The story begins-
Not so long ago in a galaxy not far away at all I rapidly came to the conclusion that a scope as wonderful as it was, couldn’t do everything. I was starting to hanker after wider views and more of a grab and go setup for quick viewing sessions. The purchase of a 10x50 and 15x70 soon followed. These were great but showed that my old photographic tripod wasn’t nearly good enough for support. I built a parallelogram mount for use with a zero gravity chair but this arrangement anchored me down too much and I much preferred being more mobile. At home I have to move about to view different areas of sky due to buildings and trees.
A monopod looked like the answer and I bought three very cheap ones so I could experiment and even build my own binocular tripod. The tripod idea showed a very good stable support but was too cumbersome in use. Therefore the monopod was the way to go and I picked up a trigger grip ball head which I initially thought was the ideal setup. It soon became apparent that the stability needed to be improved and so I embarked on a long process of experimenting with all sorts of stabiliser ideas, hoping to come up with something simple but very clever to solve the issue. Some ideas showed promise but were too complex, heavy and led to something that had far too much `contraption` about it. I settled on a simple design that has kept me happy for a few years now-
Over time the trigger grip has performed well but others have described its use as like wrestling a snake. This is especially true for my 15x70 which weighs 2.5Kg. When viewing I continually have to take my hand off the monopod to adjust the elevation for viewing different objects. I came to think that an ideal setup would be a twist grip on the crossbar that linked to a fluid counterbalanced head. That way I would never have to shift my hand position to view different altitudes. With this in mind I started to experiment with some ideas but had no experience of a fluid head. Ebay came to the fore and I managed to get a professional Manfrotto monopod with a fluid head and feet at a very cheap price.
What a wonderful experience! After setting the panning handle to the right angle this becomes far better for me than the trigger head. The counterbance is slightly too much for my 10x50 at 1.2Kg, and not quite enough for my 2.5Kg 15x70. This is easily accounted for by a slight pressure from the locking knob. With both binoculars I can easily point them where I want and they will stay there. I can easily glide around the sky with a very pleasurable smooth silky movement. I’ve read on here that some people shorten the panning handle or remove it altogether. For me it is a definite plus as holding the monopod in two places aids the stability like my crossbar did. The long lever enhances the smoothness of the head. I also don’t need to shift my grip when adjusting the elevation, and the handle is a handy place to mount the phone for the Astrohopper app. This is now my preferred way of binocular viewing both night and day. My trigger grip crossbar stabiliser is now probably on the well worn route to back of the shed and eventually to Ebay. The crossbar is very slightly more comfortable and stable and would be improved a lot by using better quality monopods, but not enough to prevail.
For a long time I used binoculars mostly for astronomy and hardly ever for daytime activities. This changed when I realised how pleasant it was to just spend an hour looking at the distant hills, wildlife, ships, etc. It was even better when I bought an 8x32 for easier portability to take with me on walks and travels. I can use the binoculars hand held but if I’m going to be observing for any length of time then I’d far rather they be supported. It has been very nice to take my fluid monopod out to a grassy hill and just enjoy the outlook.
There are some good hills near where I live that offer some excellent views of the surrounding area. It’s not a long hike but quite steep and annoyingly my body has started to complain about the jobs my brain wants it to do, especially my knees. The two kilo Manfrotto monopod is luxurious and the support of choice, but for carrying up hill and down dale though the weight does make itself felt. Browsing on AliExpress there were a number of lighter weight options at a price I couldn’t ignore. After some research and reading a few reviews I settled on a Manbily A222 monopod, M1 feet and an Evumo V1n fluid head.
This came to the princely sum of about £44 delivered. The monopod has twist rather than flip locks which I’m not keen on but will get used to. The feet have needed a slight modification as the pins that allow each foot to be folded out are quite thin and have a strong spring so can be painful on the fingers. I therefore pressed on some discs made from polycarbonate sheet to make them more comfortable.
The surprise has been the Evumo fluid head. It only cost me about £22 but is very smooth and nicely counterbalanced. The elevation locking knob cannot lock totally as it’s too small to provide enough friction. But it can easily compensate for the counterbalance when using heavier or lighter binoculars. I also like the fact that the knob heads are the type you can pull out on a spring and rotate to a different more convenient position. The only thing which I knew before ordering was the short panning handle. I had hoped that I could use the Manfrotto one but it won’t fit on this head. The supplied handle is a solid aluminium bar with an outside diameter of 10mm, and the actual handle is just rubber that has been pushed on. I’ve extended it by using a piece of 10mm inside diameter carbon fibre tube which is a very tight push fit. I have tried to accentuate the bend so that there is more of an offset from the monopod to make room for my hand, but this needs more force than I’ve tried so far. I may just mount the handle further away from the head with some sort of spacer and a longer bolt.
This whole setup is about half the weight of the Manfrotto one and offers much the same functionality for its daytime use. It also has the advantage of closing to a shorter length. These things make it better for travelling. It only extends to 1650mm which is too short for viewing near the zenith while standing, but I’m deliberately trading size for a low weight. If necessary it could always be fitted with one of those short extensions of maybe about 200mm. It’s light enough for me to use as a sort of deluxe finn stick for high altitudes and so is of no great concern. Of course I could remove the feet for a lighter weight but having the collapsed monopod standing on its own is highly convenient.
The greater weight and professional quality of the Manfrotto make it an easy choice for astronomy or for when I’m observing without the need to go too far from the car or home. Otherwise the AliExpress unit has proved itself perfectly capable. It works well and will definitely come with me if I travel. And at only £44 it won’t hurt too much if it gets lost somewhere. I’d hate to lose the Manfrotto.
Edited by Binofrac, 16 March 2025 - 08:10 AM.
