In your list of cons, the infamous Markins characteristic of difficulty in the tightening of the panning brake (lock) pops up again. I\'m an old guy and have little problem tightening the lock to my satisfaction without losing any skin. Some people use a strap wrench to tighten a BH which I find totally ridiculous. I simply tighten the lock, with the tripod legs not extended, I twirl the BH between my fingers and let inertia lock it. I have been doing it for years
In the case of the Markins, it is never going to be without this characteristic. Just think about it, you have a small screw pressing against a small diameter center post, how tight is it going to get? There is a severe leverage disadvantage like stopping a 32\" wheel on an SUV with 10\" disc brakes.
