Topic: Arca D4... caught one! (Read 11006 times)

ccroft · « **on:** June 06, 2011, 10:58:58 pm »

Hi All,

It's been a long tortuous journey, but the head finally arrived today and I'm very, very happy with it. Fit, finish and operation is everything I'd hoped for. I really don't have any bad news to report, but then I haven't actually used it yet. Top pan has a very nice feel, so I don't think I'll miss geared pan at all. All movements have the same nice friction when un-locked, and of course the gear action is smooth and accurate.

Here's a couple snapshots comparing it to the old FrankenHead 410. This is smaller, lighter, more rigid and has top pan. At the risk of dissing my old friend I have to say the new head is just a tad more... shall I say elegant?

For those of us trying to travel a little lighter I'd say it's a perfect match for series2.

If anyone has questions I'll do my best to oblige.

Later,
Charles

uaiomex · « **Reply #1 on:** June 07, 2011, 02:41:46 am »

Awesome! Does it provide the same precise control of the geared head?
Eduardo

ternst · « **Reply #2 on:** June 07, 2011, 05:13:58 am »

How far can you tilt forward with it - can you point the camera straight down? Glad to see they are finally shipping...

ccroft · « **Reply #3 on:** June 07, 2011, 09:21:23 pm »

It tilts straight down and beyond by at least 5°, which means it also tilts beyond straight up by means of top pan.

I can't imagine the gear action being any better, and thanks to the large rubber-ribbed knobs the grip is easy and sure. A world of difference from the 410, which is the only other geared head I can compare it to.

It cost somewhat less than 3 times the price of my old rig. A little extravagant perhaps, but I'm happy.

greygrad · « **Reply #4 on:** June 10, 2011, 04:56:38 pm »

Are all the movements geared? Just wondering what the difference is between the 'pear-shaped' knob and the round ones? In the video by robert-white of the non-geared head, all the knobs are 'pear-shaped' which I took to imply this style just had a non-geared lock/unlock action?

ccroft · « **Reply #5 on:** June 10, 2011, 10:07:58 pm »

All pear shaped knobs are 'locks'. The small ones top and bottom are pan locks. The large ones engage or disengage the gears.

The round ones are geared adjustment for tilt forward/back and sideways.

You're right. The Rob White video is of D4m which has no geared movement, so it has no round knobs.

The tilts are the only geared movements. The old Manfro has geared pan, but with the smoothness and just-right amount of friction in the pan movement I find the D4 has all the accuracy I can use, down to the tiniest of tweaks. I think Arca made a smart choice in leaving pan un-geared as gears increase bulk and weight. This is the smallest and lightest geared head out there.

greygrad · « **Reply #6 on:** June 10, 2011, 11:13:02 pm »

Thanks Charles - looks like a really nice bit of kit.

aaykay · « **Reply #7 on:** June 16, 2011, 02:57:49 pm »

Looks great ! After looking around for the D4, and not finding any, I finally succumbed when the Arca Swiss C1 came into stock in B&H, and I flipped the switch on it. It should get to me tomorrow.

ccroft · « **Reply #8 on:** June 16, 2011, 10:28:09 pm »

Yeah, who knows when they'll actually be in stock somewhere. Seems I might have one of the first in North America thanks to B3K digital in Canada. I'm told Arca shipped one to them and I was lucky enough to be first on the list. I wonder if they've gotten any more yet.

I'm sure you'll be very happy with the cube. I almost flipped that switch myself a few times over the last few months, but couldn't... quite... justify the extra 600 clams.

After a week or two of use I'm still really pleased with D4, BTW.

buckshot · « **Reply #9 on:** June 17, 2011, 09:32:00 am »

The geared heads I've used in the past didn't need any additional locking levers to keep them in position. Oddly, it looks like the Arca does - or maybe I'm mistaken, and it's just a safety feature to prevent the user from accidentaly moving the gearing once set up?

Having noticed 'ball creep' (when locking them down) on even the best ball-heads when doing high magnification macro work, I was just wondering if there was any noticeable 'gear creep' when locking the D4 down (using the large 'pear-shaped' knobs).

ccroft · « **Reply #10 on:** June 17, 2011, 11:01:18 pm »

This head is like the other geared heads you have used.

