Re: Quick Release Clamp: Lever Release or Screw Knob Release?
I have a BH-40. I used a knob-clamp on it for years. Recently, I sent it in for servicing, and had them replace it with a lever clamp.
I think the speed and convenience of the lever vs. knob clamp is a wash. Oh, the lever is definitely faster, but I don\'t find myself taking the camera on and off the tripod all *that* often for it to make a difference. Sure, I shave second off with the lever, and I suppose over the next several decades those seconds will add up ... but not enough to obsess over.
I use RRS plates, and cannot see any noticeable or perceptible difference is clamping power. So I think that argument against the lever is largely without too much bite (personally).
BUT I do think think the lever is less safe than the knob in one other respect. Not for lack of clamping power, but because it is so much easier to get the lever caught on something --- a sleeve, a branch, a loose strap --- and have it flip open. Now, the way it is designed, it probably will not flip open all the way accidentally, but it could conceivably get to the halfway position, which means the camera will not drop out, but it can slide out. It would be a nice if there was a lock to keep the lever close, or some sort of button to depress before the lever can be opened. Having said this, I will add that that the camera has not only never dropped out, but never slid out either: while I flipped open the lever, I never got it to even the half-way point so the grip of the clamp never released, and I just flipped the lever closed without incident.
I also find *both* lever and knobs interfere with the the TS-E 24\'s knobs when the lever or knob is in front. The lever less so than the knob, of course, but just as annoying.
Re: Quick Release Clamp: Lever Release or Screw Knob Release?
I have a BH-40. I used a knob-clamp on it for years. Recently, I sent it in for servicing, and had them replace it with a lever clamp.
I think the speed and convenience of the lever vs. knob clamp is a wash. Oh, the lever is definitely faster, but I don\'t find myself taking the camera on and off the tripod all *that* often for it to make a difference. Sure, I shave second off with the lever, and I suppose over the next several decades those seconds will add up ... but not enough to obsess over.
I use RRS plates, and cannot see any noticeable or perceptible difference is clamping power. So I think that argument against the lever is largely without too much bite (personally).
BUT I do think think the lever is less safe than the knob in one other respect. Not for lack of clamping power, but because it is so much easier to get the lever caught on something --- a sleeve, a branch, a loose strap --- and have it flip open. Now, the way it is designed, it probably will not flip open all the way accidentally, but it could conceivably get to the halfway position, which means the camera will not drop out, but it can slide out. It would be a nice if there was a lock to keep the lever close, or some sort of button to depress before the lever can be opened. Having said this, I will add that that the camera has not only never dropped out, but never slid out either: while I flipped open the lever, I never got it to even the half-way point so the grip of the clamp never released, and I just flipped the lever closed without incident.
I also find *both* lever and knobs interfere with the the TS-E 24\'s knobs when the lever or knob is in front: annoying, because if I place the lever at the back then the bubble on the clamp is on the wrong side for me.
Sep 16, 2014 at 03:21 AM
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