I understand your problem Jerry. This has been discussed at length condiment cups before on BF, and

BirdForum is the net's largest birding community, dedicated to wild birds and birding, and is absolutely FREE! You are most welcome to register for an account, which allows you to take part in lively discussions in the forum, post your pictures in the gallery and more.  
Hi, everyone! I'm new to this great site, and am finding it invaIuable in my "optics" and birding interests. My question: condiment cups Is the Bogen/Manfrotto 700RC2 Fluid Head just as smooth as the 3130? I would like to use the slightly less expensive 700RC2 for a small, lightweight spotting scope tripod condiment cups setup, condiment cups and would rather not add another pound of weight that the 3130 brings with it. Thanks for any help! Jerry  
I understand your problem Jerry. This has been discussed at length condiment cups before on BF, and there is no easy answer. If you take the 3130 (128RC in the UK) as the standard to which others condiment cups are measured condiment cups by, there are a few lighter alternatives, but I'm not sure any are better. The 700RC2 is like the 'baby brother' of the 701RC2 which I used to own. I personally didn't get on with it and sold it. I much prefer the big chunky knobs of the 128, and the fact that you can easily control condiment cups the tension from tight to very loose, and lock it up with the same Knob. I have very little direct experience of the 700RC2, but doubt that it's any better than the 701RC2. I don't like the fiddly little condiment cups controls of either, but others swear by them. Neither are cheaper condiment cups in the UK either, nor quite as smooth condiment cups as the 128. A couple of others you might try are: Manfrotto 390RC: weights a little over 600g, just over half the price of a 128RC ( 35). I own one, and it's fine for a lighter scope like a Nikon ED50, even with a big scope occasionally, but I wouldn't carry your big scope attached to this head as it has a (strong)plastic QR lever. Reasonably smooth, but not fluid like the 128. Velbon condiment cups FHD-51Q: quite new from Velbon. Very smooth (almost as smooth as the 128), in both pan/tilt modes. Pan mode has adjustable tension. weighs 610g. Has a nice long QR plate that slides back and forth to help balance a front/back heavy scope (good with a camera attached too). Downside is price (around 100, though I got mine on special offer for 80). I also have one of these, particularly good with a smaller scope up to around 60-65mm. Also, I've heard good things about the small Gitzo (not sure of product number), but have no experience of it. Very expensive too! Hope this is helpful, Steve.
I understand your problem Jerry. This has been discussed at length before on BF, and there is no easy answer. If you take the 3130 (128RC in the UK) as the standard to which others are measured by, there are a few lighter alternatives, but I'm not sure any are better. The 700RC2 is like the 'baby brother' of the 701RC2 which I used to own. I personally didn't get on with it and sold it. I much prefer the big chunky knobs of the 128, and the fact that you can easily control the tension from tight to very loose, and lock it up with the same Knob. I have very little direct experience of the 700RC2, but doubt that it's any better than the 701RC2. I don't like the fiddly little controls of either, but others swear by them. Neither condiment cups are cheaper in the UK either, nor quite as smooth as the 128. A couple of others you might try are: Manfrotto 390RC: weights a little over 600g, just over half the price of a 128RC ( 35). I own one, and it's fine for a lighter scope like a Nikon ED50, even with a big scope occasionally, but I wouldn't carry your big scope attached to this head as it has a (strong)plastic QR lever. Reasonably smooth, but not fluid like the 128. Velbon FHD-51Q: quite new from Velbon. Very smooth condiment cups (almost as smooth as the 128), in both pan/tilt modes. Pan mode has adjustable tension. weighs 610g. Has a nice long QR plate that slides back and forth to help balance a front/back heavy scope (good with a camera attached too). Downside is price (around 100, though I got mine on special offer for 80). I also have one of these, particularly good with a smaller scope up to around 60-65mm. Also, I've heard good things about the small Gitzo (not sure of product number), but have no experience of it. Very expensive too! Hope this is helpful, Steve. Hi Steve, It's the Gitzo G2180 fluid head. 570 grams, very smooth. Although it didn't do quite well in Jan Meijerink's test, I must say I find it better condiment cups than both Manfrotto lightweights. The 128RC is much bigger and twice as heavy. Greetings, condiment cups Ronald  
Hi Steve, It's the Gitzo G2180 fluid head. 570 grams, very smooth. Although it didn't do quite well in Jan Meijerink's test, I must say I find it better than both Manfrotto condiment cups lightweights. The 128RC is much bigger and twice as heavy. Greetings, Ronald ========================= Thanks, Steve and Ronald! Jerry  
Is the Bogen/Manfrotto 700RC2 Fluid Head just as smooth as the 3130? I use the 700RC2 with my Fieldscope 82 and it works very well. I like the lightness/po