Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

I ordered this tripod and am truly impressed. This is a sturdy, well constructed tripod that performs beyond my expectations for this price. The pistol grips by themselves can cost more than this entire setup. Pros: 1. Solid, the weight provides great stability and it feels like it can take a lot of abuse. Nothing about this screams 'cheap'. 2. Pistol grip head is easy to use and locks solidly in place. When the trigger is released it doesn't budge the smallest amount even supporting my camera and heaviest lens. I'm not sure I could ever go back to a pan head tripod again. 3. Extends to about 6 feet high. Collapses to about 2 feet when not in use. 4. Comes with an extra quick release plate, adjustment wrenches, carrying case and a free mini tripod. Cons: 1. This is a heavy tripod, I didn't weigh it but must be close to 10 pounds easily. Not ideal for taking on long treks hiking to photo spots. 2. Could be considered bulkier than some of the more expensive tripods. 3. It was free so it's tough to add this as a con but the mini tripod is useless except for really light cameras. 4. Smells strongly of machine oil when first taken out of the packaging but the smell fades. As you can see I'm grasping at things to fault with this. If all you want is solid support for your photos with an easy to use head for an amazing price then look no further than this one. Edit: 12/13/2011 After about a year of using this tripod it's having issues. I'm not sure what the parts are called - but the light gray latches that control the angle of the legs no longer lock in the first, standard position. They slip and don't lock until the second, lower position. This makes the tripod impossible to use unless I want to take photos from the lower leg angle. Edit: 10/3/2012 The seller contacted me and voluntarily sent a replacement unit to resolve the issue with the leg angle. I verified everything is working as expected so am restoring my rating from 2 to 5 stars. Based on the number of 5 star reviews I will write this off as an isolated defect, the original tripod had been used only lightly about 12-15 times before it started malfunctioning.