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Sachtler Video 18 P (10894) fluid head balance issue
I have recently acquired a Sachtler Video 18 (P10894) video camera fluid head and tripod. It is about 10 years old. I am trying to adjust the camera balance, but the camera balance lever, although it unscrews, does not allow me to slide the camera up and down the plate to find the perfect balance. However, if I unscrew the front of the balance plate I can then reposition the camera, and the red balance lever will screw and lock. This would be fine if leaving the balance plate unscrewed didn’t mean the camera would shake during rigorous panning or tilting. I don’t have the original manual but I downloaded the one for the current version and it makes no sense what-so ever. Probably because it references features (boost support) that this head/tripod does not have.
Can anyone out there help. Preferably someone with the same fluid head/tripod or knowledge of it.
Thanks
A
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6 Replies
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Hi Adrian, we have that exact fluid head and love it. In fact I’ve had it for over ten years, and it’s been rock solid. So first of all, you got a very good fluid head there. But I’m not sure that I fully understand your question / issue. On ours, to move the camera forward and backwards on the head to adjust the balance, there is a red lever that you loosen, move (sometimes you have to wiggle it a bit, or tap it) the camera to where you need it to get the balance, and then tighten that red lever. Now when you say ” if I unscrew the front of the balance plate…” do you mean the screws that attach the wedge plate to the quick release plate? Usually two screws – a big and a small. One thing that could be happening is that one of these screws is somehow inhibiting things. They have to be the flat headed screws that came with the tripod and the wedge plate- otherwise they will block this motion. Make sense? Am I even getting your problem right here?
Tom Miller
Big Pictures Media
Denver, Coloradohttps://www.BigPicturesMedia.com
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Hi Tom:
Thanks for the quick response. Yes, you have pretty much got the gist of my question. It may be that the two screws (either side of the actual plate – either side of the red lever) are not the original (they don’t seem to be flat). So they may be impeding it. I keep reading in the manual that in order to release the plate and let it slide back and forth I’m supposed to pull the red leaver back as far as it will go. Well, i can’t pull it any direction. it does unscrew (in fact it came fully unscrewed so i don’t know if that did anything). It’s very frustrating as in every other respect this is a great tripod (and I only paid $200 on Craigslist for the head and sticks combined). I will check into the screw issue some more.
Thanks again
A
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Wow – you got an amazing deal there! I think all you need to do is search for those correct screws. Maybe Google Sachtler wedge plate screws. They aren’t as cheap as they should be, but you do need the exact ones. I bet that is your problem. By the way, all you have to do with that red lever is screw it or unscrew it – there’s no pulling it as far as I know. Good luck and let me know how it turns out.
Tom Miller
Big Pictures Media
Denver, Coloradohttp://www.BigPicturesMedia.com
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Thanks for your help.
A
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Hi Thomas:
Just thought I’d follow up and let you know I managed to fix the balance plate screw issue with 5 washers from Ace Hardware (two each for the actual retaining screws and one for the balance plate lever) and a generous squirt of WD40. Works like a dream now.
My total cost for a Satchel Video 18 (head and sticks) is now $203.38
Not bad, eh?
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