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LensMaster
T-1 Gimbal
A Review
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I
cannot deny my affinity for LensMaster's gimbals. I have five
of them - an RH-2, an RH-1, two M-1s and now a T-1 "Traveler".
Althought the amazing little T-1 gimbal is the smallest of them
all, it has the strength and stability of even the largest LensMaster
- the RH-2. The T-1 is a side-mount gimbal like the RH-1 and
M-1. But with the supplied camera bracket, you can screw on
a camera body with a small lens and it works like a full gimbal
with tilt arm.
This little super-gimbal will
handle just as much weight as either of the larger models. Below
is a photo of a Canon 500mm f/4 with Canon 1D mk4 body mounted
to the T-1. It tilts and pans this heavy combo just as smoothly
as the larger models.
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The
LensMaster T-1 Gimbal compared with
the two largest LensMaster models. |
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The
LensMaster T-1 Gimbal comes in a kit |
The
LensMaster T-1 Gimbal
easily handles a Canon 500mm
f/4 and Canon 1Dmk4 body. |
The T-1 comes in a kit, shown at the left, which includes a
short and long Arca-Swiss style plate, Allen tools and spare
lock stud.
As mentioned, it also includes
an "L" bracket which clamps in place of a plate, turning it
into a platform to hold your camera body and small lens.
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The
T-1 gimbal shown with the "L" bracket
mounted with a Canon 1Dmk4 and small lens.
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I am using
the T-1 on a Varizoom "Chicken Foot" monopod. Originally I had
a LensMaster M-1 gimbal on the Varizoom, but I quickly discovered
I could not pan the chicken-footed monopod like a normal monopod.
The tripod base, which gave it some vertical stability, wasn't
made to spin, and the M-1 had no panning bearing. So wishing
to use a smallish gimbal like the M-1, I ordered the T-1, which
has a panning bearing and lock knob like the RH-2 and RH-1 gimbals.
Problem solved. I now use the M-1 on a new Feisol monopod. If
you're curious about the Varizoom "Chicken Foot" monopod,
my Varizoom review
is here.
This review was written several years after I bought the T-1
gimbal. During that time LensMaster has discontinued production
of both the T-1 and the M-1 models of their gimbals. So I'm
afraid if you want either, you'll have to scour used photography
equipment forums to find somebody who wants to let go of theirs.
Good luck with that. Not letting go of mine.
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