Quick-release plate of interest

Just passing along something which may be of interest. I had been looking for a quick release plate that would include a tripod screw and secondary screw or stud at 1.25 inches apart, since that's the distance between holes on the base of my recently acquired used field camera. I had thought I could use my Manfrotto hex plates and drill an extra hole for a threaded pin at the edge, but the distance is just a wee bit too great.

I came across this item on the auction site, sold by various vendors for around $12: http://www.ebay.com/itm/332259716373. Advertised as a video or DSLR QR plate, I just got mine and like it. The design is good, materials and finish adequate. Although I haven't seen extra inserted plates available, for this price, I could buy another unit and simply use the second plate on my 645 camera.

The Manfrotto hex plate (or other QR plate) screws into the bottom of this unit, then I attach the QR plate to the camera. The maximum potential distance from primary attachment crew to the stud is nearly 2.25 inches. It is very snug and non-slip, with no wiggle. My camera weighs less than 5 lbs with a lens; this might not suit a heavy camera -- it seems to be cast metal, certainly not forged steel -- but it seems quite solid and stable indeed.

As shown, it comes with 3/8- and 1/4-inch screws; either can be removed easily and threaded holes are provided on the side for storage. Pretty neat.

This kind of Quick Release plate is very popular in the video industry. The tripod I use for my large format work was actually made for video work and has a head exactly like this.

BTW, I would not combine a Manfrotto hex plate and this one together. Why? Because you would have two QR plates in your kit so why haul around the extra (redundant) weight. Plus, without further testing, I believe there might be some play in the final system. Just attach the eBay $12 QR product to your tripod then attach their QR plates to your cameras. (I just looked at their eBay store and they don't currently offer spare plates, so as you said, just buy more whole units for $12.)

Here is a crappy cell phone photo of me with my Cambo atop my Manfrotto fluid head video tripod:
Attachment 169777
The soft green thingie between the base of the Cambo and the QR plate is a chunk of kitchen drawer liner from a Dollar Tree store. For almost no weight, it adds friction to prevent the camera from swiveling as I add or remove sheet film holders.

A close-up photo of where my Cambo attaches to the Manfrotto tripod's integral QR plate:
Attachment 169778

The nice thing about these video QR plates is when you mount the camera atop your tripod, you can shift the QR plate forward and backward to balance your camera, lens and (as in my case) your compendium. The large red knob on the right side of the QR plate locks it in place.

Another useful feature is that the QR plate locks into place. So, if you don't balance your camera AND if you don't lock the tripod head and everything flops forward or backward, the lock will do it's best to keep everything from sliding off and falling to the ground. (Not that I've ever had that happen, you understand...)

The only thing I would caution you about is for $12 including shipping, the manufacturer could not possibly spend a lot of money on sourcing high strength quality screws. So, you might want to consider replacing the 1/4" and 3/8" screws before putting the QR plate to use.

I use a video pod for stills as well. Mine has a half ball leveling clamp so the whole rig gets leveled below the pan head. Nice not having to re level if you pan a few degrees. I don't use a fluid head with the stills cameras, but of course I do for the video cams. I've standardized on arca swiss type clamps and plates. They make plates for the Mamiya RB/RZ67 and 645 that have two additional pins that fit holes in the cameras. I just drill a couple of appropriately spaced holes in the bases of my wooden cameras.