Feisol CT-3441 mini review - My new three-legged friend has arrived..

..after a long wait to get it shipped from Taiwan and through customs.

I thought it would be good to put my thoughts up about this piece of kit as there are not a great deal of reviews available for products from this company, and especially this new model.

Initial thoughts
I bought this as a travel / everyday use tripod - I didn't want anything too bulky but sturdy enough to handle most of my kit (Canon 30D, various lenses, with the heaviest being the 100-400L). I have to say after opening the (small) case I was pleasantly surprised. This is a small tripod when folded - smaller than my old Manfrotto - but does not sacrifice height when setup.

The other striking aspect is the wieght - or lack of it. At around 1kg it's light, but still feels quite solid and is well constructed. With some larger lenses I'll need to hang some weight from the centre column hook but that's expected.

The legs extend using a twist mechanism which works well. Maybe not as speedy as some of the pullout models, or the snap locks, but a lot less dangerous to fingers!

I also have the CB-30 ballhead which seems ok. The quick release is not the quickest - a few turns required but it's still fine. My only minor gripe is that the lever for this almost touches the bottom of the camera. This head supports the 100-400 but I would like it to be a little wider. I've got a Manfrotto 486RC2 ballhead which also fits so may go with this when using larger lenses. The only issue with this will be not fitting the tripod back into it's carry bag - which btw is pretty nice - well padded with an outside pocket for the short centre column and leg spikes. It is a snug fit though, hence a bigger head will not fit. I don't see this as much of a problem - I'll probably put the head on and not use the case for the short trips anyway.

I'll put up some more info after I've taken it out a few times - it will be interesting to compare to Johns new Manfrotto.