Quickie Question on Soft Boxes and Sizing (Derrel, you out there???)

jwbryson1 · Aug 29, 2012

I am going to buy this soft box on Ebay but I want to get it without the lighting stands to save some $$$.

2x Portable 24" 60cm Softbox Soft Box For Flash Light Speedlite Photo Speedlight | eBay

Don't you suspect that the size of the thread on the mounting bracket is "standard sized" and will fit the thread on my existing light stands that I use with my umbrellas?

Thanks!

Derrel · Aug 29, 2012

No matter HOW it ACTUALLY mounts, it CAN BE adapted to any tripod, or lightstand, with the right "spigot", or bushing. I looked at their drawings, and did not see any specifications. In the USA we use 1/4 x 20 thread per inch National Coarse threading on tripod mounting screws...and light stands NOWADAYS use 5/8 outside diameter tops...this looks to me as if it uses some kind of ball-head, likely with 1/4x20 female threading under the base of it, and their description seems to indicate that it will fit on a "tripod", so I think it does have a 1/4x20 female receptacle at the bottom of that black piece.

FlashZebra.com probably has any and all "spigots" that could ever be needed to adapt these low-cost softboxes and mounts to fit onto any number of clamps, light stands, tripods, or boom arms. TWO boxes, for $69!!!! Thank you Chinese photo gear industry!!!!!

jwbryson1 · Aug 29, 2012

Derrel said:
No matter HOW it ACTUALLY mounts, it CAN BE adapted to any tripod, or lightstand, with the right "spigot", or bushing. I looked at their drawings, and did not see any specifications. In the USA we use 1/4 x 20 thread per inch National Coarse threading on tripod mounting screws...and light stands NOWADAYS use 5/8 outside diameter tops...this looks to me as if it uses some kind of ball-head, likely with 1/4x20 female threading under the base of it, and their description seems to indicate that it will fit on a "tripod", so I think it does have a 1/4x20 female receptacle at the bottom of that black piece.

FlashZebra.com probably has any and all "spigots" that could ever be needed to adapt these low-cost softboxes and mounts to fit onto any number of clamps, light stands, tripods, or boom arms. TWO boxes, for $69!!!! Thank you Chinese photo gear industry!!!!!

No doubt. It's pretty hard to go wrong for $70 and this ships from California, not Hong Kong, and has a 30 day money back guarantee. That's a no brainer.

Thanks.

Big Mike · Aug 29, 2012

I recently bought one (from some Canadian company on Amazon) but it looks like it was manufactured in the same Chinese factory as this one.
The swivel attachment at the bottom will accommodate the standard 5/8" spigot/stud that you'll find on just about any light stand...no worries there.

The one thing about this softbox (the one I got, at least) is that I couldn't find out how you're supposed to attach the back of the box (fabric) to the 'speed ring'. The ring has a bit of a lip on it, but it certainly didn't hold the fabric nicely as seen in the photos. (I'm not sure how they are doing it). Mine did not come with any instructions.

Stupid me, I had the thing for weeks before I tried to put it together...the night before I had to shoot an out of town wedding. My (late night) solution was to get a few small screws and wing nuts and place them around the ring to hold the fabric in place. Even with very small #8 (or was it #6) screws, I had to drill the holes a tiny bit bigger. My solution worked like a charm and the softbox is held to the ring pretty securely. I don't want to have to baby this thing (or put it back together) in the middle of a wedding shoot.

If you like, I can take some photos of my solution and post them.

jwbryson1 · Aug 29, 2012

Big Mike said:
If you like, I can take some photos of my solution and post them.

That would be awesome if you could do that. I just bought them a few minutes ago because it's just too good of a deal to pass up. It has a $$ back guarantee but I'd rather have functioning boxes than my $$$ back.

Thanks Mike. :mrgreen:

tirediron · Aug 29, 2012

This looks like a direct clone of my Lastolite boxes and if you look at the photo on the eBay listing you can see that the "speedring"/flash bracket is actually a friction fit into the back of the box. Push it under the spring-steel edges of the box and it will be nice and firmly held in place.

tirediron · Aug 29, 2012

Derrel said:
No matter HOW it ACTUALLY mounts, it CAN BE adapted to any tripod, or lightstand, with the right "spigot", or bushing. I looked at their drawings, and did not see any specifications. In the USA we use 1/4 x 20 thread per inch National Coarse threading on tripod mounting screws...and light stands NOWADAYS use 5/8 outside diameter tops...this looks to me as if it uses some kind of ball-head, likely with 1/4x20 female threading under the base of it, and their description seems to indicate that it will fit on a "tripod", so I think it does have a 1/4x20 female receptacle at the bottom of that black piece.

FlashZebra.com probably has any and all "spigots" that could ever be needed to adapt these low-cost softboxes and mounts to fit onto any number of clamps, light stands, tripods, or boom arms. TWO boxes, for $69!!!! Thank you Chinese photo gear industry!!!!!

Or send me the dimensions and a couple of bucks for stock... I can make them any size/shape you want.

Derrel · Aug 29, 2012

Yes, you made some gorgeous spigots!!! Do they actually call them "spuds" in Canada???

I tell ya'...these e-Bay softboxes...MAN, I wish to heck we would have had access to this kind of low-cost light modifier years ago!!!!! I bought two about five years back, and the biggest issue is that the elastic holding the inner diffusion baffles in place has cracked and become brittle. Other than that, still doin' great for cheapies!

kundalini · Aug 29, 2012

Big Mike said:
The one thing about this softbox (the one I got, at least) is that I couldn't find out how you're supposed to attach the back of the box (fabric) to the 'speed ring'. The ring has a bit of a lip on it, but it certainly didn't hold the fabric nicely as seen in the photos. (I'm not sure how they are doing it). Mine did not come with any instructions.

Just spit-ballin' here, but would velcro strips have worked?

jwbryson1 · Aug 29, 2012

kundalini said:
would velcro strips have worked?

I had the same thought....

Big Mike · Aug 29, 2012

Maybe, but for the velcro to work well, I'd have had to sew some of it the fabric around the hole. Adhesive doesn't usually stick well to fabric, well some does but that may be going too far.

Big Mike · Aug 30, 2012

Here is what I did. As you can see, I added three screws with wing nuts, it holds the fabric tightly to the ring.

tirediron · Aug 30, 2012

Mike, hope you don't mind, but I took the liberty of adding a couple of lines to your image for illustrative purposes. This SB seems to be IDENTICAL to my Lastolite box, and at first I thought that the "speedring" was supposed to go inside the box the way you have it, but I found that actually, it' doesn't.

The edges of the "speedring" get tucked into the four shallow "pockets" indicated by the red lines (only two shown), and the edges (yellow arrows) sit on top of the ring and hold it very securely. I can take a shot of my set up on the weekend, but right now, that piece of gear is on the other side of the country.

tirediron · Aug 30, 2012

This image shows it more clearly.

Big Mike · Aug 30, 2012

Thanks John, but there aren't any pockets there. What your arrows/lines are pointing to, is just the stitching of the elastic (around the frame) as it attaches to the fabric of the box. I've got it right in front of me and I'm looking pretty close...there certainly aren't any pockets there. Maybe that's why these things are so damn cheap. They tried to copy Lastolite but messed up and forgot the pockets.

Also, notice that the ring on mine doesn't extend out far enough to tuck under the frame loops like it seems to do in that Lastolite photo.