hiepphotog wrote:
I meant we have 3 days left to decide to back (or backed and withdraw) or not. They showed a table on their KS update regarding the stiffness, overall score, etc. of their tripod with respect to others. They omitted the Leofoto data, which can be found on centercolumn.com. The Leofoto has better stiffness rating (PD's rating was without the extended column). Of course it's slightly heavier with slightly bigger packed size. The PD has a built-in center column while the Leofoto has an external one. But given the price, I thought PD's tripod wasn't as enticing as it should be....Show more →
I'm out heck my Gitzo Traveler 1 1545 is way better than either the Leofoto or the PD and I already have one of them it is 3.75" side 16.7" long and one hell of a lot more stable and better made with a better head. If I need more than that I have two Gitzo Traveler 2's 2545's or the RRS TFC34 or RRS TVC44 I am set.
Buh Buy PD I thought it was kind of cheesy for an established company like Peak Design to be on Kickstarter anyway.
I love their straps I own at least fifteen between here and Florida about five each of the Slide, slide lite, leash and wrist strap they are the most convenient method by far that I have found.
I admire their effort here just like Breakthrough Photography's ball head but when you start playing in someone else's sandbox it is a tough road to hoe.
trstahly wrote:
I'm out heck my Gitzo Traveler 1 1545 is way better than either the Leofoto or the PD and I already have one of them it is 3.75" side 16.7" long and one hell of a lot more stable and better made with a better head. If I need more than that I have two Gitzo Traveler 2's 2545's or the RRS TFC34 or RRS TVC44 I am set.
Buh Buy PD I thought it was kind of cheesy for an established company like Peak Design to be on Kickstarter anyway.
I love their straps I own at least fifteen between here and Florida about five each of the Slide, slide lite, leash and wrist strap they are the most convenient method by far that I have found.
I admire their effort here just like Breakthrough Photography's ball head but when you start playing in someone else's sandbox it is a tough road to hoe.
Gtizo would kill right now to have 21,434 backers for one of their tripods. To me that looks more like peak design taking a whiz in their sand box Trying to keep it family friendly.
nhsonyshooter wrote:
Gtizo would kill right now to have 21,434 backers for one of their tripods. To me that looks more like peak design taking a whiz in their sand box Trying to keep it family friendly.
I am sure Gitzo does just fine and at $1,000 with a pop are able to pay their bills.
The PD is slick but its a gimmick and travel set up when in a pinch not what I would consider a real solution for any tripod needs. I pledged but figured what am I doing when I already have three small and better tripods unless the measure of a tripod is diameter. I can deal with an extra .75" in diameter and inch in length.
I hope they do very well like I said I love PD and own as many straps as probably any customer they have.
I have a 1541T that I purchased a while ago. It’s incredibly well made and very stable. It folds to 16.7 inches and supports 17.6 lbs
A couple of years ago I purchased The Gitzo GT1555T with Gitzo ball head and it folds down to 14 inches. Stability is excellent and it supports 22lbs. This is due to a more recent evolution of Gitzo’s carbon fiber technology, leading to a smaller more stiffer structure. This is incredibly compact.
This tripod is my go to for travel.
The quality of Gitzo tripods are incredible. The only tripods in this league are the RRS ones.
trstahly wrote:
I am sure Gitzo does just fine and at $1,000 with a pop are able to pay their bills.
The PD is slick but its a gimmick and travel set up when in a pinch not what I would consider a real solution for any tripod needs. I pledged but figured what am I doing when I already have three small and better tripods unless the measure of a tripod is diameter. I can deal with an extra .75" in diameter and inch in length.
I hope they do very well like I said I love PD and own as many straps as probably any customer they have....Show more →
Well, let's be honest. Gitzo and RRS are both over priced significantly. And I love my RRS travel tripod. But for my everyday tripod I use a Benro and I have to say It has performed just as well as any RRS tripods I had in the past at a 3rd the cost. So no Peak Design needed here (initially was going to give it a try) but I do like some of the design elements of it.
nhsonyshooter wrote:
Well, let's be honest. Gitzo and RRS are both over priced significantly. And I love my RRS travel tripod. But for my everyday tripod I use a Benro and I have to say It has performed just as well as any RRS tripods I had in the past at a 3rd the cost. So no Peak Design needed here (initially was going to give it a try) but I do like some of the design elements of it.
RRS is over priced on everything but I have never owned a tripod that I have enjoyed using more than my TFC34 or TVC44.
