Last Friday, I ordered the B&H 50th Anniversary Gitzo 2-series Mountaineer kit, and it arrived an hour ago. At the moment, I'm completely stunned. This is not what I expected, and I've got to think it through in order to wrap my head around it.
As some of you know, I already have a 1-series Mountaineer,, a 2-series Traveller, and the 3, 4, and 5-series Sytematics. I decided to order this new 2-series Mountaineer, with the thought of selling and replacing my 1-series Mountaineer and 2-series Traveller. Now, that's not going to happen.
This new 2-series Mountaineer is an absolute "beast". Although the legs are the same diameter as the 2-series Traveller, ,the stiffness is a night & day difference due to the spider design,,, the splay angles of the legs, and the G-Lock Ultra leg locks. I literally had to check the model number label on a leg because its sturdiness felt closer to my 3-series Systematic than my 2-series Traveller, It measures 22 inchess long when closed, so it'll easily fit into a carry-on bag when the feet, or the column are removed.,, or, fitted diagonally with no disassembly. Weight is 3.7 lbs (1.7Kg) and payload is 48.4 lbs. I'm 5' 9" tall, and with column down, the ballheads top-plate comes to just under my nose. This places the camera viewfinder just above my eye level.
My B&H 50th Anniversary"kit" os still on sale at over $1,000. off. The kit includes the Gitzo 3-way fluid head, and the beefy GH-3382QD ball- head with friction control. I also have several of the smaller GH-1382-QD heads which I can substitute if I want to travel lighter.
I've got to give Abbott Schindler a BIG THANK YOU for pointing out this amazing deal.
Series 2 and 3 mountaineers share the same spider and center column. This makes the series 2 as strong as the series 3 in the upper body, but in the same time a little top heavy .
I got Gitzo GT1545T Series 1 Traveler Carbon Fiber Tripod with Center Ball Head & GM2542 Carbon Fiber Monopod (Special 50th Anniversary Kit) for a good price as well. This Deal was hard to pass
Series 2 and 3 mountaineers share the same spider and center column. This makes the series 2 as strong as the series 3 in the upper body, but in the same time a little top heavy .
Yep, and that's especially true with that beefy GH-3382QD head.
two things I'd like to see is rubber-capped spikes, and a hair wider leg splay, and I'll most likely add a column-mounted spirit-level. and maybe a small levelling base.
I LOVE the colomn design with the ground-level ring. That thing is amazing..
In some ways, I shouldn't be surprised at the overall stiffness. I was really impressed with the relative stiffnesss of my 1-series Mountaineer. That one's got to be "the" street tripod.
Thanks for that "same spider" info. I hadn't noticed that.
PIOK wrote:
I got Gitzo GT1545T Series 1 Traveler Carbon Fiber Tripod with Center Ball Head & GM2542 Carbon Fiber Monopod (Special 50th Anniversary Kit) for a good price as well. This Deal was hard to pass
Yes,that was a heckuva deal, and I'm surprised it's still available. Enjoy your new tripod/monopod set.
I sense new versions of the Gitzo are coming . B&H is probably helping them liquidate existing inventory. It has been quite a while since their last iteration.
Cinstance wrote:
I sense new versions of the Gitzo are coming . B&H is probably helping them liquidate existing inventory. It has been quite a while since their last iteration.
I believe their last tripod model revisions occured in 2012 and 2016. There was the introduction of the current center ball-heads and that's been expanding with the addition of a 4-series model which includes a fluid cartridge in the panning base. They also added the current fluid gimbal,
The Mountaineer product line added an "L" (long) version and that dubbed a "3" revision. Example GT-3543L vs GT-3542.
The only revision I've noticed with the Systematics was the switch from rubber-capped spikes to the current BigFoot* swivel ball feet (2016?)
What I'd like to see would be new and longer versions of the same rubber capped spikes they used to have. Something in the range of 2.25 inches. The current "Long " spikes are not rubber capped.
I'd also like to see a small levelling base for their Traveller series.
I'm not sure when they added the hi-modulus carbon fiber tubes for all the tripod leg-sections that are below a 2-series diameter. (25.5 mm and smaller) That was really a big deal, and that allowed for the tubes to have thicker/stiffer tube walls in those lower sections of all their models..
They also changed the leg shims at one point. That may not immediately seem like much, but it's far more important in terms of reliability,,, temperature range,,,and smoothness of operation when extending the legs.
All in all, it seems they do a lot more innovating than most are not aware of.
Bobarino wrote:
two things I'd like to see is rubber-capped spikes, and a hair wider leg splay, and I'll most likely add a column-mounted spirit-level. and maybe a small levelling base.
I'm glad you're pleased with your purchase. Like you, I have a too-large number of Gitzo tripods and am exceptionally happy with all of them.
Abbott, have you ever tried those same 38mm spikes on your 2-series tripods? I'm wondering if the 38mm version, is perhaps a bit too wide compared to the 30mm set. The numerical size is the width of the rubber cap at its widest point. I'll need two sets,,, one for the 2-series Traveller,,, and one for the 2-series Mountaineer. All of my 3, 4, and 5 series Systematics came with the 38mm version and I biught an extra set of the. Big-Foot* feet for those Systematics.
