ARCA Ballhead suggestions please

[BlastersAreCool]

Hey guys I finally upgraded my tripod from something laughable to something reasonable. I scooped up a manfrotto 190cxpro w/ the 322rc22 ballhead. I have used this type of setup extensively for some time but never owned it up until now. I want to get away from proprietary QD plates and switch over to ARCA. I'm looking for a good ballhead that's user friendly and robust enough to shoot off of. This will be a field tripod used both on the range, during competition (Mammoth, Purgatory and PRS stuff) and in the field. Looking for any suggestions because I've had limited exposure to ARCA so far. Thanks for any feedback you can fire my way??

 

[BlastersAreCool]

Looking at the Feisol CB-50D...looks like a solid ballhead. Anyone have either experience on this one or suggest otherwise?

 

[lennyo3034]

Looking at the Feisol CB-50D...looks like a solid ballhead. Anyone have either experience on this one or suggest otherwise?

It have one and like it. It’s not as stable as my other tripod with the TA-3 leveling base, but that’s apples to oranges.

I’m considering selling mine to get the carbon fiber version. Let me know if interested.

 

[jsimonh]

I had a Markins Q-ball for a while, strong ball head for sure. I'd suggest buying a used RRS BH55. Both are plenty strong, but the size of the bh55 puts the controls out further from the tripod and are easier to manipulate. I had a rrs leveling head for a while, went back to the bh because I felt it was more flexible for the way I use my tripod.

 

[Rasyad]

Hi, I did a search for your Manfrotto 190cxpro tripod. As I understand, this tripod has the three tripod legs and a central mast that can adjust vertically or positioned sideways.

While the tripod legs are reasonably solid, the mast works against your needs for supporting a rifle. In the down position the mast limits the tripods ability to shoot from a prone position and when extended it will wave around and make it hard to get a solid sight picture. Bottom line, adding a ballhead and an arca adaptor on top of this assembly will not likely give you a solid sight picture nor work well for recoil management.

An alternative you might consider would be to ditch the mast and ballhead all together and just use the legs with something like an Armageddon Game Changer on top. This combination should provide a precision hold, be faster, more flexible, and really help with recoil management compared to shooting off that mast.

Rasyad

 

[dumbbell]

I bought a sirui k40x a week ago. So far, very smooth and very stout. I'm sure the bh55 is better, but the sirui seems to be very good for the money

 

[Mute]

If it's purely for shooting, the RRS Anvil 30 is the best choice. If you want something more versatile and can be used for photography and other duties, than go with a ballhead. RRS BH40 is more than sufficient, but the Sirui k40x is actually a lot of bang for the buck. I'm personally using a BH40, but I also use my tripod and head for photography also, otherwise, I'd have gone with an Anvil 30.

 

[Hollywood 6mm]

I run an Anvil-30 on my tripod (RRS TFC-33), but I have a cheap ballhead mounted on an Arca plate to use for spotting. Since my Anvil is direct mounted to the tripod apex, I just drop the ballhead's bottom plate into the Anvil and use the ballhead for spotting, etc. When I want to shoot from the tripod, it takes a couple seconds to pop the ballhead off and drop the rifle into the Anvil. The Anvil can work for spotting, etc. but I found it was pretty fidgety for use with a spotter or binos. The leverage given with a rifle stock made it MUCH easier to work with the Anvil when running a rifle, however, hence the ballhead-on-an-arca-plate.

 

[Mute]

I run an Anvil-30 on my tripod (RRS TFC-33), but I have a cheap ballhead mounted on an Arca plate to use for spotting. Since my Anvil is direct mounted to the tripod apex, I just drop the ballhead's bottom plate into the Anvil and use the ballhead for spotting, etc. When I want to shoot from the tripod, it takes a couple seconds to pop the ballhead off and drop the rifle into the Anvil. The Anvil can work for spotting, etc. but I found it was pretty fidgety for use with a spotter or binos. The leverage given with a rifle stock made it MUCH easier to work with the Anvil when running a rifle, however, hence the ballhead-on-an-arca-plate.

This is actually a great option and one I'd consider, but I'm Chinese cheap and I'm lazy.

 

[reynja]

I bought a sirui k40x a week ago. So far, very smooth and very stout. I'm sure the bh55 is better, but the sirui seems to be very good for the money

I have a Sirui k40x as well, and while I have not shot a rifle with it yet, it can easily support a 600mm lens and Nikon D5 camera body (big ass camera and lens for most of you out there). It is a really good ball head and is super strong, very smooth controls, etc.

 

[Hollywood 6mm]

This is actually a great option and one I'd consider, but I'm Chinese cheap and I'm lazy.

Yeah, the Anvil is NOT cheap, but it's the best solution I have tried so far for a shooting platform. I will add that it's best used from either a fixed apex RRS tripod setup (which is what I have) or using a RRS video bowl adapter with the anvil. The Anvil actually has 5 threaded holes in the bottom - one is a standard tripod thread, and the other 4 are for use with the RRS Apex or bowl adapters, and using the 4 screws keeps the Anvil from rotating, so it's a lot more secure. Unfortunately, the 4 screw mounting setup isn't an option on Manfrotto that I know of.

 

[Timo Turl]

BH-55 with a Manfrotto and upgrade the tripod at a later date

 

[502Chevelle]

I’m running the Leofoto 55mm ballhead. Yes, it’s a knockoff of the RRS, but it has done me pretty well, and it’s a little more affordable than some other models. Came highly recommended by a friend, as it’s the one he is running, and he finishes very strong in PRS matches, and is the MD for a regional match. I’ve been happy so far, but most of my use so far has been for spotting. Will stick a rifle in it in a minute though, and it works pretty good.

 

[BlastersAreCool]

Hi, I did a search for your Manfrotto 190cxpro tripod. As I understand, this tripod has the three tripod legs and a central mast that can adjust vertically or positioned sideways.

While the tripod legs are reasonably solid, the mast works against your needs for supporting a rifle. In the down position the mast limits the tripods ability to shoot from a prone position and when extended it will wave around and make it hard to get a solid sight picture. Bottom line, adding a ballhead and an arca adaptor on top of this assembly will not likely give you a solid sight picture nor work well for recoil management.

An alternative you might consider would be to ditch the mast and ballhead all together and just use the legs with something like an Armageddon Game Changer on top. This combination should provide a precision hold, be faster, more flexible, and really help with recoil management compared to shooting off that mast.

Rasyad

View attachment 7088251

That is not a bad idea. I bet it would be more stable just throwing a gc on top. Of course its less fun but this tripod was not what I had expected once it arrived, but I do like the lightweight nature of it for field use, field matches and hunting. It seems like it would excel for those purposes. As far as PRS work goes, it'll be a distinct disadvantage especially with any winds beyond 5mph lol.

 

[Forrest84]

Been running the leofoto the past year and have absolutely no complaints. But I tried the sunwayphoto XB 44 no neck last weekend and I really liked it alot

 

[kthomas]

I'm using a Uniqball UBH-45 gimbal ballhead. It's rated for 88 lbs, so it's pretty stout and steady. The best feature about this ballhead, which I haven't seen in any others, is that it has a built in gimbal system. You level the main ballhead housing, and lock it in. From there, you can pan on the horizontal plane and tilt on the vertical plane, without introducing ANY cant into the system.

Here's my wife shooting her rifle with my ballhead and RRS tripod setup:

 

[carbonbased]

I'm using a Uniqball UBH-45 gimbal ballhead. It's rated for 88 lbs, so it's pretty stout and steady. The best feature about this ballhead, which I haven't seen in any others, is that it has a built in gimbal system. You level the main ballhead housing, and lock it in. From there, you can pan on the horizontal plane and tilt on the vertical plane, without introducing ANY cant into the system.

Here's my wife shooting her rifle with my ballhead and RRS tripod setup:

View attachment 7095522

You still using this ballhead? The thing I found with my ballhead (Arca B1) is that I really like to set different levels of tension on pan vs. tilt.

 

[kthomas]

You still using this ballhead? The thing I found with my ballhead (Arca B1) is that I really like to set different levels of tension on pan vs. tilt.

I am.

I haven't shot much lately, partly due to not having any great ranges in my vicinity, partly because of how hot it is in AZ right now, partly because logistically I haven't been able to make it to any PRS matches (COVID-19 mostly to blame there) partly because I'm currently working two jobs and golf has been a bigger priority at the moment.

I do really like this ballhead though. I'm not aware of any other ballhead that has the gimbal feature, which is a nice feature to have shooting. I haven't had a chance to compare it to an RRS ballhead, but this ballhead doesn't leave me desiring anything else.

 

[carbonbased]

I am.

I haven't shot much lately, partly due to not having any great ranges in my vicinity, partly because of how hot it is in AZ right now, partly because logistically I haven't been able to make it to any PRS matches (COVID-19 mostly to blame there) partly because I'm currently working two jobs and golf has been a bigger priority at the moment.

I do really like this ballhead though. I'm not aware of any other ballhead that has the gimbal feature, which is a nice feature to have shooting. I haven't had a chance to compare it to an RRS ballhead, but this ballhead doesn't leave me desiring anything else.

Cool. I was looking to upgrade my ballhead and discovered the creator of the Uniqball left the company and made a new one called the Flexshooter Pro. Also, there's one by FLM, the CB-58 FT/FTR series, that can restrict the lateral tilt. Not a gimbal, but cool. No experience with either.