Manfrotto 504HD for DSLR Shooters

[Postmaster]

"Manfrotto 504HD Fluid Head Tripod Review"
This video is not available in your country.

Grrrrrr! Proxy doesn´t cut it ether!

One question. I got the 504HD and was surprised by the low drag.
Maybe I´m spoiled by my heavy duty old Universal head, that I usually use - I don´t know.

On the 504HD with just a bare HVX on it the drag control from 1 - 5 does almost nothing.
5-6 feels like I think 1 should feel and to get a good drag (like thick dough or fudge), I have to crank it up to the max.

Is that normal or that head just shot?

Frank

 

[yoclay]

"Manfrotto 504HD Fluid Head Tripod Review"
This video is not available in your country.

Grrrrrr! Proxy doesn´t cut it ether!

One question. I got the 504HD and was surprised by the low drag.
Maybe I´m spoiled by my heavy duty old Universal head, that I usually use - I don´t know.

On the 504HD with just a bare HVX on it the drag control from 1 - 5 does almost nothing.
5-6 feels like I think 1 should feel and to get a good drag (like thick dough or fudge), I have to crank it up to the max.

Is that normal or that head just shot?

Frank

No, that is completely normal. I am decidely unenthusiastic about this head. It's supposed to be for DSLR's, but really it's just playing off the importance of the Manfrotto name in the photography world. As all those folks drift into video making where do they go first? To the new "Bridging system" of the 504! I fail to see how this head could be helpful for shooting photo, so what it really means is they are "bridging" one market base into another.
In fact it is a mediocre hybrid friction head, and if it is supposed to be for DSLR's why can't you put a simple camera with only a normal lens on it? You will get rebounding until you dial #8 or #9 and then the action will be so stiff you might as well use drag on any old cheapo tripod. So now they have announced a new 502 head for this scenario which should be ready, oh, in a little under a year or so...yeh right.