So far, everything's good with the new tripod, but I'm finding the pano base sticky on the GH-3382. My other GH-3382 is silky smooth. This newer one is getting a bit better after I rotate it a few times. I'll do that for a week or so and see if it improves.
I have yet to fiddle seriously with the 3-way fluid head
sjms wrote:
i have a few sets of those for my RRS tripods and my Induro monopod. quite literally a lifetime supply.
Hi Steve,,
Do you by any chance have the RRS long spikes too. I;m thinking of ordering a set. The RRS appear to be a more manageable length compared to Gitzo's current model long spikes.which are apparently 120mm long. I believe the RRS are roughly 2.25" but I'd have to verify. Also, I'm wondering if the threaded portion of the RRS long spikes is long enough to fit the Gitzo insert
It seems that nobody offers a rubber-capped version of their long spikes.
Leofoto make long spikes with shoes in two different sizes, and I had the larger ones on my LP-324C:
Bobarino wrote:
Hi Steve,,
Do you by any chance have the RRS long spikes too. I;m thinking of ordering a set. The RRS appear to be a more manageable length compared to Gitzo's current model long spikes.which are apparently 120mm long. I believe the RRS are roughly 2.25" but I'd have to verify. Also, I'm wondering if the threaded portion of the RRS long spikes is long enough to fit the Gitzo insert
It seems that nobody offers a rubber-capped version of their long spikes.
Bobarino wrote:
Abbott, have you ever tried those same 38mm spikes on your 2-series tripods? I'm wondering if the 38mm version, is perhaps a bit too wide compared to the 30mm set. The numerical size is the width of the rubber cap at its widest point. I'll need two sets,,, one for the 2-series Traveller,,, and one for the 2-series Mountaineer. All of my 3, 4, and 5 series Systematics came with the 38mm version and I biught an extra set of the. Big-Foot* feet for those Systematics.
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Since you asked, I just held them against the 2545T (I Loctited them in, so it's hard to remove them from the Mountaineer). The feet will fit (same threads), but they are kinda large for the Series 2 legs. I'm still not sure I'll get spikes for the Traveler, as TSA will confiscate them if they're on a carried-on tripod (or so I've heard). I may just buy some spikes and carry them in addition to the standard feet, so the standards can keep the receiver holes protected when I carry them onto planes.
Cinstance wrote:
Leofoto make long spikes with shoes in two different sizes, and I had the larger ones on my LP-324C:
Thanks Cinstance,
I've looked at the Leofoto spikes in the past and found the concept to be fine, however, I didn't care for the width of the flange,,,, the plastic boots,,, the very sharp tips,,, and the fact that they were threaded right to the pointy tip. The price was pretty nice though.
I'll mostly be using the tripod with the boots attached, so the durability and grip of the rubber cap will be important to me. The Gitzo boots are VERY tough and grippy. and just about impossible to accidentally slip off. The spikes are made from hardened stainless steel, so they'll probably last forever.
Abbott Schindl wrote:
Since you asked, I just held them against the 2545T (I Loctited them in, so it's hard to remove them from the Mountaineer). The feet will fit (same threads), but they are kinda large for the Series 2 legs. I'm still not sure I'll get spikes for the Traveler, as TSA will confiscate them if they're on a carried-on tripod (or so I've heard). I may just buy some spikes and carry them in addition to the standard feet, so the standards can keep the receiver holes protected when I carry them onto planes.
OK, Thanks Abbott. It looks like I may go with the 30mm Gitzo.feet. for the 2-series Traveller and Mountaineer. I just looked at the feet on my Systematics, and those 38mm boots are reaaly big.
Regarding a levelling solution, I think I'll just go with the column-mounted spirit level for the time being,,, at least on the Traveller. It ties in better with the weight reduction aspect of that particular. tripod. I'll also add one on my 1-series. That said, the lighter head reduced the weight of the kit
Regarding "stickiness" on the panning of the GH-3382QD2-,, that has now improved significantly.
Tonight I briefly experimented with switching the heads on my 1 -series Mountaineer with the heavier GH-3382QD of the 2-series, and I found that the 2-series Mountaineer actually handles the larger head,.better than it does with the GH-1382QD. The tripod just felt more "planted" and solid.
Yeah, things are coming together nicely. I'll probably add a good pano-gimbal for multi-row pano's, but that's on hold for now. (RRS PG-02)
A few years back, I put together most of the studio gear; flashes, strobes, modifiers, light stands,
C-stands, boom stands, etc, so that's mostly complete.
I haven't bought any new cameras or lenses since I bought my D-500 and D-810, so that area might deserve a little attention. My lenses are the f: 2.8 Holy Trinity and the 200-500mm Nikon zoom. I still need a couple of primes and I'd love to get my hands on the old Nikkon f;4 200mm macro.
It's taken me over 10 years to put this kit together, so there's no rush.
large, short gitzo spike on a RRS TVC24 and up. the small spikes go on the TQC/TFC14
these are the originals quite old and were about $30-35us for a set back then. i could blow a hole flat to flat on the spikes to make them like the new version. just too lazy and i have a mini wrench for it.
NIKON Z 8NIKKOR Z 24-120mm f/4 S lens101mmf/8.01/60s80 ISO0.0 EV
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