Actually, Sponenburgh & Sons.

Recently, a friend traded a "good, but slightly worn" Bogen 3300
tripod with an Italian pistol-grip pan&tilt head to me in return for
some minor machine work.

Poor thing: It looked like it had been dropped off the bed of a semi
with a broadcast-sized camera attached. On leg wouldn't extend any
more; the elevation crank was snapped off; the entire mounting shoe
and screw assembly was snapped right off the aluminum casting ....

It was also too good to scrap. I'd just gotten my son a new mid-range
digital camera, so we decided to make a Saturday afternoon project of
it.

Un-dimpled the dented leg, so the telescoping sections would slide.
Fabricated a new crank, complete.
Fabricated a new mount shoe with a cone-lock arrangement, and surfaced
the old casting to accept it.

Hell... it's better than any tripod he could actually afford to buy!

Pix at http://www.pyrobin.com/files/tripod%...ures%20006.jpg
and http://www.pyrobin.com/files/tripod%...ures%20004.jpg

LLoyd

Great save, Lloyd. I always find it to be very gratifying work to repair an
apparatus that was made well.

Quality tripods are very expensive, and from what I've seen, the old ones
are best because they can be repaired, and they're actually worth repairing.
There aren't a lot of options for repairing a section of graphite (or other)
reinforced tubing. Epoxy may rejoin the break, but won't restore the full
strength.

Many of the supporting structures on the newest gear is some high-tech
material molded into a channel, not even tubular. Channel sections are
fairly delicate no matter what they're made of.

--
WB
..........
metalworking projects
www.kwagmire.com/metal_proj.html


"Lloyd E. Sponenburgh" lloydspinsidemindspring.com wrote in message
. 3.70...
Actually, Sponenburgh & Sons.

Recently, a friend traded a "good, but slightly worn" Bogen 3300
tripod with an Italian pistol-grip pan&tilt head to me in return for
some minor machine work.

Poor thing: It looked like it had been dropped off the bed of a semi
with a broadcast-sized camera attached. On leg wouldn't extend any
more; the elevation crank was snapped off; the entire mounting shoe
and screw assembly was snapped right off the aluminum casting ....

It was also too good to scrap. I'd just gotten my son a new mid-range
digital camera, so we decided to make a Saturday afternoon project of
it.

Un-dimpled the dented leg, so the telescoping sections would slide.
Fabricated a new crank, complete.
Fabricated a new mount shoe with a cone-lock arrangement, and surfaced
the old casting to accept it.

Hell... it's better than any tripod he could actually afford to buy!

Pix at http://www.pyrobin.com/files/tripod%...ures%20006.jpg
and http://www.pyrobin.com/files/tripod%...ures%20004.jpg

LLoyd

"Lloyd E. Sponenburgh" lloydspinsidemindspring.com wrote:

It was also too good to scrap. I'd just gotten my son a new mid-range
digital camera, so we decided to make a Saturday afternoon project of
it.

Un-dimpled the dented leg, so the telescoping sections would slide.
Fabricated a new crank, complete.
Fabricated a new mount shoe with a cone-lock arrangement, and surfaced
the old casting to accept it.

Hell... it's better than any tripod he could actually afford to buy!

Did you make a plug to run down the leg to bump the dent out?

You done good. Pistol grip head, is that used for sports photography?

Wes

Wes fired this volley in news:ik66l.62895$jv1.12614
@en-nntp-09.dc1.easynews.com:

Did you make a plug to run down the leg to bump the dent out?

You done good. Pistol grip head, is that used for sports
photography?



Yes on #1. A delrin plug, slightly tapered at the business end, and
slotted 4-locations to clear the anti-rotation ribs inside the tube.

It took longer to make the tool than to fix the dent.

#2... eh... I dunno. I have a cheaper tripod with a conventional
pan/tilt head. You know the kind; has a long knobbed handle you
unscrew to loosen/tighten it. This one seems to have the principle
advantage of instantaneous unlocking/movement/re-locking. I
immediately liked it, and appreciated its worth. But I don't know if
it's targeted toward a specific type of work.

