AF2100

I still have one SLIK 2100 from ~1995 in use. It is
unbreakable (survived 3 crashes)
ball not loose after many years even

Well, it needs some training and for excursions it was a bit tricky for those who wanted to move my scope...
Excellent for flight observations of migration raptors, etc.
The ball-lock-release pistol is one thing you must get used to. Maybe a good training for hunters leaving their bloody hobby and starting birding....

Really a jolly good ball head.

Totally agree with above, I use mine with a 500mm no problem

The first thing to strike you on removing it from the box is its solidity. All the bits subject to maximum wear and tear are metal in construction. Attaching it to your tripod mount is simple enough and you can actually get a decent grip on the thing to tighten the thread. Further evidence of excellent build quality can be seen by looking at the ball mechanism which looks like it would take a direct hit from a bullet.

The quick release shoe for the camera looks unconventional if you're used to those plastic wedges. It attaches via a bayonet mount which clicks reassuringly into place and needs a caplock depressing to disengage it. The whole thing will rotate through almost 360 independently of the ball head to allow you to take panoramas and pan accurately. A solid (I'll be using this word a lot) thumblock fixes the position firmly.

Using the ball head is almost shockingly simple. You squeeze the trigger and the head moves freely round the ball. Release it and it locks. That's it.

There's a collar with a slot in it to decide which axis you want the maximum elevation/depression in which then follows you round after you've gone past the initial restriction. Once you're happy with the position you release the trigger and it stays where you left it without creeping. Should you accidentally lose grip on the trigger assembly it locks instantly so your camera doesn't swing round like a pendulum and overbalance your tripod.

The trigger is weighted just about right, feels fine in my large hands and not in any way fiddly, yet is just as useable for people with smaller hands due to a no-nonsense ergonomic shape and feels solid. You can part depress it to give a more fluid feel or fully depress it to rotate with very little friction.

There's little more to be said about operating it: it really is unbelievably simple.

A drawback in use is that with one hand on the head and another on the camera shutter you need a third hand to operate zoom or any other lens function while tracking a bird. This puts it at a disadvantage to a gimbal mount. However, this is offset by the secure lock for composing for more static subjects that's less vulnerable to nudging the camera.

In terms of ruggedness, it easily copes with mounting my Sigma 50-500 and a Pentax K10 and there's no creep once the mount has locked regardless of the position it has been left in. There's absolutely no way the camera and tripod head will accidentally detach, and failure of the mount is unlikely except under a totally catastrophic impact.

In summary, this a solid and relatively cheap solution to using a tripod and freely tracking moving subjects or taking a firmly fixed postion with faff-free lock and unlock of the head. Recommended. :t: