Silly question regarding Tripods... I have an M6 and am interested in purchasing a full size tripod. My question is related to the screw thread size. Should I be looking for a tripod with a particular screw thread size or is the thread on the M6 standard on all tripods?

Thanks a lot.

Jason

-- Jason Vicinanza (jason@futurafish.com), December 12, 2001

Answers

anyone will fit, it is the standard mount.

don't buy too cheap. a floppy tripod is worth nothing. especially with the off-centre tripod mount of the m6 the head shouldn't be too flimsy.

-- stefan randlkofer (geesbert@yahoo.com), December 12, 2001.

Jason, Virtually all cameras have been standardized to 1/4" thread for many decades, the M6 is no exception.

-- George L. Doolittle (geodoolitt@aol.com), December 12, 2001.

I further the "don't buy too cheap" notion.

I'm using a Gitzo Weekender with a Novaflex Mini-magic ballhead. A lightweight combination (for a full sized tripod) that gets about 0.001% use in my normal shooting when the light levels get impossible. I don't know but a Noctilux purchase could theoretically render this accessory obsolete too.

Ahhh. Leica land.

-- John Chan (ouroboros_2001@yahoo.com), December 12, 2001.

I'm also thinking of buying a table and full-size model. For the table version, is the Leica (and ball and socket) best? Do Leica make a full-sized one for the M6?

Is the off-centre socket on the M6 an advantage in any way? Doesn't it put more pressure on the rest of the camera body?

Thank you,

PD

-- PD (pd100@hotmail.com), December 12, 2001.

PD, the off center socket is an advantage if you don't use a shutter release cable, since downward pressure on the shutter button doesn't exert any significant torque on the system. Otherwise, I much prefer using the centered socket on the Leica handgrip (which is one of the main reasons I leave the grip on all the time).

-- Richard Saylor (rlsaylor@ix.netcom.com), December 12, 2001.

The Leica table-top tripod plus ball-head is very popular and works well. I'm glad I bought it.

I agree with those who warn against buying a very cheap tripod; for instance, I bought a Slik U6000 and it's flimsy, weak because the head is plastic, and doesn't even allow the camera to be rotated fro portrait (vertical) format. However, I intend to use it as a flashgun support for off-camera flash.

-- Ray Moth (ray_moth@yahoo.com), December 12, 2001.

PD,

I already said this but I don't remember where: I really can and do recommend the Leica Tablelap tripod (14100) together with it's Ball-and-socket head (14110). Both fith together perfectly (of course) and are also expensive (of course). But really sturdy and small and handy. In Solms I found out that when they there use bigger (normal-sized) tripods (like for all visitors) they only had the Manfrotto 290s. Dozens of them. That's why I bought that too. For me, the best top part here is the Profi Ballhead II from Linhof. All in all, the Manfrotto plus Linhof parts are too big, unnecessarily sturdy for my M6.

-- Michael Kastner (kastner@zedat.fu-berlin.de), December 14, 2001.

Thanks for the advise guys. I understand about the off center tripod mount.. I have a hand grip so that should help with that.

Thanks again..

keep on snapin

Jason

-- Jason Vicinanza (jason@futurafish.com), December 18, 2001.

Actually, I'll be the naysayer here. I once had a Leica table top tripod. It seems really beautifully made, but unfortunately it's made of cast iron. If the centre bolt freezes up, the entire assembly can be overstressed when you try to undo it, and simply snap. This happened to me. I was quite surprised and annoyed! Cast iron is a very fragile material.

-- rob (rob@robertappleby.com), December 18, 2001.