Don't buy cheap stands

[cgw]

Pound for pound, dedicated boom stands are sturdier, have a wider stance for stability and sand bags and are capable of taking a greater degree of overloading than a light stand. Once busted what I thought was a beefy light stand with a boom rig. Replacing a busted flash tube I saw as tuition, so I wised-up and got a proper boom stand.

 

[Derrel]

Ok - let me elaborate.. These were left out since I typed quickly after happy hour lol
- air cushioned = failed prior
- thumb screws = stripped and need rplacing
- bottom rubber stopper = fell right out and let a section of the stand out.
= 5/8 " mount broke off and I epoxied back in

Okay..now that is CHEAP construction. Cheap as hell. I bought two Bogen/Manfrotto 2-section stands and three, 3-section stands in 1986. $39.95 for the two 2-section, $32.99 for the 3-section models. So far, only one thumbscrew replacement since...the Russians were fighting in Afghanistan and the Cold War was in full swing... No bent stand sections, no 5/8 stud falling off (I mean, WTF!?)...just a lost the leg-lock thumbscrew on one of my 3-section stands...it disappeared in 2012 on a location shoot, I later found it under the back seat of the car...didn't really need that screw though, since once the legs are opened and pulled out it just...sits there...

There **is** a difference between something bought at a low price, and something being cheap, or shoddy. Back when Manfrotto made perhaps 90% or more of the light stands sold across the world, in Italy in their own factories, with proven designs and good materials and a trained work force, light stands made of aluminum were pretty sturdy. In this era, it's pretty obvious that there is some substandard merchandise being made and sold.

 

[Mach0]

Ok - let me elaborate.. These were left out since I typed quickly after happy hour lol
- air cushioned = failed prior
- thumb screws = stripped and need rplacing
- bottom rubber stopper = fell right out and let a section of the stand out.
= 5/8 " mount broke off and I epoxied back in

Okay..now that is CHEAP construction. Cheap as hell. I bought two Bogen/Manfrotto 2-section stands and three, 3-section stands in 1986. $39.95 for the two 2-section, $32.99 for the 3-section models. So far, only one thumbscrew replacement since...the Russians were fighting in Afghanistan and the Cold War was in full swing... No bent stand sections, no 5/8 stud falling off (I mean, WTF!?)...just a lost the leg-lock thumbscrew on one of my 3-section stands...it disappeared in 2012 on a location shoot, I later found it under the back seat of the car...didn't really need that screw though, since once the legs are opened and pulled out it just...sits there...

There **is** a difference between something bought at a low price, and something being cheap, or shoddy. Back when Manfrotto made perhaps 90% or more of the light stands sold across the world, in Italy in their own factories, with proven designs and good materials and a trained work force, light stands made of aluminum were pretty sturdy. In this era, it's pretty obvious that there is some substandard merchandise being made and sold.

Let's just say I'm in the market for some new ones lol


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[Mach0]

Ok - let me elaborate.. These were left out since I typed quickly after happy hour lol
- air cushioned = failed prior
- thumb screws = stripped and need rplacing
- bottom rubber stopper = fell right out and let a section of the stand out.
= 5/8 " mount broke off and I epoxied back in

Okay..now that is CHEAP construction. Cheap as hell. I bought two Bogen/Manfrotto 2-section stands and three, 3-section stands in 1986. $39.95 for the two 2-section, $32.99 for the 3-section models. So far, only one thumbscrew replacement since...the Russians were fighting in Afghanistan and the Cold War was in full swing... No bent stand sections, no 5/8 stud falling off (I mean, WTF!?)...just a lost the leg-lock thumbscrew on one of my 3-section stands...it disappeared in 2012 on a location shoot, I later found it under the back seat of the car...didn't really need that screw though, since once the legs are opened and pulled out it just...sits there...

There **is** a difference between something bought at a low price, and something being cheap, or shoddy. Back when Manfrotto made perhaps 90% or more of the light stands sold across the world, in Italy in their own factories, with proven designs and good materials and a trained work force, light stands made of aluminum were pretty sturdy. In this era, it's pretty obvious that there is some substandard merchandise being made and sold.

Let's just say- I'm getting new ones this week


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[Buckster]

I've got a whole lot of stands, from little cheap ones up to very robust ones specifically for booms and backdrops and stuff. Even the cheap ones have their uses, as long as I don't try to overextend their capabilities.

 

[chuasam]

Go look for Century Stands...now that's where it's at.
Don't forget to sandbag them though.

 

[bribrius]

i have cheap stands. i am not pro. i dont plan on using them often. At the diminished rate i do use them even these cheap stands will probably last me years.

 

[480sparky]

i have cheap stands. i am not pro. i dont plan on using them often. At the diminished rate i do use them even these cheap stands will probably last me years.

Won't buying top-of-the-line stands make you a better photographer?

 

[bribrius]

i have cheap stands. i am not pro. i dont plan on using them often. At the diminished rate i do use them even these cheap stands will probably last me years.

Won't buying top-of-the-line stands make you a better photographer?

no. The stands have very little effect on the photo. Long as they go high enough and swivel i am fairly content. i think they are rated at 30lbs. Good enough. The even cheaper set i have might only be rated for 25lbs. still good enough.

 

[480sparky]

But....... but................. but................. high-$ stands are supposed to make you better, don't they?

 

[bribrius]

But....... but................. but................. high-$ stands are supposed to make you better, don't they?

if i was a pro i would have bought pro stands.

 

[astroNikon]

My high dollar light stands make me stand up better when I've fallen and can't get back up.

 

[480sparky]

But....... but................. but................. high-$ stands are supposed to make you better, don't they?

if i was a pro i would have bought pro stands.

If you buy high-end light stands, your images would automatically be better, which makes them more desirable to the buying public, which would allow you to sell more of your work, so you would become a pro just by purchasing better stands.

 

[pixmedic]

I use my wife holding a flash w/diffuser mounted on a monopod. Sturdier than any stand.

 

[pixmedic]

The wife is a lot more expensive than a good stand tho...