Lubricating bowl head

**Paul Ron** · 6-Feb-2025, 06:32

oh i see... its a low profile type ball limited to 15° tilts adapted to this particular tripod. looks nice. i see the tilt adjustment allows you to adjust the amount of friction....

https://flmcanada.com/wp-content/upl...ead-scaled.jpg

is that adjustment the same for the bowl head? if so, maybe its set to tight at its min friction setting. contact the manufacturer to see if that can be changed before lubing it, which may not be recomended for this part. is it plastic or metal? plastics dont do well with regular grease or oils.

**Ari** · 6-Feb-2025, 10:31

Check to see that the parts are compatible, it may be a fit issue. Or one of the mating surfaces may not be perfectly round.
If your Feisol tripod bowl and half-ball are made of metal (aluminum, most likely), I second Michael Jones' suggestion of a Teflon lubricant.
Clean all surfaces first, and use a small amount to start.

**Ari** · 6-Feb-2025, 10:33

Originally Posted by Paul Ron

oh i see... its a low profile type ball limited to 15° tilts adapted to this particular tripod. looks nice. i see the tilt adjustment allows you to adjust the amount of friction....

https://flmcanada.com/wp-content/upl...ead-scaled.jpg

is that adjustment the same for the bowl head? if so, maybe its set to tight at its min friction setting. contact the manufacturer to see if that can be changed before lubing it, which may not be recomended for this part. is it plastic or metal? plastics dont do well with regular grease or oils.

The ball heads offer more precise friction control, but generally, a half-ball used for leveling is a simpler mechanism with less friction control.
I don;t know about other brands, but with FLM, once the half-ball is locked, it's not moving at all, in part because of its cruder friction and the two metal pieces mating properly.

**Drew Wiley** · 6-Feb-2025, 11:38

These are going to provide a more solid support with less risk of vibration than a stemmed ball head, with a lower center of gravity, but don't offer the same degree of movement. They might call them "leveling" devices, yet they obviously aren't restricted to that kind of application.