Customer Reviews
Inexpensive and well built 
2008-07-02
I had a very tight budget when I bought my ball head and tripod but I still wanted something that was well made and built to last yet not real expensive. This ball head fits that bill nicely. It does it job and is solid and secure. I feel very comfortable with it attached to my Manfrotto 055XB tripod.
I had never used a ball head before now, I had always had those cheepo all in one tripods. What a dramatic difference. The lever to tighten is very easy to use and makes it easy to adjust even when not having it completely tight. The ball head moves easily. Its a pleasure to use.
Manfrotto excellent as usual 
2008-06-16
This head does what it's supposed to do, with good looks and solid construction. It is a good alternative to a 3-way pan head or a larger ball. It handles a full-size DSLR with tele-zoom without wobbling, and has fine friction adjustment (allowing small movements without suddenly falling over). It also allows a vertical position on either side of the groove, with an adjustable knob that never gets in the way. The only deduction (4 versus 5 stars) is for the lack of a pan adjustment. Quite often this is the only parameter that needs to be adjusted, once vertical and horizontal lines are established, but with this head it's all or nothing. In other words, I would not recommend this head if you specialize in architectural subjects. It is still a great head, though, because it's tiny yet powerful, and really lightweight, so it is a useful travel tripod and has the simplicity of a ball head for shooting sports, theater, etc. The head also does not have any locking bolts to fix it to the tripod, and this could be a problem if you inadvertently allow it to loosen over time (voila, there's your "pan" adjustment!), but if you're attentive to this, it's not a problem, especially if you expect to switch it out regularly with an alternate head and don't want to carry a screwdriver.
Works great on a Joby Gorillapod SLR -ZOOM 2008-01-17
I got this for my Joby Gorillapod SLR-Zoom and it works very nicely. Very quick and easy to adjust and very solid (the Gpod itself obviously isn't as solid as a normal tripod). Head is quite heavy.
btw: This holds a D80 with the 18-135 kit lens perfectly fine on a pair of normal legs (i've tested this).
-jeff
Bogen-Manfrotto 484RC2 Mini Ball Head with RC2 Rapid Connect Plate (3157N) 2007-12-29
Bogen-Manfrotto 484RC2 Mini Ball Head with RC2 Rapid Connect Plate is a well built,quality mini ball head. I have owned many Bogen products through the years and I have never had a problem. All their products are quality and well made.If you looking for a mini ball head you can't go wrong with this one.
Good bang for the buck 2007-12-05
I got this ball head to go on my Feisol carbon fiber monopod. From the picture it looks small and light, but to my amazement was quite a decently sized, durable, metal head. That put my monopod weight over 2lbs as this head is about 1.5 lbs alone, but this head is pretty sturdy. I can easily put my Canon 30D with the heavy EF 70-200mm f/2.8L IS USM lens with the tripod ring no problem on it. I use this setup for fashion shows as it's the most convenient.
Just a note, this thing only has one center column screw to screw the head into. It does not have the 3 base screws (to prevent rotation of the head). It's not really a big of a deal, especially on a monopod, but some might like to know that it doesn't have these screws, even though the manual has it illustrated (it doesn't even have the 3 holes to screw in)
The Quick release plate is very well designed, and even comes with a saftey (good for me with using a monopod as it can catch a sleeve, strap, etc. then pop off). The quick release also auto locks once you pop it back in.
Serves its purpose 2007-11-15
This versatile head is fitted with a 3157N quick-release camera plate with a secondary safety catch. This head is perfect for 35mm SLR cameras with medium lenses, and light medium format cameras. A direct replacement of the 3262QR Midi Ball Head, the 484RC2 features a strong die-cast construction, precision machined aluminum housing, and an extremely hard phenolic resin ball which provides smoother movements across all tilt positions. It has a single indexed ratchet locking knob for a 360 degrees pan and a double groove for a 90 degrees tilt movements. Camera plate has a 1/4-20 inch male thread, and head to tripod attachment is 3/8 inch female.
Great Mini Ball Head for Bogen Manfrotto Tripod 2007-11-05
this is a great addition to the bogen manfrotto tripod that i have.
you can manuever it to tilt, turn, etc, and the quick release is great when out in nature and a bird flies nearby, where you need to handhold. with the touch of a button, the quick releases lets you have your camera at hand.
just be careful when you are using the lever to move the camera or tilt it..make certain to hold your camera while making the adjustment.
great product!!
Great for a travel tripod 2007-08-20
I've been using this on my Slik Sprint Pro (excellent tripod) and I love it. It's very sturdy for its size and weight. I also have the next model up, the 486rc2 which is much much bigger and heavier. I use it on a larger bogen tripod and keep the 484rc2 for my travel tripod.
There is a comment that it's not compatible with all tripods, it's not a problem, you just need a bogen adapter that is called a "bushing". Don't worry, it's cheap. With it, the head will fit any standard tripod.
Good lightweight ball head 2007-01-12
This is a well made and well finished ball head. It is okay to use with a small dslr with upto medium telephoto lens attached. It wasn't strong enough for using with my Canon 70-200mm f4L lens attached to Canon 10D even thought maximum capacity rated is 5.5 lbs. Also it is a good ball head for your monopod.
Supports the World, :) 2006-07-04
It is much more stronger and robust than I was expecting. Definitely worth to have it.
