I'm looking for an affordable Gitzo Giant for some tall shooting on the road or in a studio, with stout aluminum legs, and the other features like Delux Studix Performance, (sp? it's late)which will give good performance for any 4x5, medium and small format cameras in difficult places or high winds.

I have used this type of about 8 foot Gitzo before and despite the weight, found it excellent.

I have smaller, Gitzo Reporter (three section legs) with a non-geared, two section center post and have loved it every minute I've ever used it and I like aluminum tripods such as these much nicer to use than 'super materials' like carbon.

Carbon won't make much of an impression on a dog, bear, thief, or oncoming motorcycle like a heavy metal Gitzo unit will, and almost always stays put, with a camera bag centered between three legs.

I've had large and medium Manfrotto and Bogen tripods and currently have a medium weight Davis and Sanford for studio use, if needed, but nothing beats Gitzo performance, for my needs.

I'll put a wanted ad on site as soon as I finish this, but for my limited dollars, I feel the quality of the older Gitzo tripods/heads is a much better buy, even if you can afford new carbon.

IMO.