LLoyd

--
J Miller
"Lloyd E. Sponenburgh" lloydspinsidemindspring.com wrote in message
. 3.70...
Actually, Sponenburgh & Sons.

Recently, a friend traded a "good, but slightly worn" Bogen 3300
tripod with an Italian pistol-grip pan&tilt head to me in return for
some minor machine work.

Poor thing: It looked like it had been dropped off the bed of a semi
with a broadcast-sized camera attached. On leg wouldn't extend any
more; the elevation crank was snapped off; the entire mounting shoe
and screw assembly was snapped right off the aluminum casting ....

It was also too good to scrap. I'd just gotten my son a new mid-range
digital camera, so we decided to make a Saturday afternoon project of
it.

Un-dimpled the dented leg, so the telescoping sections would slide.
Fabricated a new crank, complete.
Fabricated a new mount shoe with a cone-lock arrangement, and surfaced
the old casting to accept it.

Hell... it's better than any tripod he could actually afford to buy!

Pix at http://www.pyrobin.com/files/tripod%...ures%20006.jpg
and http://www.pyrobin.com/files/tripod%...ures%20004.jpg

LLoyd

A good definition for a work-a-holic G.

I didn't realize that snow gets moldy and turns green.

John M

On Mon, 29 Dec 2008 10:05:54 -0600, "Lloyd E. Sponenburgh"
lloydspinsidemindspring.com wrote:

Wes fired this volley in news:ik66l.62895$jv1.12614
:

You done good. Pistol grip head, is that used for sports
photography?

snip
#2... eh... I dunno. I have a cheaper tripod with a conventional
pan/tilt head. You know the kind; has a long knobbed handle you
unscrew to loosen/tighten it. This one seems to have the principle
advantage of instantaneous unlocking/movement/re-locking. I
immediately liked it, and appreciated its worth. But I don't know if
it's targeted toward a specific type of work.

LLoyd

When I first saw one of these they were pushing them for use
with video cameras. Interestingly it was on a Bogen tripod
and at the time I thought the head was Bogen too. May
explain why I couldn't find that head in a Bogen catalog a
few years later. Either wasn't Bogen or they discontinued
it.

--
Leon Fisk
Grand Rapids MI/Zone 5b
Remove no.spam for email

Leon Fisk wrote:

When I first saw one of these they were pushing them for use
with video cameras. Interestingly it was on a Bogen tripod
and at the time I thought the head was Bogen too. May
explain why I couldn't find that head in a Bogen catalog a
few years later. Either wasn't Bogen or they discontinued
it.


I think Manfrotto makes this type of head. B&H photo carries them.

Wes

"John Miller" wrote:

I didn't realize that snow gets moldy and turns green.


I think he was bragging. (not about the tripod save, we know he can do it)

Wes

Wes fired this volley in news:Fo96l.24255$kG.21698
@en-nntp-06.dc1.easynews.com:


I think Manfrotto makes this type of head. B&H photo carries them.


Yes, that is a Manfrotto head; a fairly old one. The tripod alone is
pretty affordable. Slip on that pistol-grip head, and it becomes a
"professional" item.

I guess anyone in the biz could afford one; they're only in the $400
range ON a Bogen tripod... but that's way past the snapshot experience
of my son.

LLoyd

Lloyd E. Sponenburgh wrote:
Actually, Sponenburgh & Sons.
SNIP
It was also too good to scrap. I'd just gotten my son a new mid-range
digital camera, so we decided to make a Saturday afternoon project of
it.

LLoyd


Nice work! I have a similar old Bogen tripod that someone gave me. It
is complete (no head, though) except that one of the clamps that you use
to adjust the legs is missing. Looks like it would be not all that hard
to make one, though the original was from a casting. Would be a simple
pattern to make, that would much simplify the fabrication. I have no
casting capability right now, though I do have a small electric furnaace
that could easily melt enough aluminum. May be an excuse for some low
grade casting experiments. Or maybe I gotta find a casting buddy near by
who is already set up. Consider me inspired...

AL A wrote:
Lloyd E. Sponenburgh wrote:
Actually, Sponenburgh & Sons.
SNIP
It was also too good to scrap. I'd just gotten my son a new
mid-range digital camera, so we decided to make a Saturday afternoon
project of it.

