Ball Head for spotter with SMOOTH action

[near_miss]

Hello all.

I have googled this, searched the Hide and many others. I just have not found good results..... So please give me your advice. Of course maybe I am too picky!

I have a good sturdy tripod and a Leupold MK4 12-40x60 TMR spotter. What I am missing is what I would consider a good smooth ball head. I currently have a Manfrotto 322RC2 grip head. I have tried countless others out at the local camera store. Everything from China Sirui brand (which I found to be smoothest) to Gitzo.

When I am trying to precisely set my reticle on a far away object to get a fine MIL reading I have trouble getting the cross hairs aligned perfectly. If I try to move the head I get a slight jump or overshoot. Manfrotto seems to be worse than some of the others. Instead of being able to lay my reticle perfectly along the edge of steel or other target, I get at least a .5 MIL jump.

The best head I have found was a huge and very heavy 5lb. Manfrotto Fluid 3-way head. I was able to move it ever so slighty with great results. Unfortunately I would like to be able to pack this tripod and was looking for something a bit lighter.

Thanks!

 

[NoLegs24]

Manfrottos XPRO 3 way head. Light and compact. Messed with the 405 gear head. Its very precise but heavy and pricey. Didn't like the mounting options either.

Manfrotto MHXPRO-3W X Pro 3-Way Head with Retractable Levers/Friction Controls MHXPRO-3W

 

[bogeybrown]

Yeah, I'd say [MENTION=89321]NoLegs24[/MENTION] is likely on the right track. I have a Manny 3 way and one of their ball heads and for precision the 3 way works better for me. I had the same problem with the grip head as you're having. My regular ball head is small and compact, but not precise. The 3 Ways are much bigger though, so you're giving up on the space requirement for packing, and mine is NOT light.

 

[DT1]

A geared head would work well for the use you describe. Cory Trapp did a brief write up on the Manfrotto 410 JR for fine tuning the spotter's reticle on the object to be milled. I had a chance to play around with one of these at a recent match and it was very impressive. Manfrotto 410 Junior Geared Head - Supports 11 lbs (5kg) 410 B&H

I love the 322RC2 for everything but milling.

 

[redneckbmxer24]

If you want to sell the 322RC2 PM me.

 

[AMTeam4]

Any tripod head called a "fluid head" will be ultra smooth. I have a Manfrotto 128RC QR that works well for spotting and photography. Take off the awkward panning arm to reduce profile. The one down side to fluid heads is that they can't support the weight of a rifle very well.
The best tripod head I've come across that's both smooth and can support a heavy load is the Manfrotto 054 Magnesium Ball Head. It's my #1 go-to head for spotting, shooting, or photography.

 

[Here2Learn]

A geared head would work well for the use you describe. Cory Trapp did a brief write up on the Manfrotto 410 JR for fine tuning the spotter's reticle on the object to be milled. I had a chance to play around with one of these at a recent match and it was very impressive. Manfrotto 410 Junior Geared Head - Supports 11 lbs (5kg) 410 B&H

I love the 322RC2 for everything but milling.

DT1 pretty much nailed it. For fine milling the 410 is great. We have messed around with it and its hard to beat but it would suck for big adjustments with a rifle

 

[near_miss]

Thank you all for the information. I have watched reviews on all the heads above and will try to find them in stock to test out.

This is something I would pack with me so lighter is better!