Sachtler Ace and a slider setup

K

krx

New member
Hey there!

I've found myself in a bit of a conundrum and require some expertise from those of you who use sliders on tripods.

I'm in a market for a tripod for DSLR rig use on a budget of around £500 and have settled on a Sachtler Ace as being the best choice (true?).

The problem now comes from the fact that I'd like to be able to use a center-mount slider on the tripod as well. If I get the Ace, I suppose it would make sense to make the most of it's fluid head and mount it on top of the slider and mount the slider straight on to the legs, but as far as I know this kind of setup is possible only if I get a half-bowl adapter (http://www.manfrotto.co.uk/520ball-75mm-bowl-with-knob) to mount the slider on the legs and bowl adapter (http://www.manfrotto.co.uk/bowl-adapter) to mount the head on the slider. Kinda convoluted setup...

So I ask - what's my best move in this situation? I suppose I could get something like Manfrotto 504 set instead of the Ace as the 504 has a detachable bowl, but from what I've been researching Ace beats the 504.
Alternatively I could get the Ace and a cheaper flat base head (like 701HD) and mount the slider on the Ace's head and have the 701 on the slider, but in this case I feel like I would be underutilizing the obviously better Ace head by keeping it locked off.

What would you do?
 
You'll hear a lot of different answers from people on this since everyone likes their tripods to feel a bit different.
When I bought my tripod, the only systems in my budget were the Sacthler ACE and the Manfrotto 503. I went out and tried both of them and I liked the Sacthler better. Both because I liked how it felt, and because it was a more respected brand.
I recently got a chance to try the 504 and I'm really surprised at how well it behaved. The drag controls felt like they gave me very fine adjustment of how it moved, the locks all worked well, and the felt very solidly built. One thing to note, the 504 I tried was less than a month old at the time and my Ace is over a year old. So only time will tell how well the 504 will hold up. Comparing it to my Ace, I'd say it's a toss up as to which one I like more. You'll probably be happy with either coming from any cheaper tripod. Go with the most expensive system you can afford now, and it will last you through many cameras.
 
My ball head tripod could never lock off and be rock solid with all the extra weight of a camera and slider. Instead I went with a center column photo tripod (Davis /Sanford) for my slider and jib with no fear of tiping over with legs spread wide. It is very stable and can hold up to 35 lbs.

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Thanks for the responses, guys! That heavy duty tripod might be an option for me regarding slider support.

I would still love to hear opinions on using a half-bowl fluid head on a flat base slider through an adapter of some kind. All the slider setups I've used or witnessed have always had some not-that-great flat base head on them so I'm wondering if there maybe are some bad problems with the fluidhead-through-adapter-on-a-slider setup.
 
You are putting a lot of stress on a ball lock off when using all but the lightest camera and slider. I would not want to spend a lot of money for a tripod then have the potential of damaging it. That is why folks mostly use a flat base tripod for sliders and jibs.
 
im planning on a sachtler ace with a very lightweight (40cm rhino carbon) slider.. At the moment with my manfrotto setup on wide angle lenses I can see a slight tilt in the full lengh of the glide (so the horizon is level when the camera is at the center, but not when it is at either end) do you guys think I'd experience the same issue with the ace? I's be using a pretty light camera set up (sony a7s)
 
A light tripod/head like the ACE IMO just isn't going to be optimum to hold a slider even the one that you mentioned which is only 3.2 lbs. Even a small tilt at the end of a slide can ruin the shot. If you are dead set on the Ace then get a brace of some type to place under the ends. I have seen people use a second tripod or monopod. Some walking sticks are threaded under the end cap and have adjustable lengths.
 
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Do you think the fsb 4 would be more sturdy? I'm considering buying that and a kessler stealth slider (originally a philip bloom traveller dolly but seems to be discontinued).
 
My stills tripod for 2 decades has been a manfrotto 3221 with a ball head. I found another on eBay for $35, tapped my slider for the release plates, and just click it into the heads, one tripod on each side. I don't use the 3221 for video gigs, they're small to pack, etc. Quick setup, easy to level with the balls, and I have a bunch of spare plates over the years so those just live on the slider. Those 3221's can go from about 8" to… I dunno, pretty high, 5 feet or more.

Tried the slider with just one tripod - too much shake for me. I do use the manfrotto ball head converter on the slider, so I can do moves if I need to - I usually stick a little 75mm "fancier" head on it, those things are kinda surprisingly good. Easy to jump from slider shots to tripod since I don't have the tripod tied up with the slider. Cheap solution overall.
 
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