[Recovered Thread: 83048]

[ignavia]

I can't afford a $300 tripod, nor would I want to lug one around. In fact, I really don't want to lug *any* tripod around, so I was looking for something super compact. I found the Quantaray QT-100 for $35 at lots of places, and it says it can extend from 13" to 53" in seconds, which sounds too good to be true. I can't find a single review anywhere. Anyone ever use one?

[wco81]

I found it at a local Ritz store. Looks like you can only get it from Ritz stores or web site.The telescoping legs are so-so. The upper sections are solid and in fact won't retract that easily. But the lower sections aren't that solid. There are 6 sections and it looks like a fat telescoping antenna for portable radios. The lower sections wouldn't stay locked so one of the legs kept getting shorter.I didn't like the mount for the camera. Besides the screw, there is a spring loaded metalic pin. On other tripods, that retaining pin is plastic. Anyways, as I tried screwing on the camera the pin scratched up my camera.Only way you can do it really is to remove the mount and use the thumb screw beneath it.The ball mounts let you screw the camera on by rotating it without removing the mount.I'm leaning towards the Velbon Max IS, which is more than twice the price. The Velbon sounds like the legs once locked won't come collapse unless you want it too. It does have the ball mount. Seems like the pan and tilt mounts would be better (if bigger and heavier) but in this case, would be easier to screw on the camera.Yes you can probably keep the mount on the camera but my belt-looped case is a pretty tight fit for just my camera.

[ignavia]

Thanks for the warning. I'll stay away. I think for now, I'll just pick up a cheap Wal-Mart 'pod and look for something better.