Being an owner of many top of the line products from A to Z there is something about using something that really is really engineered well and a joy to use.
With these two I am using a 400GM and soon 600GM with Wimberley WH-200 gimbals so sparing no expense to have a user friendly, well engineered, good looking stable platform to help me achieve the best results I can.
nhsonyshooter wrote:
Well, let's be honest. Gitzo and RRS are both over priced significantly. And I love my RRS travel tripod. But for my everyday tripod I use a Benro and I have to say It has performed just as well as any RRS tripods I had in the past at a 3rd the cost. So no Peak Design needed here (initially was going to give it a try) but I do like some of the design elements of it.
Well, RRS is not overpriced really. It is expensive, which is no the same thing.
It is expensive because:
1. It is manufactured to high tolerances with excellent QC.
2. It is manufactured in America, with entirely US sourced components.
3. It is manufactured from expensive components well machined components.
4. Manufacturing employees are paid significantly more than other companies.
Peak Design products are manufactured in the same places that manufacture low cost Benro tripods. Even so, I would not say the Peak Design tripod is overpriced, because you are paying for the new design, which whatever you want to say, took some R&D and manufacturing tooling to get up and running.
Jesse Evans wrote:
Well, RRS is not overpriced really. It is expensive, which is no the same thing.
It is expensive because:
1. It is manufactured to high tolerances with excellent QC.
2. It is manufactured in America, with entirely US sourced components.
3. It is manufactured from expensive components well machined components.
4. Manufacturing employees are paid significantly more than other companies.
Peak Design products are manufactured in the same places that manufacture low cost Benro tripods. Even so, I would not say the Peak Design tripod is overpriced, because you are paying for the new design, which whatever you want to say, took some R&D and manufacturing tooling to get up and running....Show more →
I may not have used the best phrase when I said overpriced I agree they are very expensive.
They also enjoy a very loyal following and excellent reputation but I am willing to bet their margins are higher than most and they deserve it IMO.
Nobody held a gun to my head for all my RSS purchases, I like high end products or I would not be using a 400GM and soon 600GM and all the other GM lenses as a serious enthusiast.
I appreciate and the finer things in life in all my pursuits.
That being said if I did not already own a Gitzo Traveler 1 & 2 and Oben I probably would have bought a PD but that is not the case. For a travel tripod if you do not already have a good one it is a clever and slick little set up.
trstahly wrote:
They also enjoy a very loyal following and excellent reputation but I am willing to bet their margins are higher than most and they deserve it IMO.
What margins do they deserve?
If it's as you say then there's plenty of opportunity for competition to come in and take away those undeserved margins so the problem will go away in due course.
If it's as you say then there's plenty of opportunity for competition to come in and take away those undeserved margins so the problem will go away in due course.
Listen jag, I own three companies I founded forty years ago one being a large manufacturing company I think I know a little more about margins and operating a business than you do pal.
First of all you are putting words in my mouth and trying to read my mind which you sir are incapable of doing so shut your trap!
Companies are entitled to what ever margins they can get. Do you think Channel's $10,000 purses cost more to make than Michael Kors or even lesser bags?
No or not by that much to justify a 10x higher price but they have been able to create a desire for their goods and certain prestige which is called excellent marketing.
The same goes for companies like Ferrari and other luxury brands all of which I own btw so please do not lecture me on business practices.
Jesse Evans wrote:
Well, RRS is not overpriced really. It is expensive, which is no the same thing.
It is expensive because:
1. It is manufactured to high tolerances with excellent QC.
2. It is manufactured in America, with entirely US sourced components.
3. It is manufactured from expensive components well machined components.
4. Manufacturing employees are paid significantly more than other companies.
Peak Design products are manufactured in the same places that manufacture low cost Benro tripods. Even so, I would not say the Peak Design tripod is overpriced, because you are paying for the new design, which whatever you want to say, took some R&D and manufacturing tooling to get up and running....Show more →
Yet my "low cost" Benro works every bit as well as my RRS Never understood the "made in America" makes it OK to be overpriced argument. Don't get me wrong they are great and I have had 4 of them. I actually only bought the Benro out of necessity because like a dope I forgot my tripod on a trip. Found a local store and bought the Benro. Actually really like it. So much so I sold a couple of my RRS tripods and with the difference bought a nice lens Will it last 10 years? I don't know and don't care because I don't keep any tripod that long anyway. In the end it's a tripod. How hard is it to make something with 3 adjustable legs that keeps the camera still
nhsonyshooter wrote:
Yet my "low cost" Benro works every bit as well as my RRS Never understood the "made in America" makes it OK to be overpriced argument. Don't get me wrong they are great and I have had 4 of them. I actually only bought the Benro out of necessity because like a dope I forgot my tripod on a trip. Found a local store and bought the Benro. Actually really like it. So much so I sold a couple of my RRS tripods and with the difference bought a nice lens Will it last 10 years? I don't know and don't care because I don't keep any tripod that long anyway. In the end it's a tripod. How hard is it to make something with 3 adjustable legs that keeps the camera still...Show more →
Any discussion about why making it in America makes it more expensive and thus not overpriced is going to have nothing to do with photography and probably devolve in to politics. If you don’t understand the reason that buying products made in developed nations (and in this case made entirely from parts sourced from developed nations) costs more, I will leave it to you to do the research.
Regardless of price, the RRS TFC-14 is the most rigid travel tripod you can buy, and almost the same size as the Peak Design. Whether or not you feel like paying for it for the myriad reasons it costs more is up to you. The TQC-14 is more versatile and an incredibly well made tripod.
I don’t know the logic behind owning 4 RRS tripods, but I’m happy you found the perfect Benro to suit you.
trstahly wrote:
Listen jag, I own three companies I founded forty years ago one being a large manufacturing company I think I know a little more about margins and operating a business than you do pal.
First of all you are putting words in my mouth and trying to read my mind which you sir are incapable of doing so shut your trap!
Given you've got forty years of experience I would have thought you could manage your temper better but I'm not putting any words in your mouth by quoting you.
Why are you freaking out about someone just asking you to clarify a point?
This being said, would you replace one or the other as a first investment? and if it's the travel one, would you go for PD or one of the options mentioned here? (Gitzo Traveler 1545, Leofoto, etc)
Gear: Sony A7riii, 16-35 2.8 GM, 100-400 GM, etc.
I forgot to add: I tend to travel several weeks and weekends per year, mostly air travel, most of the time including checked luggage. I hike for some landscape shots, but not hugely. I also do landscape in and around Belgium, driving.
I gave in and ordered the PD tripod. Two travel tripods isn't too much
Per the comments about it being made where Benro's tripods are made, I can't find any information on Benro or most tripod mfr's factories besides Gitzo and RRS. PD says their hard goods are made in Dongguan and that they have a strict standard for factories; for now I'm going to take that as true.
Simon Barker wrote:
Given you've got forty years of experience I would have thought you could manage your temper better but I'm not putting any words in your mouth by quoting you.
Why are you freaking out about someone just asking you to clarify a point?
I am not freaking out or angry so I would suggest that you stop believing you can interpret others because you are pretty poor at it. I do not care to waste my time seeing your ignorant comments about me, now get lost and go troll someone else on here.
25000 backers. I'm sure one of these guys will be marginally disappointed in the tripod and decide to sell it. If I can snag this tripod for 50% off on the used market it makes the buy a lot more sensible. It's not like I have to wait much longer than the people backing it.
derKoekje wrote:
25000 backers. I'm sure one of these guys will be marginally disappointed in the tripod and decide to sell it. If I can snag this tripod for 50% off on the used market it makes the buy a lot more sensible. It's not like I have to wait much longer than the people backing it.
I am back in, not that anybody cares but I thought I would share my reasoning after deciding not to proceed.
Yes I have three other tripods for travel but I cannot get over how small and smooth this thing packs. To date I only take the little Leofoto on in my carry on when traveling. It will work in a pinch and is very well made but it is not tall enough so I will not have to search for a resting place or get sit on the ground to use it.
Secondly I will sell my Gitzo Traveler one and Oben if I like the PD and have a tripod I "will pack" and be able to use and will end up with money I my pocket and less clutter not having so many freakin small tripods.
trstahly wrote:
I am back in, not that anybody cares but I thought I would share my reasoning after deciding not to proceed.
Yes I have three other tripods for travel but I cannot get over how small and smooth this thing packs. To date I only take the little Leofoto on in my carry on when traveling. It will work in a pinch and is very well made but it is not tall enough so I will not have to search for a resting place or get sit on the ground to use it.
Secondly I will sell my Gitzo Traveler one and Oben if I like the PD and have a tripod I "will pack" and be able to use and will end up with money I my pocket and less clutter not having so many freakin small tripods.
Trying to keep it family friendly.