(Dan S?) Adapting Surveyor tripod for video head (5/8" to 3/8")
 

I am getting a Gitzo 2380 video head, and it has a standard 3/8" screw hole at the bottom for mounting.

I am thinking of getting a flat headed surveyors tripod to mount it on. The only problem is that it has a 5/8" male screw, which is obviously too wide to fit into the Gitzo head.

Anyone know how I can adapt or conver this? Something other than sawing off the 5/8" and glueing on a small 3/8"!

Not sure about how the flat tops on the surveyors tripod work. Can the 5/8" screws be easily removed?

What's the best solution for this?

Alex F

Pay no attention to the man behind the curtain, or the thread size! The screw the surveyor's use for their equipment won't work on a fluid head anyway, plus it's this funky looking thing that you'll be removing. The "bolt" that comes with the tripod runs up through this big oval that looks like a giant paper clip. You'll have to take one of the legs off to remove the paper clip, slide their bolt out, then replace the paper clip without the bolt. Now you are free to put any size bolt up through there that you want. I use a big 1/2" bolt when attaching one of my cranes, and a 3/8" when using my fluid head. As you mentioned, make sure you get the flat top head and not the dome head! You can find the tripod I use--CST/Berger at Lowes for about $80. You can get it on-line a little cheaper:
http://www.mytoolstore.com/berger/tripods1.html
ref=googleadws&kw=cst+tripod

Awesome!

Now here is a tip for you... You can get the CST/Berger tripod at homedepot.com for $49.99 (in store it is $65 and they won't price match their own online prices! - But Lowes will if they have that item. Maekes a lot of sense, right? Unfortunately all of the local Lowes stores here don't carry those, only the $80 DeWalt version (in DeWalt Yellow - maybe cool for tools, but not for a tripod)!

Also, in your book you show a picture of a drill attachment so that you can use a regular drill as a drill press. The price you listed was $35.

I searched high & low for one of those, but no luck. One of the local hardware stores had a drill attachement, but it was WOEFULLY inadequate for that job. The only place I found one was in the Grizzly Tools catalog (for free on their website - www.grizzlytools.com I *think*). It was somewhere between $20 & $30, but then you add shipping.

Well, I went to Sears and just went ahead and bought an 8" drill press for $48. It may not be the best drilll press ever, but it was basically only $13 more than the drill attachment, and it was the real thing, and MUCH easier to work with.

I'll let you know how my tripod setup goes!

Thanks,

Alex F

Wow! A drill press for $48! That will make things much easier. You might pick up the vice for drill presses if it didn't come with one. You know, if you bought the book, you can e-mail me directly with any questions!

dan
www.DVcameraRigs.com