D300(s) grip options

StuartH

StuartH

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Just curious as to what grips you were using with the d300s or d300.Third party ones or original nikon? I used to have a meike for my d90 and was great little grip and of good quality,anyone got a meike for the d300 if so how do you find it.Also for those that use aa batteries in the grip what sort of longevity do you get from a set?
 
I bought one off eBay for £25 new from Hong Kong including battery inserts for AA batteries and Standard battery. Wasn't expecting much but I think the quality is superb works perfectly and to be honest I cannot see how Nikon justify over £300 for theirs. Well recommended by me only had it a couple of months but so far so good.
 
Thanks Daryl..is that on AA batteries you mean? I must admit although the d90 was smaller it felt so much better with the grip as I have big hands.The d300s will certainly be getting one soon even though its bigger it feels weird without a grip attached.
 
tonybarber253 said:
I bought one off eBay for £25 new from Hong Kong including battery inserts for AA batteries and Standard battery. Wasn't expecting much but I think the quality is superb works perfectly and to be honest I cannot see how Nikon justify over £300 for theirs. Well recommended by me only had it a couple of months but so far so good.
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Also use genuine Nikon batteries with it.
 
tonybarber253 said:
I bought one off eBay for £25 new from Hong Kong including battery inserts for AA batteries and Standard battery. Wasn't expecting much but I think the quality is superb works perfectly and to be honest I cannot see how Nikon justify over £300 for theirs. Well recommended by me only had it a couple of months but so far so good.
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I think the meike is 50-60 for the d300 so still fair bit cheaper and the one on the d90 was excellent.
 
Gary Coyle said:
Stuart, ive always used the Meike grips, superb, i used it on the D300/S and D700

£40 from these guys and they even throw in a BL-3 adapter if you want to use it with the D3 batteries, used them several times and stock is in the UK so no waiting or import hassles

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Verticle-Battery-Grip-for-Nikon-MB-D10-D300-D300s-D700-/320853620022?pt=UK_Camera_Battery_Grips&hash=item4ab45db536
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:thumbs: Thanks for that Gary..yep had no issues with mine on the d90 but do remember reading somewhere a few issues people had had with a meike on a d300
 
I originally had the Nikon grip on my D300 ... but it fell apart so now I use the Mieke one - actually I've got two - although they have the same design weakness as the Nikon one.
 
Plus one for the Meike although I have seen the nikon one in the flesh and must admit that it felt nice but the cash saving on the Meike made it the clear option for me and I have had no problems....crosses fingers.
 
Just ordered a meike one from ebay via Garys link:D..just wondered what AA batteries you all use as I did read somewhere that best to use lithiums like the duracell ones else you may not get the 8fps?Not sure how true this is,
 
StuartH said:
:thinking:Whos Steve?..lol Did you still get max frame rate with any old aa's
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Sorry Stuart, on another planet, yup, still get the 8fps

i bought a shed load of AA's from a guy who i know who worked at Jacobs when it shut down, got a job lot of about 60 boxes of 12' and 24's from various makers. :thumbs:
 
StuartH said:
Whats the weakness steve?
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Oops, sorry missed this thread for a while.

Okay, the design flaw that both the Nikon and Mieke grips have concerns the stud in the grip that screws into the bottom of the body (tightened by the large thumbwheel). The thumbwheel turns the stud by way of a plastic gear wheel that is either a push fit or ultrasonically inserted onto the stud. This gear not only turns the stud but it's the only thing that stops the stud from pulling out of the top of the grip.

It's a cheap and chearful design that if your using the camera the right way up and/or using a strap that connects to the eyelets on the body is fine. If like me, however, you use a BlackRapid strap it means the body and lens is hanging off that stud/gear.

On my Nikon grip the gear wheel broke apart, separated from the stud and the stud came completely out. Fortunately, I was also holding the camera body at the time - I tend to do that - so I prevented it from crashing to the floor. Nikon sent me a replacement stud/gear assembly FOC but it has made me very wary and I'm continually checking for any play between the grip and the body.

I hope that makes sense :shrug:
 
Gary Coyle said:
Sorry Stuart, on another planet, yup, still get the 8fps

i bought a shed load of AA's from a guy who i know who worked at Jacobs when it shut down, got a job lot of about 60 boxes of 12' and 24's from various makers. :thumbs:
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:DCheers Harry..:naughty: Just watched a vid on youtube and young lad had the meike with duracells in and was only getting 7.7fps?

Bristolian said:
Oops, sorry missed this thread for a while.

Okay, the design flaw that both the Nikon and Mieke grips have concerns the stud in the grip that screws into the bottom of the body (tightened by the large thumbwheel). The thumbwheel turns the stud by way of a plastic gear wheel that is either a push fit or ultrasonically inserted onto the stud. This gear not only turns the stud but it's the only thing that stops the stud from pulling out of the top of the grip.

It's a cheap and chearful design that if your using the camera the right way up and/or using a strap that connects to the eyelets on the body is fine. If like me, however, you use a BlackRapid strap it means the body and lens is hanging off that stud/gear.

