MH-01 – One fantastic monopod head

This year was the year that I blew my wad and ponied up for the 500mm f/4. Purchasing that lens changed things quite a bit (heh, to put it mildly). It also changed some things that I hadn’t fully considered at first, such as how to solidly support the beast. Hence the hunt for a decent monopod head.

For years I had been doing just fine using an old, used, forty dollar Manfrotto 680 monopod with a 234RC tilt head. It worked great. My 70-200 and 300 f/2.8 both had RC2 quick release plates on them that I could use interchangeably with my Manfrotto ballhead (468MGRC2) , and the d-rings on those quick release plates were also the tether point for my R-Strap. Life was good.

But then the 500 appeared… all 8.5 pounds of it.

At first I tried slapping on a spare RC2 connector I had laying around, which was laughably small for the foot of the 500 and only attached with a single screw mount. This led to the monopod twisting and spinning loose under the weight of the lens at times, even after tightening that damn quick-release plate with pliers. The position of the plate was also slightly rear mounted and off the center of gravity, so whenever you’d take your hand away the lens would want to fall forward. On top of that, you could never really tighten the tilt-head quite enough to totally immobilize the lens when you needed to. My knuckles had paid the price so many times trying to tighten that damn thing. Most days I would swear up and down at it, and I was sure I’d break off the plastic knob out of either frustration or overtightening eventually. I knew there were alternatives out there, but I kept putting off the idea. I didn’t want to spend the money, and figured I could just live with it for a while. Then, finally, one day after swearing and bloodying my hand yet again, I knew it was time to man up and get the right head.

After doing a quick google search and reading a few reviews online (and always hearing Scott Kelby go on and on about his RRS ballhead) I decided to check out Really Right Stuff and their MH-01 High-Capacity Monopod Head. They were the only other company besides Manfrotto producing a monopod head out there – or at least one designed specifically for larger lenses.

From the RRS website: ”We conservatively rate this monopod head at 75 pounds; more than you will ever possibly require.” Overkill? Absolutely. But when you’ve got a $5,800 lens attached to a six foot metal stick, that’s the type of thing you want connecting the two. I figured if it could totally immobilize up to 75 pounds of glass and metal, it was totally worth the $226 bucks and I wouldn’t have anything to worry about with my little lens. Plus, the knurled metal knob just looked cool as hell  There’s just something about those smooth, precision milled aluminum parts.

The biggest problem that suddenly slapped me in the face was that everything I used on a tripod or monopod was based on the Manfrotto RC2 clamp system.  All the RRS gear used an Arca-Swiss type mount (basically a giant dovetail) which meant that I’d have to end up converting over to that system. Bah. I sat down and plotted a course involving a new top-clamp for my ballhead and plates for my lenses. It wasn’t going to be cheap, but I figured I could get the parts a few at a time. I had already eyed-up a Wimberly gimbal head as a possible future purchase, and knew that their lens plates worked interchangeably with the RRS clamps. As an added bonus, their shop was a “UPS ground 1-day away” in Virginia, so I went ahead and picked up my arca swiss plates from them. I can honestly say that in all my years of ordering items online, Wimberly’s service was the fastest and easiest I’ve ever experienced. No more than 10-15 minutes after placing my order, I received an email with a tracking number saying my order was complete and shipping already. A simply amazing, flawless purchase. Thank you, Wimberly.

Anyway, back to the MH-01… so after ordering the plates for my 300 and 500, I went ahead and ordered the MH-01 with the B2 Pro II Clamp (the one that screws closed). It was a tough decision not to go with the quick release lever (B2 AS II), but I had no idea how tight I’d need to clamp down the plate, and figured this was the safer (albeit slower for changing lenses) choice. A few days after placing my order, ‘ol sweaty (our UPS driver) dropped off the RRS box. As soon as I got home from work, I ripped off that old Manfrotto head from my monopod with extreme prejudice and proceeded to construct my franken-pod.

The most striking thing about the MH-01 is that huge knob that sticks out on the one side of it. The second most striking thing about the MH-01, is how smoothly said large knob operates. I found myself just sitting there for a minute or two just playing around with it. Seriously, it’s like butter. It has a respectable amount of heft and a really, really nice gripped / grooved surface. I was liking this thing already. Mounting it on the monopod was quick, painless and it was definitely attached firmly. Next up were the Wimberly plates, one for each lens. The plates mounted to each lens with two large screws making any type of twisting loose an issue I’d never have to deal with again. They also had a groove in the middle that allowed for the center of gravity on each lens to be set. A pair of smaller screws were also used at both ends of the plates as “emergency stops” that prevented lenses from sliding forward or backwards out of the mount. These screws used in combination with the B2 Pro Clamp were a little awkward though. You’d have to totally unscrew the B2 clamp if you wanted to swap lenses out, instead of just being able to loosen the clamp a little and sliding the lens in from the front or rear. Eventually I ended up removing the front emergency screw and sliding the lens in that way. The RRS clamp and the Wimberly plates fit together perfectly.

The thing I was most pleased with however, was the actual tilting action of the MH-01 head and the way you could apply gradual locking power to the mount. The long lens plates helped make it all possible by finding a sort of “neutral buoyancy” of the lens. This meant that even with the head completely loose, it was effortless to pan up or down – everything was balanced on the lens’ center of gravity like a see-saw. And the large knurled knob on the head was so easy to turn, I could do it with one thumb! What a drastic change from the 234RC. My left hand could hold onto the monopod, and with my left thumb I could reach up and apply enough tension to totally lock down the tilt, and also release it or apply gradual pressure!  The tilting was totally smooth too – nothing bumping or grinding whatsoever. I was absolutely amazed at how firmly the RRS clamp held the Wimberly plate, and in turn, the lens. Everything was completely “locked in” and wasn’t going anywhere. Again, another drastic change from the Manfrotto system.

All in all, I can say it was very, very much worth the price. I find myself using the monopod every single time I use the 500mm, so even in the last few weeks it’s gotten plenty of use. At the track in New Jersey and at the air show in Dover it was a lifesaver. I couldn’t have used a full blown tripod and gimbal head setup in either place, and there’s no way I could have held the 500 all day without some type of support. I would definitely recommend this setup for sports shooters using heavy artillery, but I’ve also found myself using it in the car for bird photography also. I can extend the monopod just enough to sit in the drivers side door cupholder, making it a great support for out the window shooting – no bean bags required. I wasn’t so fond of having to re-tool all my mounts just to use this monopod head, but in the long run I’m glad I did. The Arca-swiss style mounting is so much more secure, and it seems like a lot more parts are interchangeable with other systems. I was able to find a RRS clamp to mount to my Manfrotto ballhead but that’s a whole other post.

Bottom line: If you’ve got a large lens and use a monopod with it, I cannot more highly recommend the Really Right Stuff MH-01 High Capacity Monopod Head. It is simply one fantastic monopod head.