GXP Ball-head

Scott made some great improvements to an already great product. The larger knob is much appreciated. The best thing one can say about this Head is that it just works with no fuse or issue. I was shooting at the beach and dropped the folded tripod head first in to wet, sticky sand. With any other head this is a big issue. With the Acratech, just brushed it off with my hand and gave it a quick blow with my breath. All was just fine and shoot continued without issue. The head is stiff and smooth and light. It will handle all but the heaviest of setups. Even my 400mm 2.8 works on this head. Just get it and forget it. I have many tripod heads, but always comeback to these for the reliability, weight and simplicity of use.

I posted the following opinion in a photography forum that I frequent, and am reposting it here as a review. I recently picked up the Acratech GXP ballhead, and have been putting it through its paces in the rough and tough across a couple of states and biomes. This includes freezing rain in the Laguna mountains, the hot and dusty in the Anzo-Borrego deserts, as well as cool and wettish in the Arizona palo verde deserts. It has held up not just very well, but honestly superlatively, and compares very favorably with my Markins Q-20i which I've been using for the last decade plus. It is superbly crafted and engineered --- like a custom machined part from an F-35 --- and very well built. Sturdy and robust. Smooth motion under tension, and locks up solid like concrete block. It's a size class smaller than the ballheads I've been using or tried out extensively in comparison (FLM 48/58, RRS BH-55, etc.). And in every respect it has held up in the best way possible: it Just Worked. No muss. No fuss. Just solid support with precise positioning. It did it's job so well while staying out the way and not causing problems, that most of the time I forgot that I was using and trying out a new ballhead. Using a Sony A7RIII body, while the biggest lens I used on it was the 100-400GM (anything larger and it's gimbal time), it was a solid platform in some very challenging settings (e.g. shooting at 100-400mm on a wet mountain ridge at 40F pre-windchill with 30-35 MPH winds).

I purchased this ballhead because I use a combination of a leveling base and an ultimate ballhead (both from Acratech). The GXP ballhead is more compact. The knobs take a little time getting used to, particularly the one for adjusting the ballhead friction. I fould only one default: the level is too small, and hard to see in low light. It could be the same size as the one on the leveling base, without much change in weight.

I purchased the GPX Ball-head with the lever clamp and found it to be very well designed and constructed. It works very well with my Manfrotto 055CXPRO3 tripod and Nikon D810 camera. One of the top five items in my camera gear.

This is a nice head. I'm not sure how they get the increased load rating, as it does not seem any more robust. The main knob is a nice improvement. However, the panning smoothness leaves alot to be desired. For a head that is advertised as a gimbal, it could be much better. There is a definate unevenness in the way it rotates and the friction adjustment could be improved.

Have only used one day. Two observations: 1) when the ballhead is mounted to a large head tripod base the knob to loosen or tighten the rotation base of the ballhead the knob sits close to the tripod head making it a little difficult to access. Also, this knob relative to the pretensioner knob for the ballhead is close enough to not be quite enough room for easy access. In winter conditions wearing gloves I have reservations about have easy it will be to access the knob.