PDA

View Full Version : sinar rail clamp



brighamr
1-Nov-2008, 17:30
hi
I am having a bit of difficulty leveling my camera side to side on the rail clamp
I line it up level with the built in level but as I tighten up the rail clamp the camera rotates the more I tighten the more off level it moves
Is this just badly designed or do I have a bad rail clamp

Is there a fix for this if its a design flaw

regards

robin

Peter De Smidt
1-Nov-2008, 18:18
The fix would be to get a Sinar Rail Clamp 2. These do a much better job in this regard. That said, while I agree that's it's a design flaw with the first version clamp, that's the clamp I used until this year. Tightening it will generally move the rail a consistent amount. Learn where you have to place the bubble before you tighten the clamp, and it shouldn't be too big of a deal.

David A. Goldfarb
1-Nov-2008, 18:18
That's how it works--wonky, I know, for what is otherwise a precision instrument. Just don't loosen more than necessary and set it so that it's leaning to the left a bit (presuming you have the knob on the right side), and as you tighten it, it should come back to level. Use it regularly, and you'll get a sense for how far you need to tilt it.

brighamr
2-Nov-2008, 12:46
Thats a shame
I thought I was doing something wrong
Glad the other movements don't move when you lock them down ...

robin

Ed Richards
2-Nov-2008, 19:33
Holding the camera firmly while you tighten helps, as does watching the level as you tighten and pushing the camera back into alignment as it shifts. The geared rail clamp is the real fix, but it is really expensive!

Drew Wiley
3-Nov-2008, 16:14
It is possible to tighten the rail in the clamp when it's not actually in the full bottom
position. This will result in the problem you've described.

jesskramer
3-Nov-2008, 19:49
My approach is slightly different

I found it impossible to level the camera with the use of the clamp alone, the sinar base does not help with the left to right axis

I now have the whole apparatus attached to a heavy duty 3-way pan tilt Gitzo head

With my system I can achieve the leveling precision worthy of my otherwise VERY precise Sinar P2...works like a charm...Jesse