The large pear-shaped knobs aren't extra levers, and they aren't locks in the usual way. They're more like switches that engage and disengage the gear mechanism. So if your turn one in a counter-clockwise direction the movement for that knob becomes free-wheeling with a nice amount of friction. Enough to keep things from flopping about. The manfro gear heads have a similar engage/disengage knob.

Disengaging the gears makes big movements of the head like pointing down 90° as fast as a ball or standard 3 way head. For some people the lack of free movement is one of things they don't like about the Cube who's gears are always engaged. A big movement requires many turns of the knob. I believe this is the 'slowness' of gear heads that some users dislike.

Some might use the D4 more like a ball head with gears for fine adjustment: 'unlock' (disengage gears), jam the camera around freely, 'lock' (engage the gears), then fine tune the position. Others will rarely use the 'un-lock' config.

With gears engaged there is no additional locking required. The gears are such that the head will not budge without turning a round knob, and when a round knob is turned there is micrometer-like control of the head. There is no 'slop' or unwanted movement. This is the main attribute of a good geared head.

The small pear knobs, however, are true locks for top and bottom pan. There's no gears for these movements so you turn a knob one way to unlock and swing, then turn it the other way to lock. Again, there isn't the slightest amount of movement when you lock them down like you get with most (all?) other types of heads. All free movement is very nicely controlled by friction, similar to a fluid head.

Having said all that, I don't do high magnification macro so I can't really say for sure there is absolutely no unwanted movement. I can only say there is no movement that I can detect. But at these prices and from a company like Arca, I feel pretty safe in saying this is about as good as it gets.

Seems like a pretty thorough description of how this head works, but if more info is needed I'm happy to supply it.

aaykay · « **Reply #11 on:** June 18, 2011, 08:52:15 am »

Quote from: ccroft on June 17, 2011, 11:01:18 pm

For some people the lack of free movement is one of things they don't like about the Cube who's gears are always engaged. A big movement requires many turns of the knob. I believe this is the 'slowness' of gear heads that some users dislike.

Got my cube yesterday. Have not played around with it enough but I do notice the "slowness" you speak about below, in comparison to the other ballheads I have, like the AS Z1. But got to say that the whole shebang has the feel of absolute precision machinery. For contemplative landscape images (or architecture for that matter), I cannot see how this can be bettered. Also, to be quite honest, I probably would have preferred something that is of 2/3rd scale to the current cube, since even on my Gitzo 3540LS, the Cube "over-flows" the (wide "systematic" Series-3 Gitzo) top-plate. My Gitzo 5540LS (Series-5 Systematic Gitzo) is at my parents' house currently, and that should be right up the Cube's alley, from a top-plate size standpoint.

And going by your description, I think the D4 would be perfect for my purpose. Use the "free movement" for getting the setting into the desired ballpark, and then fine-tune via the gears, with none of the slop. The only niggle I see in the D4, is the narrow neck that leads from the main head to the clamp/quick-release, than the clamp just built right into the main body (don't think that has any impact on stability, else AS would simply not have designed it that way).

buckshot · « **Reply #12 on:** June 18, 2011, 10:48:13 am »

Quote from: ccroft on June 17, 2011, 11:01:18 pm

This head is like the other geared heads you have used...

Thanks Charles - excellent answer / mini review - Arca should pay you a commission.

Definitely moving this to near the top of my (very long) wish list...

ccroft · « **Reply #13 on:** June 18, 2011, 02:23:58 pm »

Here's a couple more snaps that show what the 'little neck' is all about. It gives the necessary clearances for the larger movements.
And you're right that it doesn't degrade stability. At 1/2" x 1/2" of machined metal at the narrowest point, and only 1/2" high it's really a very stout little neck.

Buckshot: can i get you to send a email to Arca?... oh wait... i don't think they have email

later,
chas.

aaykay · « **Reply #14 on:** June 18, 2011, 02:59:59 pm »

Quote from: ccroft on June 18, 2011, 02:23:58 pm

Here's a couple more snaps that show what the 'little neck' is all about. It gives the necessary clearances for the larger movements.
And you're right that it doesn't degrade stability. At 1/2" x 1/2" of machined metal at the narrowest point, and only 1/2" high it's really a very stout little neck.

