens hood, placing his fingers inside the hood to stabile the set on the gimbal.
I tried that, I can't see my fingers are blocking any of the image, and it is a cool way to hold the set in place.
 
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Charles Loy said:
I recently noticed a fellow shooting an 800mmPF. He was using his left hand cupping the end of the lens hood, placing his fingers inside the hood to stabile the set on the gimbal.
I tried that, I can't see my fingers are blocking any of the image, and it is a cool way to hold the set in place.
Click to expand...
I have always rested my hand on the top of the lens. Usually, right in front of the focusing ring on the 500 PF and my old 500 f/4 Ai P. the only way you would see if your fingers were getting into the light path is if the out of focus highlights were misshapen as in notches'
 
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You should be aware that Hejnar have 4 different foot options for use with the Nikon 500mm pf lens. I originally got the foot with product code H129 and this balanced well on a gimbal with the D500. However when I upgraded to a Z8 and added the FTZ II and a 1. 4 x TC it no longer balanced. I got the foot with code H129-500 which extends backward toward the body and this now balances well with all my lens / body combinations. There is also a low profile and a Z9 option.
I keep my foot permanently attached to my lens and I would recommend the use of blue Loctite on the fixing screw.
I would highly recommend Hejnar.
 
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