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- Chris Summers
One of the benefits to being in a photography club is sometimes people donate things they no longer need. Happened today; another member knows I often shoot with long lenses and asked if I wanted a tripod a former member dropped off at his house. Being one who seems to think he can never have too much gear I said "Sure"!
So here is what I got: An Induro GIT 404XL Stealth carbon fibre tripod with a nice OEM case and original accessories (rubber feet, wrenches, arca swiss plate) and a Mongoose 3.6.1 gimbal head! The Induro name has been retired and now part of the Benro lineup but when Induro was in production they were highly regarded by pros and wildlife shooters as being very well made for the price. The tripod kit ran about $629 US at the time they were still in production and the Mongoose head I believe is still made and goes for $620 US or so. The thing is this tripod and head looks like it was never used or used more than someone setting it up and putting it back in it's case. So I pretty much got a $1200 chunk of gear for free.
But here's the crazy thing.... I own an Induro CT 404 8x carbon tripod that I paid B&H $665 for back in 2013 and the Induro GH-B2 gimbal head that was around $500.
I compared the tripods and heads. Mine is a tad heavier and has a center column which gets it a bit higher at full height setup. I believe the carbon fibre in the newer tripod is better and less likely to fracture in cold temperatures which was a problem with some early ones. The gimbal heads are quite different in that mine has an L arm that acts as a horizontal cradle for the lens when mounted, with the Mongoose you mount it vertically at the pivot point.
I have 2 large telephoto lenses, the Canon RF 800mm f11 and the Tamron 150-600mm G2 and compared to something like a fast 800mm f/5.6 or 600mm f4 they are not nearly as big or heavy. So I really don't need 2 of these sized tripods. Might sell one I guess.
So here is what I got: An Induro GIT 404XL Stealth carbon fibre tripod with a nice OEM case and original accessories (rubber feet, wrenches, arca swiss plate) and a Mongoose 3.6.1 gimbal head! The Induro name has been retired and now part of the Benro lineup but when Induro was in production they were highly regarded by pros and wildlife shooters as being very well made for the price. The tripod kit ran about $629 US at the time they were still in production and the Mongoose head I believe is still made and goes for $620 US or so. The thing is this tripod and head looks like it was never used or used more than someone setting it up and putting it back in it's case. So I pretty much got a $1200 chunk of gear for free.
But here's the crazy thing.... I own an Induro CT 404 8x carbon tripod that I paid B&H $665 for back in 2013 and the Induro GH-B2 gimbal head that was around $500.
I compared the tripods and heads. Mine is a tad heavier and has a center column which gets it a bit higher at full height setup. I believe the carbon fibre in the newer tripod is better and less likely to fracture in cold temperatures which was a problem with some early ones. The gimbal heads are quite different in that mine has an L arm that acts as a horizontal cradle for the lens when mounted, with the Mongoose you mount it vertically at the pivot point.
I have 2 large telephoto lenses, the Canon RF 800mm f11 and the Tamron 150-600mm G2 and compared to something like a fast 800mm f/5.6 or 600mm f4 they are not nearly as big or heavy. So I really don't need 2 of these sized tripods. Might sell one I guess.
