I bought an old Gitzo tripod with a PL-5 head. After pawing it for a day or two, I'm still not clear about the mounting method. I can use the included plastic mounting disc and bolt to fasten my monorail clamp to the top, but the tripod's bolt will only fit through one of the holes at each end of the slot, as the slot itself is too narrow for it. How do these things work?
The bolt should have a slightly lesser diameter next to the bolt end or screw head end. This allows one to screw the bolt all the way in at either end and then one can slide the bolt along the channel without fear it will fall out and it allows one to screw to the camera or possibly to a quick release mount without engaging the thread at the level of the PL-5 platform.
One of the holes is just to screw the bolt into for storage when not in use. The hole which is at one end of the long slot is then the one you insert it into then you can slide it up and down the long slot to suit.
This is a picture of the thumb screw that is used to attach the camera to the head as described above. The photos are of a newer model of the Gitzo head but very similar to a PL5. (photo is my head minus the cork which I am about to replace) The thumbscrew is a homemade version of the Gitzo thumbscrew that I made with a slightly longer neck so that it would screw deeper into the camera. I think I bought the thumb screw from McMaster-Carr or Zorro and had a neighbor machine the section without the threads. The section where the threads are removed allows the thumbscrew to slide in the slot. One end of the slot has a larger opening which allows you to pass the thumbscrew through the bottom of the Mounting plate.
Thank you for the answers. What I have doesn't really match, unfortunately. Here's a crummy photo I took of the part.
The bolt fits the tripod head holes and can screw into the hole on the underside of the camera's monorail clamp. As best as I could measure with a caliper, the larger diameter section of the bolt is 9.3 mm including the threads, and the smaller is 6.1 mm including the threads. Measuring the small section where there are no threads, the diamter is 4.4 mm. The slot of the tripod head is 7.3 mm at its narrowest, and the hole is 9.1 mm. So the bolt doesn't seem to have much relation to the dimensions of the slot. All I can do is mount the clamp using the holes at either end of the platform, where it sits partially over the edge. Tightening the plastic+metal disc, it is pretty secure, but I don't necessarily assume that this is how it should be fitted. I'm new to large format, and this is the first time I've dealt with items where I don't know the model number (of either the camera or the tripod) and can't find a manual to consult. And of course, as I'm finding out, when bringing parts together, it's all very open-ended.
I use one in many ways
I usually use a heavy duty Quick Release
which makes 2 screws easy and stops rotation
Tin Can
The bolt you show in the photo usually is the bolt in the head of the tripod. one side is 1/4" and the other end is 3/8". you screw that into the tripod head depending upon the thread needed to attach the bottom of the PL5 head. My newer Gitzo head uses 3/8" size thread so you screw that bolt into the tripod with the 3/8" exposed/up. then you attach the PL5 head to the tripod. Now.....if your tripod already has a threaded post installed, is it the correct size needed for the PL5 head? If it's not the correct size then you will need to change the threaded post on your tripod. Usually there is a way to unscrew it and flip it over to either 3/8" or 1/4'.
If that does not answer your question, then please post a photo of how or what you are trying to attach to the PL5 head. Just an FYI the threaded post in your photo looks like a post that belongs to a tripod and not the PL5 head.
The bolt in your photo does not look like anything used to attach any photographic device to the top of the PL5 head. To attach cameras or other photographic devices to the top of the PL5 head you need the Gitzo camera mounting screw with knob usually available from Gitzo or on the online auction site. They come in two sizes, either 1/4" or 3/8" so make sure you order the correct size.
Robert
Here are photos of my tripod and that similar bolt in your photo. That bolt is part of the tripod and not the Gitzo PL5 head. The disk in your photo looks like part of the tripod as well and not the PL5 head. I think when you purchased your PL5 head you may have received some extra parts that were from the tripod that the PL5 head was previously mounted on. I hope this helps.
This is my Gitzo head and it is a newer and smaller version of a PL5 head. I added this photo to make sure we are really discussing the same thing when we are referring to "head".
Thanks for the information. I'm still deciphering some of it. I'll need a day or so to put up a photo of the tripod with the head. Mildly embarrassed, as I see now that that piece I used was attached to the bottom of the head column when it was sent to me. I figured that, no other attachment method being apparent, and as it handily unscrewed, it was meant for attaching the camera.
This is not the first tripod I've owned, just the first that I have had difficulty working out. Usually I wouldn't need a manual...
Here are some pictures that I took. I hope it's sufficient to show what's what. I don't know the model number of the tripod, either from the seller, or from looking on the tripod itself. It was sold as "PL5", which presumably applies to the head, and as the pictures show, it is of considerable vintage. By coincidence, I saw the same tripod and head at a local camera shop a few days after buying mine (a few weeks earlier, I'd never even been aware of the Gitzo name), but that too was simply labelled "PL5".
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