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View Full Version : Technikardan Owners Question - support brace options?



jesskramer
19-Apr-2004, 08:20
Have any owners of this camera devised an alternative to the metal bar brace from Linhof?

Has anyone used something like the Bogen Long Lens Support to attach to the fully extended monorail to provide support??

Thanks

Bob Salomon
19-Apr-2004, 14:09
"Bogen Long Lens Support"

Is that long enough?

No one has ever asked us that or told us that it would work. And that is since the TK was originally introduced.

If you were creative, or knew a machinist, you could easily fabricate your own long support. But the support does not screw into the front of the TK. The front of the TK slides into the front of the support and is locked in place with a set screw. The rear fastens to the tripod socket on the largest rail section.

While the support has been available for several years the vast majority of TK users do not seem to find a need for it. Do you find that you actually do need the support? Or are you anticipating a possible need for it?

Walter Glover
19-Apr-2004, 16:32
Jesse,

Your question raises frustrating memories for me. When I purchased my current TK45S I also acquired the balloon bellows and the Tele/Macro support. Guess what. The front dovetail extrusion of the support was too tight a fit for the actual rail section. So it went back and a new replacement was dispatched. It fitted marginally better but still did not fit ideally and required inordinate amounts of force to remove the rail. It went back and I accepted a credit for the value of the purchase.

Then I saw the Jack Dykinga book and noted that he used a long lens support with his Arca Swiss. All of a suddent the penny dropped.

I dug out one of my Manfrotto Super-Clamps for the leg of the tripod and purchased a Manfrotto extendable support arm which is hinged at the point of connection to the clamp. It works a treat.

Firstly, it means that I can leave my quick change attachment on the camera rather than having to remove it to fit the Tele/Macro Support PLUS it is more facile to transport.

I use a Nikkor-M 450mm quite a lot on my TK45S and although the lens can be used with the rails fully extended without the added support, I am wary of the clunk and vibration of a Copal 3 shutter and so favour steadying the lens end. The one obvious advantage of the Arca Swiss as JD uses it is that the primary tripod support of the camera can be slid to the front, thereby affording maximum stability where the only activity takes place and the support strut is placed under the rear of the camera where no movement occurs once the slide has been pulled.

jesskramer
19-Apr-2004, 16:45
Walter,

that is the info I needed. Are you using the same Bogen clamp on both ends of the bogen support?? one clamp to attach to the tripod leg and one to attach to the extended rail ??

I have the Arca Swiss F metric setup currently. I am considering a change to the TK for a more compact setup.

Any thoughts appreciated,

Jesse

Al Seyle
19-Apr-2004, 17:35
If you plan to use an Arca ballhead, the Really Right Stuff B40 plate may work for you. It covers the entire bottom of the base, so you can clamp to the head/tripod closer to camera's front for better weight distribution.

Walter Glover
19-Apr-2004, 19:22
Jesse,

We don't have Bogen in Oz but I think I know what you mean. The rod has a small camera plate at the end away from the clamp. I have removed the screw and made a 'clamp' out of closed cell foam and velcro straps which wrap around the rail and stready it without risk of damage to the comparatively soft aluminium rail. (Yes, we spell it different and say it different but you know what it is that I mean.)

Frankly, unless you are really, really bothered by the size of the Arca Swiss I would stick with it. This is my second foray into the world of Technikardan and I can't really say I'm all that happy at present. If I thought I could change without taking a bath on the deal I would go for the Arca-Swiss. Or perhaps a Toyo of some sort. I'm well and truly over 'L'-standard berarers.

John Hennessy
19-Apr-2004, 20:05
I use a strap of webbing (the non-elastic stuff on backpacks) with one end sewn into a loop and velcro on the other end. After locking the focus I loop one end on the L near the center and loop and velcro the other end on the other loop. It does not need to be cinched down like a saddle but just enough to dampen vibration and see-sawing. My strap weighs nearly nothing and takes up no room.

If the RRS plate were better designed it would be all that is needed. It should be longer in the front by at least 30mm (now it does not extend to the balance point with an M450 but does with a C450) and should thicker in the front so that the main rail rests on and slides over it. To save weight the plate can be cut shorter on the back by about 20mm and the sides can be shaved down about 10mm. Maybe the new owners of RRS monitor this forum or do a Google search on themselves periodically.

Linhof could make one too; but its would cost $800.

Bruce M. Herman
21-Apr-2004, 23:12
Jesse, I use the Bogen long lens support with my TK45. The small ball head on the Bogen extension is worthless for this application. I rotate the ball so that the mounting screw is out of the way and then use a rubber band or some elastic to make a reasonably secure connection between extension and the far end of the TK45's rail. Once my composition is fine tuned and focused, I lock everything down.

I have found that this system significantly reduces the vibration when I use my Fuji 600 mm f12 lens. I also used it with great effect on my 355 mm Schneider lens.

The biggest drawback to this system is the weight of the Bogen clamp that attaches to the tripod leg. It is overly massive compared to the rest of the system.

Best wishes, Bruce

Michael S. Briggs
21-Apr-2004, 23:29
Jesse, do you have a vibration problem with some specific lens or situation?

I use a 450 mm Fuji-C in Copal 1 shutter with my Linhof TK45S without using the brace and find it to work well. I did have problems with this lens on a Canham DLC, but not on the TK45S. I have a macro support bracket that I got used at a low price, but I don't carry it into the field because I don't see the need for it. I use the technique that Al described.

Robert Opheim
31-May-2012, 09:46
I recently bought a Technikardan macro support bracket off of e-bay from a Glaziers a local high quality camera store in Seattle. When it came it was as Walter Glover said above. It was frustrating - too tight - not a Linhof wonder of machining and fit. All the thing is basically is a flat piece of flat metal with a clamp that is screwed onto it with four small screws. I figured that the engineering couldn't be wrong - these are the guys that make the Technikardan, and the Technikica etc. I figured out that in shipping that the clamp on the end gets miss-aligned. I gently tapped the clamp with a hammer with a piece of wood between and was able to re-align the clamp - it work perfectly. Glaziers has two more of these for sale on e-bay for $100 - much less that the $400 plus of other stores.