Manfrotto 322RC2 Joystick tripod ball head review

[DPNow]

Here is a summary or excerpt from an article that has just been published on DPNow:

If a bulky pan and tilt or plain ball head aren't for you and your tripod, what about a self-locking joystick grip style head? An example of this is the Manfrotto 322RC2 quikc release head. Stephen Anstey like it so much he went and bought one. Read why in his review.

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[Shenstone]

Re: Manfrotto 322RC2 Joystick tripod ball head review

I have also purchased on of these recently and whilst I like the device there are 2 things that may be worth expanding on

The Article says you need a firm grip to release the head and allow movement this is definitely the case and whilst you can adjust the ball tension you can't adjust this so if doing a lot of tracking get ready for a sore hand

The kit does come with a conversion from Left to Right and to vertical. I like to have my right hand on the camera controls so wanted to have the release on the left. I did the job, but had 2 frustrations

1. The supplied allen key didn't fit - I was not happy, but being DIY handy I have penty in the garage that did.

2. The little rubber stoppers that blank off the spare holes are east to get out and little B***ers to get back in again. Don't expect to get that done in a hurry. I ended up using a finer allen key down the middle of them and screwing them back in

I do like it now I've got it setup though and echo the confidence that I have leaving a camera on it

Regards
Andy

[Stephen]

Re: Manfrotto 322RC2 Joystick tripod ball head review

Thanks for your comments Andy, its always good to have actual user experience of such things. I take your point about having a sore hand when doing a lot of tracking. If this is the case and anyone was using their tripod for tracking birds for example, I'd question whether this was the right head. In my own case though, I think I'd prefer not to use a tripod at all, though its certainly not something I do often anyway.

I've not used my Allen key yet, I'm happy with the trigger on the right. I might have a go though just to see if there is an issue