Is the Sinar pan/tilt head usable with a flatbed camera?

[Plungefrog]

Greetings all,

I have a question for owners of the Sinar pan/tilt head. I owned one many years ago and it worked very well with my Sinar cameras. What I am wondering is how well will the head work with a flatbed camera? I appreciate the the standard answer is to get a Gitzo low profile head, or similar, to gain the advantage of a large support area. However, I am trying to minimise bulk and I have no need for lateral adjustment as I am using a video tripod with a bowl and leveller. My concern is that -from memory, which may not be reliable -the locking handle on the Sinar head may interfere with the bed of the camera depending on the tilt angle of the head. Can anyone comment on this please? Thanks!

[Greg]

You are correct, the locking handle interferes with mounting a flatbed view camera when you move the handle to lock in the head. You can mount the flatbed camera on the head, but you will not be able to lock the head(been there, done that). It is possible to reposition the handle, but that involves drilling a hole in the base of the handle and repositioning the hollow locking pin. Thought about doing just that but decided not to because I wasn't sure that the second hole would weaken the handle or not..

[Plungefrog]

Thanks for your reply, it confirms what I thought. I will look at other options.

[Louis Pacilla]

My Sinar head has a clutch locking handle and can easily be pulled out and re positioned at any place in a 180 degree circle unless it hit something and in that case I can always find a new position that allows me to tighten the tilt and so I feel the Sinar head is very usable with about any camera whether being flat bed, clam shell,rail camera & on & on. Maybe the Norma period Sinar heads did not have this option but mine is a later all black model and certainly does.

So My feeling is as long as you use a tripod w/ bowl crown for leveling or addition of a leveling unit along w/ the "all black later" Sinar head should work fine with all types of cameras.Again IMHO
Though I'll say I like many here own and use many different types of tripods/heads/studio stands so I tend to leave my Sinar head coupled with my Sinar cameras where it's function is PERFECT.

[David Lindquist]

Louis beat me to this. I have an all black model which has the handle that can be repositioned. I also have an earlier model, not the "original" gray-green but a combination silver and black one. Its handle is in a fixed position via the spring pin that Greg describes.

David

[Greg]

Louis beat me to this. I have an all black model which has the handle that can be repositioned. I also have an earlier model, not the "original" gray-green but a combination silver and black one. Its handle is in a fixed position via the spring pin that Greg describes.

David

Mine is black with the handle in fixed position, must be an early black model before the clutch locking handle was added on.
reg

[Plungefrog]

Thanks for the replies. I hadn't realised that the later heads have a repositionable handle. I'll give it some thought.

[David Lindquist]

I'd forgotten this, the position of the handle on the earlier models can be adjusted. On the side opposite the handle is what I'll call the end cap. It has six holes around its periphery. If you loosen the handle about two turns and push it in, the end cap will be pushed out enough that it can be rotated; it has to clear two pins that engage two of the holes when snugged up. Rotate the end cap to engage the next pair of holes, re-tighten the handle and see if now it's in the desired position when tightened. I don't know if it matters which way you turn the end cap, it takes a little bit of fiddling back and forth.

David

[Greg]

I'd forgotten this, the position of the handle on the earlier models can be adjusted. On the side opposite the handle is what I'll call the end cap. It has six holes around its periphery. If you loosen the handle about two turns and push it in, the end cap will be pushed out enough that it can be rotated; it has to clear two pins that engage two of the holes when snugged up. Rotate the end cap to engage the next pair of holes, re-tighten the handle and see if now it's in the desired position when tightened. I don't know if it matters which way you turn the end cap, it takes a little bit of fiddling back and forth.

