E-Image Carbon Fiber Monopod with Hand Crank

Nice Monopod With Unique Capability

Finally Found The Almost Perfect Solution For My Standing, Mobile Binocular Astronomy That Demands Unusual Length, Stability, And Easy Precise Adjustments To Height. Build Quality: Seems Very Good. Minimal Use Of Plastics And A Smooth, Solid Feel To All The Parts And Movements. Time Will Tell As To Durability Of The Crank, Bottom Ball Joint And Feet Mechanisms—those Are Going To Get Used A Lot, Hoping They Stand Up. Functionality: Very Good, Despite Pre-purchase Uncertainties And Some Surprises In Specs And Operation Due To Incomplete Manufacturer’s Description (even On Their Own Website). B&H Responsively Answered All My Questions Ahead Of Time—but I Didn’t Know Everything To Ask. So Here’s The Unpublished Info: - The Geared Column Element Is Nicely Long At 15.5.” - The Legs/feet Fold Down In Three Increments, From ~10° To ~30° To ~60° Below Horizontal. They Don’t Tell You This But 6” Of The Advertised 72.8” Max Height Of The Monopod Comes From Unfolding The Feet Down To Their Lowest Setting. The Middle Much More Stable 30° Position Sets The Max At 70.3” (2.5” Less Than Advertised). Fortunately That’s Still Long Enough For Me. At The 10°, Splayed-almost-flat Position, The Height Is 5” Less Than Advertised Max. - The Ball Joint Base Provides Nice Tilt Control. Rotation Is Somewhat Stiff. - A Pleasant Surprise: Even Under Load And With Its Friction Collar Loosened, The Geared Column Holds Vertical Position When One Lets Go Of The Crank. - Finally, In Case The Published Weight Doesn’t Fully Register—despite Its Carbon Fiber Construction, This Is A Heavy Monopod (due To The Geared Column & Crank And The Robust Legs/feet). Personally I Like The Weight As It Adds Stability; But I Have No Ambition To Backpack It Or Carry Aboard An Airplane. Overall I’m Very Happy With This Monopod, There’s Nothing Else Like It Out There And They Seem To Have Done This One Right. Looking Forward To Many Years Of Astronomy With It.