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Old January 25th, 2004, 12:14 PM   #16
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Hey Lorinda,
Thanx for you answer..

I did check with my Tripod Dealer since Itīs still is under warranty, but since no leak is visible.. they just say itīs the normal friction it has, so they wonīt change it or repair it...

Iīm almost sure it wasnīt that hard before...

Anyway Iīll check to see if thereīs a Manfrotto repair department closer to me than New Jersey (Iīm in Spain :-)).

If they charge more than those 24$ I just try to sell the thing and try to get a used Liebec or just a better manfrotto head...

But just out of curiosity
Anyone knows the exact "Grease" they use?
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Old January 25th, 2004, 05:48 PM   #17
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<<<-- Originally posted by Federico Dib :

But I feel that panning is getting harder... And it was a hard panner to start with.

Can this "grease" solidify? and if so Why? Could cold, or water change itīs performance?

Can I "Lubricate it" myself? I opened the Head and saw itīs mechanism.. very simple thing... and very easy to lubricate... but I donīt want to screw the thing.

How can I make it pan like it used to? -->>>

The grease does indeed dry out because it isn't sealed inside. The thickners are usually a type of soap.

I've seen self-lubricated fluid-friction heads. They usually never work correctly again.

Send it in and they should reload it with fresh grease.
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Old February 13th, 2004, 03:22 PM   #18
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"unit checks ok"

Well, Jeff was right. He told me to expect Bogen to find that nothing is wrong with my 516.

They wiped off the grease and sent it back.

I still don't know where the grease came from, but will just make the best of this purchase while I save up for something else. :)
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Old February 13th, 2004, 07:09 PM   #19
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Hey Frederico. You aren't all that far from where the tripod head was manufactured. Just slightly south in Italy. Take a trip and drop by their plant?
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Old February 13th, 2004, 09:00 PM   #20
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Iīd take the trip just for the fun of it... but I donīt think theyīd be much help...
Ivīe been bothering them lately by e-mail to get answers about the lube and all that... and they bounced my messages to the Madrid Distributor. and here is what they say (quote):

-->>>>"Regarding your head 700RC2, the lubricant or grease this head has, is a grease that does not dissapear.
It may solidify a little with the cold and time out of use, but with new movements it comes back to itīs normal state.
But If you like, you can send it to our tech service to check it and "tune" it."<<<<<------

Of course this tech service is in Madrid, and they charge for it. Just sending it will be way too much money for a 90€ head.

And now a basic economics question:
If they made these stuff in Italy... and Italy is not far from Spain, and both are from Europe Community (free commerce or whatever)... WHY ARE MANFROTTO STUFF SO MUCH CHEAPER IN THE USA, across the Athlantic, whith much likely a lot of taxes, etc.?
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Old February 18th, 2004, 10:22 AM   #21
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I have a 516 head also. When it first arrived it had the stiction problem on pan being discussed in a thread near this one. It also leaked and popped like Rice Crispies. I sent it back and they sent me a new head. The new one is not leaking yet or sticking but it does pop. When I inquired about this Bogen said the popping is normal. Normal? Of all the things a head should be, noisy is not one of them. Between head, half ball, sticks and case I have well over $1,000.00 invested. I used to be a fan of Bogen products, I’m not now. Anyone with Manfrotto products that stick, leak or pop should send them back or at least let them know about the unacceptable issues.

Also, the Bogen hard case I have (made by Bagley with a Bogen sticker on it) is not made well enough for air travel. It has a single latch that comes pops open and the overall construction is not strong enough to survive much baggage handling.

Steve
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Old March 8th, 2004, 03:54 AM   #22
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I just checked my Velbon Videomate 607 tripod... it seems that in the cranks/knobs that you turn or roll, there is a sticky substance. Now I believe it would be grease to even up/smooth out the cranking substances in which you have to turn (on the knobs or cranks).... or it MIGHT be leaking pan fluid (?). I dunno.
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Old March 8th, 2004, 04:09 AM   #23
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David, you have a small cam, right? Consider a fluid-action head, like a Manfrotto 128RC or 136. They won't leak. Trust me. :-))
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Old March 8th, 2004, 04:17 AM   #24
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I have a GL2... dunno if you consider that small or not. I would say medium midsize :)

But, I dunno ... I JUST got this tripod too, it only has the greasy substance around the inside of the knobs, but no fluid on the actual panhead itself.
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Old March 8th, 2004, 05:47 AM   #25
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Wipe it clean, and the see if you get more. If you do, and it's a cheap tripod, just junk it.
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Old March 8th, 2004, 06:05 AM   #26
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The Velbon 607 is a friction head style tripod. It is not a fluid head. The grease is just that, grease. It is used to smooth the friction and give a more fluid effect to the friction movements. The grease may stain your clothing, but unless your very messy it would be hard to get into the camera. Try to avoid any optical surfaces coming in contact with the grease (lens, LCD screen, view finder). Grease can be difficult to remove, but won't cause any real long lasting damage.

Frank is right, wipe it up and if the tripod gives you problems or doesn't meet your performance expectations then junk it.
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Old March 8th, 2004, 01:08 PM   #27
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Bah! Wasted $80 for nothing.... I will wipe it.. I never notice it on the "head" itself, but like I said before, mostly in between the knobs... I guess it is just grease. However, I would hate if somehow the camcorder would get the grease on it. The thing is that the camcorder itself is hooked onto a plate which attaches to the top of the tripod, so I guess it shouldn't cause any problems. But do you think the Bogens or Libec M20s... or something similar that costs maybe $150 or more = greaseless and worth it?

I am getting the $250 Canon GL2 rebate soon and most likely will buy some more accessories..

I am disappointed at myself and regret buying ...as they say, "junk" ! :-(
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