AnthonyRay Offline Upload & Sell: Off
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dcains wrote:
I've had a small Basalt (G1097, IIRC) for maybe 5 years. It's gotten scuffed up, but still works as good as new. The basalt is weird stuff. It has a slippery feel, and a "plasticness" which is very unlike the super-stiff and hard CF.
That's because it's technically glass. I'd forgotten about this stuff - I think Gitzo is still the only manufacturer using it. It's also really just fiberglass (basalt fibers suspended in resin), so the resin is what would give it any sort of tactile properties. Then they can weave it in whatever pattern they want (or not), depends on what the top laminate layer is.
Might even be more durable, as it seems to "give" a bit. Seems OK for a smaller tripod, but I don't think the material would be ideal for a full-size model. HTH.
I think Carbon Fiber has greater tensile strength, but in a tripod it would really depend on the laminate, design and manufacturing process.. I'd be pretty sure that a Gitzo Basalt leg would be more durable than a Slik CF for instance.
I wonder if it's possible though that its less porous nature might make it better in dirty/dusty environments like Aluminum?
Huh! Well waddya know?
It looks like Basalt has much greater tensile strength!
If we're comparing fiber vs fiber that is! http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ultimate_tensile_strength (just about in the middle of the chart) Learn something new every day! I also forget something everyday too, but that's for another thread.
So, I wonder what other properties make CF the material of choice over basalt, or if there's more to it than performance.
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