LLoyd


Nice work! I have a similar old Bogen tripod that someone gave me. It
is complete (no head, though) except that one of the clamps that you
use to adjust the legs is missing. Looks like it would be not all
that hard to make one, though the original was from a casting. Would
be a simple pattern to make, that would much simplify the
fabrication. I have no casting capability right now, though I do have
a small electric furnaace that could easily melt enough aluminum. May
be an excuse for some low grade casting experiments. Or maybe I gotta
find a casting buddy near by who is already set up. Consider me
inspired...

What part of the world do you live in ? There's hobbycasters scattered all
over the place ... If you're anywhere near west Tennessee I might be
interested .
--
Snag
every answer
leads to another
question

Terry Coombs wrote:

What part of the world do you live in ? There's hobbycasters scattered all
over the place ... If you're anywhere near west Tennessee I might be
interested .


Thanks, Terry. I know there are a number of folks around here that do
hobby casting, though none of them well enough to invite myself over....

I appreciate the offer, but West Tennessee is a drive from here, I'm
in NE Mass-A-chew-sets, about 30 miles N of Boston. Would love to see
Tennessee, though.

We have a pretty active model engineers club that meets not far from
here, I have a friend that is a member and regular at the meetings. This
might enough motivation to get me out the join, like I have been
planning to for quite a while.

Gotta make me a pattern, I suppose.

Thanks,
AL

AL A fired this volley in news:gjbuap$vi8$1
@news.motzarella.org:

Gotta make me a pattern, I suppose.

Thanks,
AL


Al... when you have a hammer....

Those toggle levers are so durned simple, it would be less than an
hour's work to fabricate one from a slab of aluminum.

I know the casting part has allure... but time is so - damned -
precious!

LLoyd

AL A wrote:
Terry Coombs wrote:

What part of the world do you live in ? There's hobbycasters
scattered all over the place ... If you're anywhere near west
Tennessee I might be interested .


Thanks, Terry. I know there are a number of folks around here that do
hobby casting, though none of them well enough to invite myself
over....
I appreciate the offer, but West Tennessee is a drive from here, I'm
in NE Mass-A-chew-sets, about 30 miles N of Boston. Would love to see
Tennessee, though.

We have a pretty active model engineers club that meets not far from
here, I have a friend that is a member and regular at the meetings.
This might enough motivation to get me out the join, like I have been
planning to for quite a while.

Gotta make me a pattern, I suppose.

Thanks,
AL

So it would appear ... did you know you can melt small amounts of aluminum
in a flowerpot with a handheld propane torch ? A melt of 8 oz wouldn't be
all that difficult , and would quite likely handle your clamp part .
Google flower pot foundry ...
--
Snag
every answer
leads to another
question

Terry Coombs wrote:
AL A wrote:
Terry Coombs wrote:

What part of the world do you live in ? There's hobbycasters
scattered all over the place ... If you're anywhere near west
Tennessee I might be interested .


Thanks, Terry. I know there are a number of folks around here that do
hobby casting, though none of them well enough to invite myself
over....
I appreciate the offer, but West Tennessee is a drive from here, I'm
in NE Mass-A-chew-sets, about 30 miles N of Boston. Would love to see
Tennessee, though.

We have a pretty active model engineers club that meets not far from
here, I have a friend that is a member and regular at the meetings.
This might enough motivation to get me out the join, like I have been
planning to for quite a while.

Gotta make me a pattern, I suppose.

Thanks,
AL

So it would appear ... did you know you can melt small amounts of aluminum
in a flowerpot with a handheld propane torch ? A melt of 8 oz wouldn't be
all that difficult , and would quite likely handle your clamp part .
Google flower pot foundry ...

melting alumimum is easy- making a mold that works and getting a usable
casting is where the challenge is.

Cydrome Leader wrote:
Terry Coombs wrote:
AL A wrote:
Terry Coombs wrote:

What part of the world do you live in ? There's hobbycasters
scattered all over the place ... If you're anywhere near west
Tennessee I might be interested .