David

Thanks Dave, Did it on mine and it works. On mine (black model without clutch locking handle), you only have to loosen the handle a little bit to be able to freely rotate the end cap. It was my understanding that Sinar made subtle changes in the manufacturing their equipment on a regular basis.
Greg

[Bob Salomon]

Thanks Dave, Did it on mine and it works. On mine (black model without clutch locking handle), you only have to loosen the handle a little bit to be able to freely rotate the end cap. It was my understanding that Sinar made subtle changes in the manufacturing their equipment on a regular basis.
Greg

All manufacturers make changes/improvements over the life of a product. It was not a Sinar exclusive. If you want an obvious difference look at a picture of an early Master Technika and a current one.

[David Lindquist]

Thanks Dave, Did it on mine and it works. On mine (black model without clutch locking handle), you only have to loosen the handle a little bit to be able to freely rotate the end cap. It was my understanding that Sinar made subtle changes in the manufacturing their equipment on a regular basis.
Greg

Oh good. I don't remember how I came to know this, I was reminded when I looked at some notes earlier today that I had made on the Sinar Pan Tilt heads a few years ago. There's certainly nothing intuitively obvious about this, not to me anyway. At one time I figured those peripheral holes were for a pin spanner but then why have six.

David

[Bernice Loui]

Locking lever position is adjustable on the ones with a series of holes drilled near the outer edge of the nut plate opposite of the locking handle.

*Loosen the locking lever until the nut plate moves away from the pan-tilt head body exposing the locating pin.

*Rotate the nut plate forward or backwards to aprox where the locking handle might be in the locked position.

*Make absolute sure the locating pin lines up with the hole on the nut plate BEFORE tightening the locking lever.

****Serious Damage WILL Occur if the locating pin is not properly located and seated with the matching hole on the nut plate.****
188721


Repeat until the desired and functional location of the locking lever is achieved.


IMO, is one of the best camera support widgets made. Modest in weight, reliable, durable and does not slip at all and very rigid and stable once locked down. Used with a Cine-Video bowl to ease leveling of the Sinar Pan-Tilt head makes using this camera support widget easier, more efficient and stable.


Bernice

[Greg]

Checked mine (black model without clutch locking handle), there is no pin nor holes for the pin to seat into. Once the handle is loosened, the nut plate too easily rotates in either direction. Have the feeling that pin was added as a fix on later models.
Greg

[Plungefrog]

Thanks all for the replies, it looks like I will be able to use this head for my intended application. I'll be sure to check for the presence of either the repositionable handle or the pinned arrangement before purchase.

[David Lindquist]

Thank you very much Bernice for your detailed description of this procedure and in particular the caution on aligning the pins with the holes before tightening.

Wonder what's going on with your version of this head Greg. The earlier greenish-grey, (sometimes so-called Norma) version of this head had the holes and pins.

David

[ManWithManyHobbies]

Instead of starting a new thread I thought it might be appropriate to ask this question too. For starters I have the black model. How to you reverse or flip the 1/4 -20 thread IF you wanted to use it instead of the 3/8".

[Keith Pitman]

Instead of starting a new thread I thought it might be appropriate to ask this question too. For starters I have the black model. How to you reverse or flip the 1/4 -20 thread IF you wanted to use it instead of the 3/8".

Unscrew the screw from the base plate, remove nut from the 1/4 side (it has dual threads) and put it on the 3/8 side, then screw the 1/4 side onto the base plate.

[ManWithManyHobbies]

Unscrew the screw from the base plate, remove nut from the 1/4 side (it has dual threads) and put it on the 3/8 side, then screw the 1/4 side onto the base plate.

Thanks, I tried that but I wasn't able to unscrew the 3/8" (down through the bottom). It seems like it just started, maybe a half thread engagement but then wouldn't turn any further. Of course I didn't force it with pliers. That's the 1/4-20 in the pick that I want to flip.

188780

[ManWithManyHobbies]

Keith, I got it. It was just super hard to turn. The threads in the bore are probably buggered up a touch. I'll run a tap through it and see. There's only like one and a half threads on the 1/4-20 end(meaning the 3/8 male thread).

Regards,
-JW: