What is the Difference Between 501 and 503

More tripod information

More tripod information

Hey ... thanks for the posts about the tripod heads. I wish I found this site before purchasing all of my equipment. I fell for one of those Brooklyn dealers who gave me a fantastic price on the camera, but the package included only one thing that was compatbile with my camera.

Anyway, I found this site and researched the information posted about the tripod. I bought the 501 head (needed to keep the costs down) and the 3182 sticks. The 3182 is great except for I'd rather have 2-stage legs because they would have a lower minimum height.

The head ... well, someone else said that it takes some time to get use to it. So far, I'm not especially excited. I was used to $3000 tripods when I worked for a TV station--who knows why they bought such expensive tripods when we would just throw them everywhere. Come to think of it, that is probably why. Anyway, the 501 doesn't lock down very well. I tend to carry my tripod over my shoulder and so far I haven't been able to get it to lock very well to keep from tilting. It does nice pans and tilts when I get the "fluidity" right.

The legs are super sturdy and I needed a tripod that would carry the weight of a small teleprompter. BH has these rated at like 11 lbs. but Bogen lists them at almost twice that, I believe.
 
I just about bought the 516 but ended up going with the Cartoni Focus. I've been playing with it the last couple of hours and I love it. :thumbsup:
 
i just got back from the video store (i'm also in the market for a tripod). it's useful to test drive the two heads with a camera attached and at the maximum magnification. wow ... i really liked the 503. the 501 is friction utilizing a set of teflon disks for pan and tilt, and the 503 is "fluid" friction for pan and tilt (utilizing silicon as a damper on the relative motion between two sets of disks ... manfrotto is not very clear about this). But there is a noticeable smoothness to the 503. I think it's well worth the extra expense.
 
idylwyld said:
i just got back from the video store (i'm also in the market for a tripod). it's useful to test drive the two heads with a camera attached and at the maximum magnification. wow ... i really liked the 503. the 501 is friction utilizing a set of teflon disks for pan and tilt, and the 503 is "fluid" friction for pan and tilt (utilizing silicon as a damper on the relative motion between two sets of disks ... manfrotto is not very clear about this). But there is a noticeable smoothness to the 503. I think it's well worth the extra expense.
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Very informative. I have been debating 501 vs 503. Will probably go with the 503 based on all the posts I have read- Yours was the kicker that closed the deal.

:-)
 
I have the 503 and a Bogen tripod. Not very happy with it. The pan handle is loose no matter how much I tighten it. Difficult to keep the camera (HVX) steady for locked down shots, especially is there is any wind. I wish I had forked over more money for a better tripod and head.

Good tripod for hobbiests, not for pros.
 
Breakin Period? 501 gets better with use.

Breakin Period? 501 gets better with use.

My 501 use to stick, I wasn't too happy with it. Now that I am using it more it seems to be getting better, not sticking. I have seen no mention of break in but it seems to be the case. The nose dive concern seems to be a non issue since I put the camera farther back on the mount. Ballance is better. This DVX site has been a great help.
 
Yardsale said:
Guys, I think I want the 503, will it be enough support for a M2 adapter and rod system?
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According to B and H's weight specifications it should be.

I've got the 501 and I really like it, I haven't ever touched any other "fluid" head system before though so that's most likely why. I'm thinking about selling off the 501 sooner or later and grabbing a 503 when I get my 35mm adapter, just because of the whole nose dive thing.
 
I have a 503 - it worth the money even a a true fluid would be better. The HVX200 is a little bit too heavy and it's not easy to balance it properly on the head. You have to move it forward quite a bit. I heard that there is a longer plate available that should solve this problem. Any experiencies?
 
i went with the sachtler. love it so far!

shyDP.jpg
 
Yardsale, could you tell how you like the two step drag control? I'm also interested in buying that same kit. By the way the Giant Robot comes from Finland :D
 
badlaa said:
Yardsale, could you tell how you like the two step drag control? I'm also interested in buying that same kit. By the way the Giant Robot comes from Finland :D
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So far it's been very smooth. I wouldn't have even considered it if I hadn't been able to get it at such a good price (650) but I'm glad I got it over a 503. Extremely well built, I am going to shoot some stuff today and see how well my pans and tilts turn out.
 
Inside a 501

Inside a 501

I have a 501 and have had it for several years. The 501 is an OK head, but you do get what you pay for. It sticks at the beginning of a movement, especially in tilt so I have to concentrate like crazy to avoid getting a jump or jerk when starting a movement. The jump isn't as noticeable when you're at wide angle but if you've zoomed in at all, forget it.

Tripods and fluid heads are very subjective things, though. My definition of smoothness may not be the same as yours and my criteria for a smooth camera movement may be stricter than yours. Personally, I am very fanatical and a perfectionist regarding smooth camera moves so for me, the 501 was frustrating.

Fluids heads are also a lot like big screen Hi-Def TVs. You don't know what you're missing until you've experienced something better and once you have, you don't want to go back. I live in Los Angeles and have been lucky to try out very high-end heads from Sachtler, Cartoni and OConnor with live cameras on them at trade shows. The only real way to evaluate a head is with a live camera on it. I am especially fond of OConnor heads.

The best way to describe these high-end heads is that they are effortless. You don't have to concentrate at all to make a smooth camera move. They are so smooth, so precise and so rigid that you can get a nice shot each time and every time, wide angle or zoomed in. This, of course, comes at a price because these heads are more massive than a DV head and mechanically they mare MUCH more complicated than a cheap DV head. To illustrate this, I took apart my 501 to show y'all what's inside.

Here is the tilt assembly:

panassy.jpg


lefttiltarm.jpg


righttiltarm.jpg


The tilt platform has a series of concentric rings that fit into another set of concentric rings inside the pan assembly. The rings have a coat of sticky grease or something like that. The rings don't touch each other so it's this sticky grease that creates the drag. On the right side tilt platform there is an additional white teflon or delrin type disc. When you tighten the tilt drag knob, you are pressing this white disc to increase the friction. I didn't take apart the pan drag assembly but I assume it's identical to the tilt axis. Since the drag adjustment is actually a friction boost, I would leave all of the drag adjustment knobs all the way out. As you can see, the head is pretty simple. There are no ball bearings.

Also, here's a nice write-up by a Manfrotto rep on their various heads at DVInfo:

http://www.dvinfo.net/conf/showpost.php?p=258849&postcount=23
 
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Woah thanks for the write-up!

I don't think you can fairly compare the 503 vs the sachtler dv 4 II, am I correct?
 
Is there anyway to prevent the nose diving for the 501? or, like, how severe is said nose diving? I would like to get that one for cost reasons, but I don't want my DVX getting damaged at all from a nose dive or something....
 
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