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Any of you out there shooting with a recent Manfrotto? This might just save your tripod.

On more recent Manfrottos the only thing stopping the lower leg sections from retracting too far in to the higher sections is the tinky rubber foot. If the foot gets lost (say it gets stuck in a cold, boggy loch foreshore) after the 15 minute frozen-hand groping in the loch you’ll find that undoing the clamps and tipping the tripod upside down to retract the legs results in the bottom section disappearing. At the top of the leg section (which you don’t normally see) is a small, plastic collar to stop the leg falling out of the tripod when you extend the legs. Unfortunately this smashes if the lower section falls right down in to the tripod. This means that when (after much faffing and hoo-haring because the leg now won’t come out – all those little plastic bits are smashed and fouling the leg) you eventually extend the tripod again, the leg simply falls out and ends up in said cold loch…

A bit nippy going for a swim at this time of year isn't it?

If you change the standard feet for the retractable spikes, at least they fasten on with a pinch bolt - maybe a bit more secure and can be retightened periodically if you remember where you put the mini screwdriver...

Secondly, always make sure you have a replacement tripod with you - Dad won't be using his much...

Andrew

Tim,

Are you saying you're legless?
At 10 in the morning? I'm highly disappointed in you!

Marc

masch wrote:At 10 in the morning? I'm highly disappointed in you!
Marc

Have I told you about Whisky Galore in Tyndrum?

Not yet and as we're likely to be passing through in a few days...

Apple wrote:Not yet and as we're likely to be passing through in a few days...

"If there are any you'd like to try just ask, we have samples of most".

I came away with a bottle of Laphroig quarter cask.

If you've not been through before then it's at the Green Welly Stop, on the RHS at the end of Tyndrum. If you're staying at the Kings House then it's probably the best place to stop and get coffee, cake and petrol/diesel.

Wellies are thoroughly advised for Rannoch Moor.

A word of warning for those of you venturing to Rannoch in the next few days - there are some major bridgeworks on the A82 at the pass before you drop down in to Glen Coe - we didn't go down that far, but were told that it can take over 30 minutes to get through them.

Oh - and if any of you find yourself here:

near Lochan na h-Achlaise and find a Manfrotto rubber foot, it's mine

A quick update:

Sorry, no tripod foot found at the Lochan - I managed to keep more on the Glencoe / Glen Etive side of things but some of the others went that way...

The roadworks were still going round the clock (that must be fun in winter ) but I didn't have longer that about 5 mins to wait to get through each time - it seemed more likely to be held up on the way up the glen than down

There's some other roadworks lower down between the visitor centre and Glencoe village but it was quite easy to trip the lights in your favour when approaching these.

I never did get into the Visitor Centre to see if I was charged even as a NT member - it was something I was going to do on principle following previous visits where it cost you to get into the shop (and they say Yorkshiremen are "careful" with the money! )

Andrew