Thanks, Terry. I know there are a number of folks around here that
do hobby casting, though none of them well enough to invite myself
over....
I appreciate the offer, but West Tennessee is a drive from here,
I'm in NE Mass-A-chew-sets, about 30 miles N of Boston. Would love
to see Tennessee, though.

We have a pretty active model engineers club that meets not far
from here, I have a friend that is a member and regular at the
meetings. This might enough motivation to get me out the join, like
I have been planning to for quite a while.

Gotta make me a pattern, I suppose.

Thanks,
AL

So it would appear ... did you know you can melt small amounts of
aluminum in a flowerpot with a handheld propane torch ? A melt of 8
oz wouldn't be all that difficult , and would quite likely handle
your clamp part . Google flower pot foundry ...

melting alumimum is easy- making a mold that works and getting a
usable casting is where the challenge is.

My second "real" casting (not counting the 20+ ingots I poured from scrap)
is a lost-foam adapter plate that bolts to my rotary table and has a
"spindle nose" threaded 1.5"X 8 tpi to mount my lathe chucks . It's not
perfect , but it's damn sure usable . Molded thursday , poured friday , and
finished the machining sunday evening .
--
Snag
every answer
leads to another
question

Lloyd E. Sponenburgh wrote:

#2... eh... I dunno. I have a cheaper tripod with a conventional
pan/tilt head. You know the kind; has a long knobbed handle you
unscrew to loosen/tighten it. This one seems to have the principle
advantage of instantaneous unlocking/movement/re-locking. I
immediately liked it, and appreciated its worth. But I don't know if
it's targeted toward a specific type of work.

They are REALLY nice under a spotting scope and for just the reason you
mentioned.

BobH

In article ,
AL A wrote:

Lloyd E. Sponenburgh wrote:
Actually, Sponenburgh & Sons.
SNIP
It was also too good to scrap. I'd just gotten my son a new mid-range
digital camera, so we decided to make a Saturday afternoon project of
it.

LLoyd


Nice work! I have a similar old Bogen tripod that someone gave me. It
is complete (no head, though) except that one of the clamps that you use
to adjust the legs is missing. Looks like it would be not all that hard
to make one, though the original was from a casting. Would be a simple
pattern to make, that would much simplify the fabrication. I have no
casting capability right now, though I do have a small electric furnaace
that could easily melt enough aluminum. May be an excuse for some low
grade casting experiments. Or maybe I gotta find a casting buddy near by
who is already set up. Consider me inspired...

Bogen supplies spare parts on old tripods. Given that Manfrotto (sp?)
makes Bogen's tripods as well as those of others, one can often get a
repair part for a non-bogen tripod from Bogen, if one can find the
matching model in Bogen's catalog. I have done this.

Joe Gwinn

Lloyd E. Sponenburgh wrote:
AL A fired this volley in news:gjbuap$vi8$1
@news.motzarella.org:

Gotta make me a pattern, I suppose.

Thanks,
AL


Al... when you have a hammer....

Those toggle levers are so durned simple, it would be less than an
hour's work to fabricate one from a slab of aluminum.

I know the casting part has allure... but time is so - damned -
precious!

LLoyd


Lloyd,
Not sure if this is the same as yours, but I am missing the whole
locking collar. It is sort of a sleeve with two different sized bores,
(one for the larger tube, and one for the smaller telescoping tube) and
it has wingnut type screws to tighten the collars. They could likely be
fabricated without castings, the casting part would make it a bit easier
from a machining standpoint.

I agree 100% on the time thing. It does seem to get harder to find any
"extra" these days.

Joseph Gwinn wrote:
In article ,

Bogen supplies spare parts on old tripods. Given that Manfrotto (sp?)
makes Bogen's tripods as well as those of others, one can often get a
repair part for a non-bogen tripod from Bogen, if one can find the
matching model in Bogen's catalog. I have done this.

Joe Gwinn


You are likely right Joe. This is a common Bogen/manfrotto tripod, I
can't recall the model right now, but it is not one of the very high-end
or exotic models.