On my Nikon grip the gear wheel broke apart, separated from the stud and the stud came completely out. Fortunately, I was also holding the camera body at the time - I tend to do that - so I prevented it from crashing to the floor. Nikon sent me a replacement stud/gear assembly FOC but it has made me very wary and I'm continually checking for any play between the grip and the body.

I hope that makes sense :shrug:
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Thanks for the info Steve..mine will be attached to tripod collar mostly but will certainly bare this post in mind!:thumbs:
 
StuartH said:
:DCheers Harry..:naughty: Just watched a vid on youtube and young lad had the meike with duracells in and was only getting 7.7fps?
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Thats 8fps in my book, i expect its 100% impossible to guarantee exactly 6fps, 8fps, 9fps or whatever by any manufacturer, i suspect they just round the fugures up

T'internet is a great learning tool but there are a lot of pratts out there with way way too much time on their hands, these folk just need to masterbate occasionaly to release the pressure.
 
:lol:I know what your saying mate.Just seen several vids and on most it shows the 8fps on the rear screen but on this one where he was using normal aa batteries only 7.7,not that I would tell the difference or care tbh but just wondered.;) By the way how long did yours take to be delivered from that ebay seller?.
 
StuartH said:
:lol:I know what your saying mate.Just seen several vids and on most it shows the 8fps on the rear screen but on this one where he was using normal aa batteries only 7.7,not that I would tell the difference or care tbh but just wondered.;) By the way how long did yours take to be delivered from that ebay seller?.
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Ive had 5 from him over the last couple of years for different cams and all arrived within 4 days and usually 2
 
Nice one cheers mate.
Just had couple of emails...one to say might be delayed and then a message from him with a tracking number?
 
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StuartH said:
Nice one cheers mate.
Just had couple of emails...one to say might be delayed and then a message from him with a tracking number?
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I get that every single time, tracking numbers no good until you actually sign for it either, its just recorded delivery tracking and of no use to you at all.
 
:lol:Yep just tried the tracking number,guess its just for their benefit so they know its delivered.Hopefully should be here by the weekend!
 
Just ordered up a few packs of the duracell lithium AA's.Anyone used these and how do they compare to alkaline ones?Not cheap but thought I would give them a go.
 
Get yourself an compatible D3/D3S battery and a cheap chinese charger and clone BL-3 for about £30 all in and save yourself a fortune in AA batteries in the long run, not to mention less hassle and about 4000 shots per charge.
 
Gary Coyle said:
Get yourself an compatible D3/D3S battery and a cheap chinese charger and clone BL-3 for about £30 all in and save yourself a fortune in AA batteries in the long run, not to mention less hassle and about 4000 shots per charge.
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What he said..
 
Gary Coyle said:
Get yourself an compatible D3/D3S battery and a cheap chinese charger and clone BL-3 for about £30 all in and save yourself a fortune in AA batteries in the long run, not to mention less hassle and about 4000 shots per charge.
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The grip comes with a bl3 I think?..so would just need the d3 battery and charger.For some reason I thought these were nearly £100 plus price of charger on top?
 
Cheers for the links mate,have you used these? May have to consider this.Out of curiosity how many shots do you reckon I will get out of 8 of the lithium duracells on average?
 
I have several of the batteries, not needed the 3rd party charger as ive always had a D3/D3S so no need, havent used Duracells but other AA's ive used dont last 4-500 shots.
 
Gary Coyle said:
I have several of the batteries, not needed the 3rd party charger as ive always had a D3/D3S so no need, havent used Duracells but other AA's ive used dont last 4-500 shots.
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:eek: Is that all! Sod that battery and charger it is then..:lol: Do the ebay batteries last as long as the originals?
 
Dunno mate, i just mix and match with the 2 originals ive got, ive certainally got at least 2 of the cheap ones which ive had for at least 3 years and still show only 1 on the battery scale, theyve probably taken upwards of 2-300,000 shots in that time

Im a semi pro sports shooter and also chimp a lot with screen on full brightness as well and once the camera is turned on it stays on all the time
 
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Gary Coyle said:
Dunno mate, i just mix and match with the 2 originals ive got, ive certainally got at least 2 of the cheap ones which ive had for at least 3 years and still show only 1 on the battery scale, theyve probably taken upwards of 2-300,000 shots in that time

Im a semi pro sports shooter and also chimp a lot with screen on full brightness as well and once the camera is turned on it stays on all the time
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Got to be worth a punt at that price..really surprised at the life of the aa's I thought you would get more than that.
 
StuartH said:
Got to be worth a punt at that price..really surprised at the life of the aa's I thought you would get more than that.
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Like i say, my camera stays on with screen on full brightness when chimping which will go someway to lessen the amount of shots, depends on quality of batteries as well
 
Be interesting to see what these lithiums are like,will let you know.
 
Grips just arrived! Very impressed with the ebay seller only took 2 days..Just attached it and have to say for the price the build quality is very good indeed.Looking forward to getting the aa batteries in for the increased fps.Thanks for the link Gary:thumbs:
 
Word of warning with this grip..try it with some AA batteries as soon as you get it!Mine is faulty and wont work with aa tray.Shows as dead battery life on top lcd and if you have battery in camera and aa's in grip it doesnt even register that grip is attached.Tried a set of brand new duracell lithiums and also brand new duracell ultra to no avail.:thumbsdown:
 
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