Calumet CC400 Tripod Socket

[Josh Wand]

I went and bought one of those nice berlebach tripods from calumet, oly to disco ver the tripod had a 3/8" thread and the camera has a 1/4" thread! Local camera shop says no such adapters exist (in the opposite direction, plenty, but not thi s way).

It looks to me like the 1/4" thread on the camera (A Calumet cc400) tripod mount is just a metal piece screwed into a 3/8" thread... but I can't get it to budge . I tried liquid wrench and a pair of pliers, and only succeeded in scratching i t up a bit.

Does anyone know whether I can in fact unscrew it (and convert it to 3/8")?

Or alternatively, a place where I could find a 3/8 tripod mounting block for the camera?

[Tony Brent]

My Calumet Cadet came with a reducer in the 3/8 tripod block. It has two slots in the edge for a spanner wrench or a wide flat blade screw driver. Does yours? If so, sacrifice a screwdriver and carefully file or grind it until it fits EXACTLY. Clamp in a vise and try to keep the screwdriver from slipping because the reducer is probably soft brass and will burr up easily if it slips.

The alternative if you have a drill press is to mount the block and use a drill that is bigger than the 1/4 threads but smaller than the 3/8 threads and drill it out. A friend with a small machine shop could help here.

I modified my Berlebach by drilling out the 3/8 stud and making a loose mounting bolt that drops down inside the head. It was a project though. It involved some lathe work.

[Josh Wand]

This one doesn't have obvious slots for a screwdriver like others I've seen (for instance the quick release adapter the guy at the camera shop sold me to solve the problem... too bad it doesn't sit squarely on the head).

I'll try again a little later (see if the liquid wrench just needed to set in a bit).

[Tony Brent]

Another thing you might try is a screw extractor that you can find in tool shops. It is made like a tap, but the twist is in the unscrewing direction. Get a tap holder for it, and find one that fits snugly in the 1/4" hole. It has a series of ridges that grab the sides of the hole and hopefully unscrew the stuck piece.

They may have glued that thing in there. In that case you're just going to have to wrestle with it.

[Bob Eskridge]

Bogen sells an adapter plate that will work. Part no 3054 Called a converter plate.

I would be careful before I used a screw extractor on the camera. You can damage more that you wanted. Contact Calumet for advice.