In addition to
@Just Macca ’s excellent advice, here is the quick three-choice breakdown for shooting and spotting combo use:
- TFC-33 (above, the TFCT version is the one with the integrated Anvil-30 head)
- TFC-34 (collapses more for backpacks, more leg sections so slower to deploy, a wee bit heavier, just as stable as the 33). Has a tall version too.
- TVC-22i (most stable of the three by a wee bit, doesn’t collapse much, quickest to deploy, good for square range/flat terrain, locks stay out of mud, doesn’t work great on a side of a hill)
Edit: also look at
@Diver160651 ‘s
awesome tripod thread.
Btw the TVC 3 series has a wider apex and the ability to run a video bowl or leveling bowls, the latter of which are lower than leveling heads on the TFC models due to the big hole in the middle of the TVC’s apex. They are more stable than the TFC series but are bulkier and heavier.
I cribbed all this from Diver. I own a TFC-34 with RRS long spikes, which make it high enough for bino use for me (5’ 10”). I find spikes really increase the stability and reduce the unit from tipping in high wind.
