Manfrotto Top Lock vs standard QR plate

JJ!

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The wife wants a new manfrotto ball head and looking at the Pro heads.

It comes with either the standard Manfrotto QR plate or the new stye top lock.

The top lock is meant to be ARCA compatible but some videos on YouTube tube have ARCA plates not fitting.

Anyone tried/used the top lock system?
 
My BHQ head has that system. I use it with a variety of Arca plates. In fact the only Arca plate I don't use is the one that came with it.
Super system. Like it a lot; much better than the RC2 system, IMHO.
 
The wife wants a new manfrotto ball head and looking at the Pro heads.

It comes with either the standard Manfrotto QR plate or the new stye top lock.

The top lock is meant to be ARCA compatible but some videos on YouTube tube have ARCA plates not fitting.

Anyone tried/used the top lock system?

Is that a Q6 head?? If so I have one and my Arca compliant camera grips fit fine.

I have the same head as @mickledore

I will say that it's proved very robust, and taken a few knocks and survived being plunged into mud. I did have to dis-assemble the locking plate after that, cleaned it and re-assembled and it's all worked fine since.
 
Oh cool! So would it work with say the black rapid ARCA plate?
 
An Arca plate is an Arca plate. No discernible difference between any brand.
 
An Arca plate is an Arca plate. No discernible difference between any brand.

Only 99% true. There is no official spec for Arca-Swiss plates and clamps, so all other manufacturers just get hold of what they think is a pukka A-S plate and copy it, so inevitably there are some fractional differences, but in some dimensions a faction of a mm makes a difference.

However, I have loads of these things from maybe a dozen different manufacturers, mostly cheap (but high quality) Chinese jobbies from Amazon-ebay. They all work fine, even if they're not quite identical. The only time you're likely to have a problem is with the quick-release lever locking clamps (I don't like them anyway) as opposed to the more usual screw locks. With the levers, they have to be pre-set to the exact width in order to lock just right.

Oh, and some manufacturers include their own safety lock systems, with a spring-loaded pin that pops up from the clamp to stop the plate accidentally sliding out. These can be annoying, sometimes fouling on the attachment screw underneath the plate if it has an oversize head. Changing the screw usually fixes it, but the standard A-S safety lock is a really simple and effective method with two studs on each end of the plate (they can be removed with a small Allen key if needs be) that butt against the clamp if the lock accidentally comes loose (never happened to me). This is really all you need. The beauty of the A-S system is its mechanical simplicity, speed and ease of use, security, and compatibility with lots of other stuff like gimbal heads, nodal rails, L-brackets etc.
 
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Only 99% true. There is no official spec for Arca-Swiss plates and clamps, so all other manufacturers just get hold of what they think is a pukka A-S plate and copy it, so inevitably there are some fractional differences, but in some dimensions a faction of a mm makes a difference.
Yes, agreed. I knew someone would pick me up on that, but thought that for the OPs purposes it would suffice.
 
Yes, agreed. I knew someone would pick me up on that, but thought that for the OPs purposes it would suffice.

Yes, sorry to bring it up ;) In pactise, it's a hypothetical problem, no worries, but incompatibility issues often get mentioned and might put people off what is IMHO the best tripod QR system.

And at long last, both Manfrotto and Gitzo have adopted it (years behind everyone else!).
 
Cool, was just some video on you tube where his ARCA plate from another ball head didn't fit very well!
 
Cool, was just some video on you tube where his ARCA plate from another ball head didn't fit very well!
I'm sure Hoppy will agree that you are unlikely to have any problems: the head does come with it's own plate and I think it's unlikely that a Black Rapid will not fit securely.
 
Oh cool! So would it work with say the black rapid ARCA plate?

Yes, the new Black Rapid A-S plate should work fine. But, tripod plates are generally a problem with Black Rapid-type straps and although we can't see underneath that one on the BR website, it must have a recess to give enough clearance for the FastenR screw. In other words, you'll have a problem with any other A-S plate, or an L-bracket etc, with a strap that attches via the tripod screw.

Search google images and you'll find loads of ways that people have come up with to overcome this. I've tried quite a few solutions and the one I use now, and that works quickly and easily with everything, is this A-S £12 clamp* https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product...act_title_1?ie=UTF8&psc=1&smid=A31BIY105ZBEB4 with these £7 Op/Tech Utility Loops https://www.amazon.co.uk/OP-TECH-Ut...74643601&sr=1-1&keywords=op+tech+utility+loop

*They're good clamps (I have several) with attachment points for straps etc, and a fast-thread locking screw that only takes one full turn to close. That one also has a 1/4in fitting thread, meaning you could attach a FastenR directly to it. There is also another version of the same clamp available with the more usual 3/8in screw.
 
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Are there any other plates that work with the black rapid fastenr? I know 3LT used to do one.
 
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