Yeah, that does appear to have no impact on stability. The question is, should I keep the cube or return it and replace it with the D4...we'll see. $:-\$

Wonder if somebody who has used both, can provide a listing of the Cube Vs D4 differences. I believe both of these are in the same weight ballpark, right ?

Quote

Buckshot: can i get you to send a email to Arca?... oh wait... i don't think they have email

That was a good one. Surprised that a company who can design such excellent products, don't have any kind of web presence, this deep into the 21st century ! Un-believable.

ccroft · « **Reply #15 on:** June 18, 2011, 03:45:45 pm »

I doubt that anybody has access to both except for Arca themselves... or maybe a distributer. Maybe you can send Arca a telegraph or perhaps morse code?

D4 is listed at around 4 1/2 ounces (125 grams) lighter than cube. If you're packing system 3 I doubt that's noticeable. There is a video on utube that shows the Arca guys handling D4 and Cube but they're speaking French. Might help though. Search for D4 and you'll also see a video of D4m from England's Arca reps.

If I were you I think I might hang on to the Cube until you can actually get your hands on a D4. No telling when that might be and it could be that you like cube better. I imagine re-sale for cube is pretty darn high. They seem almost as hard to buy as D4.

From my experience it could easily be a few months before substantial numbers are on the market and some other reviews and comparisons start surfacing. The fact that the English distributors still haven't posted a demo of D4 even though they said they would as soon as they get one speaks to this.

One thing about the cube: it has a long and proven track record and a lot of supporters.

Good luck with your decision.
chas.

aaykay · « **Reply #16 on:** June 19, 2011, 11:15:43 pm »

Gave the cube a whirl today and I was VERY pleased with its performance. Seems like the head is a keeper.

It was "slow" for sure but it more than made up for it in accuracy of framing.

I have an upcoming trip to Asia-PAC next month, and I will be taking the cube along, and shifting the AS Z1 to backup duty.

jgbowerman · « **Reply #17 on:** July 04, 2011, 12:17:59 pm »

Has anyone had the opportunity to compare the knobbed option release plate to the levered option? Rod Klukas seems to favor the knobbed version, as it might be more durable than the levered one.

ccroft · « **Reply #18 on:** July 04, 2011, 01:34:22 pm »

I was a bit worried about going from my old lever style Really Right to the Arca screw clamp, but I got used to the screw very quickly. It only takes 3 generous twists to open the jaws fully for drop-in/drop-out (as opposed to slide-in/slide-out).

After using it a bit that's maybe 2 or 3 seconds longer to mount the camera. So far, the rooms I've been shooting are OK with the wait :)

I had planned to order the head clampless and adding a R.R.S. lever clamp, but that config wasn't available to me. When these come fully online I expect you'll be able to order it in the 4 configs just like the Arca ball heads. I could still switch out the clamp one day I guess. I doubt I will though.

Some will prefer the lever. I just wanted to say the knob's working fine for me after 3 years using a top-end lever clamp.

jgbowerman · « **Reply #19 on:** July 04, 2011, 04:39:02 pm »

Quote from: ccroft on July 04, 2011, 01:34:22 pm

I was a bit worried about going from my old lever style Really Right to the Arca screw clamp, but I got used to the screw very quickly. It only takes 3 generous twists to open the jaws fully for drop-in/drop-out (as opposed to slide-in/slide-out).

After using it a bit that's maybe 2 or 3 seconds longer to mount the camera. So far, the rooms I've been shooting are OK with the wait

I had planned to order the head clampless and adding a R.R.S. lever clamp, but that config wasn't available to me. When these come fully online I expect you'll be able to order it in the 4 configs just like the Arca ball heads. I could still switch out the clamp one day I guess. I doubt I will though.

Some will prefer the lever. I just wanted to say the knob's working fine for me after 3 years using a top-end lever clamp.

Thanks ccroft, I guess I'll stick with Rod's recommendation given your comments. I've been using a lever clamp on one of the Really Right Stuff heads and therefore concerned about going back to a knobbed setup. I've ordered the d4m model and look forward to getting my hands on it!

Author Topic: Arca D4... caught one! (Read 11006 times)

buckshot

buckshot

jgbowerman

jgbowerman