Polaroid Pistol Grip Ballhed with Quick Release

I wanted a tripod head that gave me quick and accurate adjustments, and this pistol grip fit the bill. And, it actually works well. It's much easier and quicker to adjust than the units with three separate controls. I don't think I will use this for video, but for wildlife, macro and portrait photography, it's great. (I am sure it works for other types of photography too, but the quick adjustments are great for those types). The head moves smoothly, and when you release the trigger, it locks on solid. It is very much like a gun, you need to "squeeze" the trigger, not "pull" it, so that when you make minor adjustments it does not move all over the place. The only major issue was that on my unit the mounting hole in the bottom of it did not have any threads. I am not sure if it was the intention of the design, but fortunately I have a tap set and I was able to tap the whole out to the proper thread size within 10 min. Mine could have been an isolated problem. The one minor annoyance is the quick release plate lock. The lever that releases the plate from the head needs to be at a perfect right angle so you can get it in and out. Basically, the lever moves to far and should have a stop at the point where it is in the "released" position. This is not really that bad of an issue, once you get used to it. I might one day end up modifying it, but for now I can live with it. Overall, it is still my favorite tripod head for photography, especially for the price. I am using it on an older tripod that had a head that was wearing out, and this has breathed new life into it and even made it much better than it was originally.

• How did the image on site compare with the actual product? accurate
• Was the product free of any manufacturer defects? no
• Please tell us about the quality of the product. overall, functions as expected