Tired of your quirky ARCA-Swiss CUBE's QR-clamp's release lever?

[jeffreybehr]

You know the one--that has to be adjusted--with a clumsy thumbwheel--for virtually ever different QR plate you want to use?  The same one that allows you to drop--unintentionally, of course--your camera and lens to the ground with a flick of your thumbnail?  BEGONE, bad clamp!

Kirk has a replacement--model SQRC-ARCA--
http://www.kirkphoto.com/SQRC-Arca_Arca_Swiss_Quick_Release_Clamp.html#

The clamp's knob stops on the panbase's tightening lever, allowing that top panbase to rotate only about 350 degrees, but that's a small price to pay for the--IMO--safer and easier-to-use twist-knob-type clamp.

[Paul2660]

Great idea.
I don't use the cube but a D4 geared with the same issue.

The Kirk is on my list.

Paul C

[NancyP]

Check to make sure that you can remove the disliked clamp. In more recent times, AS has attached the clamp with a particularly tenacious threadlock compound, and they recommend sending the unit to one of their service centers to remove the clamp.

Oddly, I like the AS lever clamp (on a ball head), but then I have bought almost all brackets, feet, and rails from a single source (Kirk - they make really nice L brackets). Hejnar seems to fit the Kirk standard, I have steered clear of Sunwayfoto.

[jeffreybehr]

Check to make sure that you can remove the disliked clamp. In more recent times, AS has attached the clamp with a particularly tenacious threadlock compound, and they recommend sending the unit to one of their service centers to remove the clamp.

Oddly, I like the AS lever clamp (on a ball head), but then I have bought almost all brackets, feet, and rails from a single source (Kirk - they make really nice L brackets). Hejnar seems to fit the Kirk standard, I have steered clear of Sunwayfoto.

TY Nancy.  My CUBE's hex-head hold-down screw came out easily with a 1/4"-drive ratchet and 7/16"(note) short socket.  The internal-hex ("allen") screw supplied by Kirk is longer than the ARCA original, but it worked just finely.  Kirk supplies a small container of Lock-Tite, but I didn't use that.

Note--I'm confident that the original screw is all metric, but the 7/16" socket fit just finely.

[gss]

Check to make sure that you can remove the disliked clamp. In more recent times, AS has attached the clamp with a particularly tenacious threadlock compound, and they recommend sending the unit to one of their service centers to remove the clamp.

They use a formulation of Lock-Tite that strongly resists being removed (red if I remember correctly).  There is no reason to do so, as the other formulation would have done a good job of keeping the clamp from loosening.  One can only conjecture that Arca-Swiss was peeved that most everyone who buys a Cube replaces the clamp because theirs is too fidgety, and so they made the removal more painful.

I was able to remove their clamp by heating the screw with a blow dryer until it was fairly hot, then using some elbow grease.  Then I put a Really Right Stuff clamp on it.

[Michael Erlewine]

My first ARCA-Swis Cube had the quick-release clamp, which I hated. I sold it and bought the version with the knob-clamp and am a Happy Camper.