Chris S. Offline Upload & Sell: Off
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mtbakerskier,
Limiting your scope to "hydrostatic" arms probably eliminates some very good articulating arms. Based on my--admittedly limited--searching, I haven't found any detailed or convincing information that "hydrostaric," as Manfrottos uses it, offers much more than a unique marketing niche.
One skier to another, I'll take the risk of mentioning a set of articulated arms that are not marketed as being "hydrostatic," but in my use, have proven to be excellent--easy to work with, and very, very solid. These are the Noga articulating arms. Noga has versions of these arms marketed toward photographers and film makers, and other versions marketed toward machinists for holding gauges. For my work, purchasing and modifying the versions configured for machinists has been the most cost-efficient route. Your mileage may vary.
Check out the Noga Big Boy--a nice, long articulating arm that is very solid: http://www.amazon.com/NOGA-Big-Boy-Magnetic-Base/dp/B002NEPEXO . I have a number of these that I've adapted for photographic work. In use, you loosen the locking knob, place the arm as you will, gently tighten the locking nut, and everything remains in place--exactly and precisely in place, without a bit of movement. A joy to use.
Sorry, I know this is not what you asked for. But it's a very useful tool, in my experience that might perhaps meet your needs for a longer articulating arm that works very well. BTW, some of my colleagues have tried--and been very disappointed in--similar looking articulating arms available for far less money. My guess is that an articulating arm doesn't have to be "hydrostatic" to be a solid performer--but it does have to be very well made.
Cheers,
--Chris
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