But aren't we missing the whole point here? Why would I BUY a twenty
dollar part when I can spend easily two hundred dollars worth on my time
to make one on the thousands of dollars worth of machines I have in my
garage?

-Al

AL A fired this volley in news:gjen1j$qou$1
@news.motzarella.org:

Not sure if this is the same as yours, but I am missing the whole
locking collar. It is sort of a sleeve with two different sized
bores,
(one for the larger tube, and one for the smaller telescoping tube)
and
it has wingnut type screws to tighten the collars.

Almost the same. Yours is probably an earlier vintage. Mine has the
same collars, but a cam-lock toggle lever to do the locking. I was
referring to the lever.

However, I think the collar would be pretty easy to fab, too; maybe
with a smidge of welding or riveting.

LLoyd

Lloyd E. Sponenburgh wrote:
AL A fired this volley in news:gjen1j$qou$1
@news.motzarella.org:


Almost the same. Yours is probably an earlier vintage. Mine has the
same collars, but a cam-lock toggle lever to do the locking. I was
referring to the lever.

However, I think the collar would be pretty easy to fab, too; maybe
with a smidge of welding or riveting.

LLoyd

Yep, the collar part looks really easy to make from a poece of round
stock, it is those "ears" that do the clamping that are a bit trickier.
Welding seemed to me the way to do it. I don't have any aluminum welding
capability here, but have access to someone who can do that for me. This
would need very little welding, should be quick & easy.

This is a "tier 2" project, meaning that it is not a priority thing. I
have a nice tripod already, another Bogen, in fact. So I don't really
NEED this one. It just bugs me to have it hanging around incomplete.
I'm sure you understand...

In article ,
AL A wrote:

Joseph Gwinn wrote:
In article ,

Bogen supplies spare parts on old tripods. Given that Manfrotto (sp?)
makes Bogen's tripods as well as those of others, one can often get a
repair part for a non-bogen tripod from Bogen, if one can find the
matching model in Bogen's catalog. I have done this.

Joe Gwinn


You are likely right Joe. This is a common Bogen/manfrotto tripod, I
can't recall the model right now, but it is not one of the very high-end
or exotic models.

But aren't we missing the whole point here? Why would I BUY a twenty
dollar part when I can spend easily two hundred dollars worth on my time
to make one on the thousands of dollars worth of machines I have in my
garage?

Ooh. Sorry to be such a kill-joy.

Joe Gwinn

Joseph Gwinn wrote:
In article ,
AL A wrote:



You are likely right Joe. This is a common Bogen/manfrotto tripod, I
can't recall the model right now, but it is not one of the very high-end
or exotic models.

But aren't we missing the whole point here? Why would I BUY a twenty
dollar part when I can spend easily two hundred dollars worth on my time
to make one on the thousands of dollars worth of machines I have in my
garage?

Ooh. Sorry to be such a kill-joy.

Joe Gwinn

Just kidding, now Joe, don't be offended. As someone who hangs around
RCM, I'm sure you understand the mentality.

That reminds me of a year or two back when I brought my car in to the
local service place for my state inspection sticker. One of the
mechanics there is a biker type, he asked me if I could make him a
couple of bushings for a bike he was building. I jotted down what he
needed, and as they were simple parts, maybe 1.25 dia with a 5/8" hole
through the middle (or something like that) I whipped two out from some
stainless scraps I had. When I went back to get my car, I gave them to
him went out to the office to pay for my inspection, and the lady told
me that the mechanic had covered it for me. I went home, pretty happy
about that, told my wife. She said "That's great. You fill your shop up
with 10 grand worth of junk, and you just saved 29 bucks on a sticker.
Shrewed operator you are..."

-Al

AL A wrote:

You are likely right Joe. This is a common Bogen/manfrotto tripod, I
can't recall the model right now, but it is not one of the very high-end
or exotic models.

But aren't we missing the whole point here? Why would I BUY a twenty
dollar part when I can spend easily two hundred dollars worth on my time
to make one on the thousands of dollars worth of machines I have in my
garage?


Your logic seems perfectly normal to me. Everytime I use my tools to make something or
fix something I recoup my investment and provide myself cheap entertainment.

Wes