Ballheads: RRS BH-55 or Arca Swiss Z1?

SilverPenguin

SilverPenguin

SilverPenguin

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21 Feb 2003
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I know Messiah K uses the RSS but I was wondering if anyone else here uses (or has used) either of these two ball heads? I'm after one but as usual I am trying to get as many user experiences as I can before I make a purchase. I'm split 50/50 today...yesterday I was all set for the RRS and the day before the Arca Swiss :D
 
haha I went though the same, tried a cheaper ballhead first of all and then returned it realising it's not an item to scrimp on.

Went for the Z1 SP quickset in the end, it's really nice, well made and works pretty much perfectly. I was looking at importing an RSS as well as it seems to be the latest one to have but then any of the top offerings will do what you want them to do. It's then all just down to personal preference.

It think it works out a fair bit more to get the RSS imported with the right camera plates but then it is a product for life.

Sorry if this doesn't really help in any way :p
 
Thanks Dan :)

I should have mentioned my gf lives in Florida so I'll pick whichever one I go for up there next time I'm visiting, so the cost for either should be a bit less.

I have two concerns really, the first being that the AS Z1 pan knob is restricted slightly on Gitzo tripods (of which I have) which isn't a huge issue by all accounts but is something that is less then ideal...

But also with the RSS I've read the movement isn't as smooth and that the tension adjuster knob (not the main locking knob), although numbered so you can easily set the tension for individual equipment weights, has more of an on/off feel as there is very little usable range on the 1-10 scale.

Should have also mentioned the heaviest load to go on it will be the D3 with 200-400 and it will mainly be used for travelling so I don't have to take the Wimberley AND the old crappy Manfrotto head I currently use for landscapes etc
 
The heaviest I have to put on the head is a d80 with 300 f4 prime, it holds this very stable but then I think all the top offerings will easily do this. The main critisism of the cheaper ballhead was actually the plate interface, the one that came with it was made of cheese an wouldn't hold anything stable, also the ball lock would slightly move the camera position...

The latest Z1 that you'd get has been revised, the pan lock is now a small flip leaver making it easier to operate when on larger tripod bases. It's movement is like from about 10 o'clock open to 2 o'clock closed. It doesn't completely lock out but does enough that it would take a lot of force to rotate (when mounting the head on your tripod you want to grip the very base).

The main lock knob is nice and smooth, it has a good range of adjustability (is that a word?), you'd be looking at a usable range from about 4.5 / 5 and on for a D3 I'd imagine. The minimum lock adjustment is slightly different to the RSS from what I can tell. It's actually a recessed thumb screw in the main lock knob, basically set to the required tension on the main knob and then thumb in the min lock knob, the main knob now doesn't turn below this position. This is good as your only working on the main lock knobs range of hold (and it's nice an progressive). By the higher numbers like 9 it is locked very very tight.

The other nice feature is the elliptical ball, as the camera moves more off-center the lock becomes tighter, can be handy when you have it at a medium setting, you can take pics then move and take more pics often without needing to touch the lock again including up and down motions. Although this extra amount of lock is probably only suitable for shorter lighter lenses than a 200-400 ;)

I guess the only issue I found was it took a couple of days use for the ball and socket to properly seat in. Also when panning there is a slight tight spot but you'd never really tell under normal use.

Fire away with any other questions.


You can see the recessed min lock adjustment on the main knob here. I can't find a pic of the revised pan lock, I'll take a pic of mine tonight.

1027872.jpg
 
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I use the arca swiss Z1 DP with fliplock.

Love it to bits, and use it with my panoramic camera, i've never had any issues with it..

I know people who use the BH55 and the Z1 and I don't know of either complaining, so I doubt you can really go wrong.
 
Here's a couple of quick pics from the camera, you can see the revised flip lever and also the knurled min lock thumb screw in the ball lock knob.
Oh yeah, more like 9 o'clock to 12 o'clock ;)

dsc1489m.jpg

pan lever in loose position

dsc1490c.jpg

pan lever in locked position
 
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Thanks guys for the replies :)

Dan, that flip lever looks much better than the old one. I saw pictures of the old one and it went much further round, hitting the tripod base plate - looks like that issue has been solved now so that's good!

Maybe a coin toss is the only way to decide :p
 
Do 'Really Right Stuff' (Spoken in dynamic voice over way......lol, cant help myself) deliver to UK.
 
Wedge said:
Do 'Really Right Stuff' (Spoken in dynamic voice over way......lol, cant help myself) deliver to UK.
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Yup. Deliver world wide. :)

Edit; But you'll get stung for import duties. Here's what my kit cost me. Copied from a post I made on another forum;

BH-55-LR $455
BMBD10-LB $183
LCF-10 $100
L97L $55
Shipping $70

That's $863 or £534.82 (Or thereabouts. I paid by credit card, so im not sure what exhange rate they used, but the above is using google to work it out.)

Import VAT £78.82
Duties £18.75
Brokerage Surcharges £11

So that's a grand total of £643.39 ($1038) to import a RRS BH-55, L plate, replacement foot for 70-200 and a lens plate for the 300mm. Ordered it on the Friday, first delivery was attempted on the following Monday. I warn you though, UPS who delivered it only accepted cheque or cash for the import charges, so it took a while for me to sort that out. Other than that it was quick to arrive, but as you can see it ends up being an expensive piece of kit. Hope that helps.
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