Anyone have any recommendations? I want something decent but have a budget also. Would like to keep it under $200 is possible. Thanks a ton in advance!
Was looking at this but its not a fluid head (I dont think, not really sure what a fluid head is haha, but doesnt say it anywhere), and no reviews on it so not sure: Amazon.com: The 3rd Arm Bandit Series - Stand Mount Model: Sports & Outdoors
Muddy outfitter arm, then a decent fluid head will put you right around $250 range, Just do your shopping. The fluid head on the one you picked wont very good, plus the outfitter arm will probably be smoother
I have to say IMO I feel there are better options for the price. That is a friction head that comes with that one also. I ordered my Lone Wolf arm not too long ago and it seems legit and well made like all of their products. Ordered the arm extension for it also. After playing around with it I noticed that I def needed a fluid head. The cheap friction head that came with the arm was too shaky and wouldn't allow for smooth fluid pans and tilts. Also to achieve the best possible pans and tilts with the cheap friction head the arm came with I noticed I had to have little to no tension on it, which then wouldn't allow me to take my hand off the head without it falling down out of position. Haven't order a head yet, but pretty sure I am going to pull the trigger on the Manfrotto 128 RC Micro Fluid Head.
Can you take pretty much any fluid head (like that Manfrotto 128 RC Micro Fluid Head) and mount it to any camera arm?
yea they bolt right on...I know Manfrotto makes a connector plate for certain models though that takes the 3/8 screw underneath the head and converts that to 1/4 which I believe is standard with camera arms now. If you didn't want to buy this connector plate you can just drill out the hole in the arm bigger to fit the correct screw size. More than likely this will not be an issue for ya. Just make sure when you decide which head you wanna go with which screw size it accepts to see if you would need the connector plate or not. Here is an example of a connector plate I found on eBay: Steel Disc Adapter 1 4" 3 8" Tripod Monopod 50mm Bushing Mount Bogen Manfrotto | eBay Hope this all helps bud
Keep in mind that the arm and fluid head are just as important as the camera to getting good footage. This isn't where you want to pinch your pennies. Save up a little longer and get something that will be smooth and fluid through the entire range of motion. One that is heavy enough that your camera won't shake all over the place in the wind or if you bump it. When you have to move your head to change the camera angle, the head needs to be able to move smoothly without any catch or your footage will be poor.
I have this camera arm and mount. While its okay and get the job done I would look for something with a better mount to the tree. The little piece that comes with this one will slip and turn if you don't ratchet the crap out of into the tree. I also have the climber mount which was better and since I hunted mostly from my climber it worked out. I would look into muddy arms or even the higher end 3rd arm camera arms. They will have a better base and the arm will be stronger.
This is an awesome head for the money. I have this on my Lone Wolf tree arm. It runs around $85 on amazon. Manfrotto 700RC2 Mini Video Head wit RC2 Rapid Connect Plate
That's the same head I've been looking at Sam. I recently picked up a muddy outfitter arm and need to finish it out. I can see this being another expensive addiction. Found myself a lot of times this year grabbing the camera instead of the bow because at time didn't have a arm. Got some decent footage though.
haha yeah this filming stuff might get almost as costly as the hunting part lol. Oh well Im excited to give it a go and wanna do it right!
Ha yea that's my feelings on it. If I'm gonna do it I want some good quality gear. Do that with most new hobbies because I figure if gonna try it might as well fully commit. Don't want the reason for not liking somthing to be because kinda half assed it.
Save up a few pennies extra and get the Muddy Outfitter arm ($150ish) and the Manfrotto 700RC2 ($80ish). Do some shopping on ebay, Amazon, and just general google searches and you will find the best prices. You will be buying quality gear that you will be happy with in the long run.
I have this same setup and it works great. I started with a cheap arm and all it did was made really hard to get great footage. Save your money and do it right from the start, you wont regret it.
