Sachtler Video 15 SB

[laverdir]

 

[Run&Gun]

Bought 15 SB in really nice condition. The drag is soo smooth, design and materials are piece of art... BUT... cannot properly set a CB for a light setup (3-6kg). Everything is ok between ~ -40 to +40 degrees of tilt, but out of this range counterbalance isn't working properly.

Played with the center of gravity from 5 to 40 cm (Ronin RS2), but it's pretty impossible to get a hard stops with no drop/backlash without adding drag to 5-7. The backlash of 1mm looks horrible on >70mm focals. Yes, i can fix this with keeping pressure for a longer time or increasing drag to 5-7, but it's not I've expected of this price range gear.

Haven't seen any example of perfect balancing sachtler heads even on payed youtube channels (Chapman etc.) They always trying to mask backlashes with holding a handle...

Is it real to make hard tilt stops of all degree-range on sachtlers without adding of fluid? Or all I need is change this useless expensive piece of iron for a cartoni/vinten/o'connor? Or maybe the problem in my crooked hands or the fluid head is broken?

While it doesn’t really help you, but those are the big reasons I don’t like Sachtler heads. I mean they are smooth, but I don’t like stepped drag or counterbalance. And as you’re experiencing, there are times when you just can not get a payload perfectly counterbalanced(different than simple fore-aft balance on the top plate) ‘just right’ and you’re fighting the head, because there will be certain spots in the tilt range that it will naturally want to go to when you take pressure off, instead of staying in place.

My two recommendations are always Vinten and O’Connor. I’ve owned nothing but Vinten’s since day one. O’connor’s big boys are incredible, but I’ve never been able to fully justify the price of their smaller heads(1030 series) vs Vinten, especially with the payload and tilt deficiencies. I did finally see a 1040 in-person a few days ago(which does address two of my complaints of the 1030 series), but didn’t get to mess with it for more than a few seconds, so can’t really say much about it, besides aesthetically it looks bad-ass.

 

[DM_R]

While it doesn’t really help you, this is the reason I don’t like Sachtler heads.

To be honest, i wanted sachtler for a very long time, but the price was surreal for my budgets. And now, after getting it, I have some mixed feelings. I really like it for it's design and sturdiness, like it's cold metalic feel, like the drag.. But sachtler reminds me Leitz in the way of it's feeling/usability balance. This stepping technology seems to be outdated but product still costs like a new car. Just curious: their over 10000$ cine heads with same stepping technilogy cannot be perfectly balanced as well?! If yes, who buys them today and why?