Opteka SW-1 Sidewinder Joystick Pistol Grip Ball Head with Quick Release Plate for Tripods & Monopods

by Opteka

Product Details

• Product Dimensions: 7.5 x 1.5 x 7.5 inches ; 1.7 pounds
• Shipping Weight: 2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• ASIN: B003UAWD4I
• Item model number: SW-1
• Average Customer Review: 3.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (21 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank:
  • #33 in Electronics > Camera & Photo > Tripods & Monopods > Tripod Heads
• Date first available at Amazon.com: June 30, 2010

Product Description

The Opteka Sidewinder is a fast to set up and an easy to use tripod / monopod head, designed for lightweight video or still photography. The very act of taking your hand away from the grip locks the head into position, which eliminates the extra step of having to tighten a knob or lever before being ready to shoot. You have immediate access to half of a sphere in which to position your camera. The tension of the ball can be adjusted to accommodate the load weight. The included quick release plate allows you to remove your camera at a moment's notice.

The Opteka Sidewinder can support up to 6.6 lbs. For example, that means 35mm up to an 80-200mm f/2.8 lens. This head is ideal for both tripods and monopods.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Seems Like a Decent Ball Head, October 16, 2010

By 

Mark Druziak (western ny) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Opteka SW-1 Sidewinder Joystick Pistol Grip Ball Head with Quick Release Plate for Tripods & Monopods (Electronics)

The Opteka SW-1 seems very well built, it is all metal and features a nice quick release plate. The relase plate can be attached to either the end oposite the ball or the end with the trigger. It is attached using an allen screw so it isn't the kind of thing you will be moving between mounting positions frequently. An allen wrench is included. The SW-1 also has a tension adjustment that helps hold the head in place when you have a heavy load on it. It also comes with a tripod/monopod screw insert so you can use the ball head on either a tripod or monopod. The ball itself is pretty large, I'm guessing around 1.25"

When the head is locked into place, surpisingly, it is very stable. It easily holds my Canon 7D with battery grip and 300mm f4 lens. The spring loaded trigger works smoothly, but you can tell there is a strong spring in the head. This may cause problems if you have arthritis in your hands or have very weak fingers, but most people should be able to easily operate it.

Now here is why this isn't a 5 Star Review: When I first used this ball head it was VERY sticky when you tried to release and move it to a new position. It was usable, but it wouldn't move smoothly and it felt like you were using a very cheap ball head. It seemed like it needed some lubrication but I was thinking that grease wouldn't be a good thing to use for the long run. I wound up moving the ball head to the 90 degree position so most of the ball was exposed and then took a #2 pencil and "colored in" the exposed area of the ball. Then I exposed a different area and repeated the "coloring in" process. Guess what? Sticky problem solved! The head moves VERY smoothly and is a pleasure to use! No 5 stars because I'm not sure how long this fix will last.

Given the low price, this ball head is an excellent value if you are looking for a pistol grip type ball head.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars not bad, June 20, 2011

By 

kate (OH) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Opteka SW-1 Sidewinder Joystick Pistol Grip Ball Head with Quick Release Plate for Tripods & Monopods (Electronics)

I've used pistol-grips on my tripods for years in the studio. This one I purchased for myself. It is really solidly-built and mostly well thought out. It even comes with the tools needed to install it and adapt it for different sized tripod mounts. It is a bit sticky, but I'm assuming that it will loosen over time.

There are two reasons that it didn't get five stars. The first is the configuration of the ball head itself. Other pistol-grips that I've used have a socket that only half covers the ball in all directions, allowing a quick switch to a 90 degree angle in any direction. This one covers the ball almost completely, except for a slot on one side. That slot is the only place where you can drop the grip 90 degrees. That's fine if you're always aware of where it is and don't have to do it in a hurry. The other shortcoming is a speed impediment too. The quick-release... isn't. Most others that I've used have a thumb lever that you flip to release the plate from the tripod. On this head it's a two-part system. First you have to release the tension with a screw which is, mercifully, large. Then there is a button that you depress to allow the plate to slide all the way out. It works and it's very sturdy and probably less likely to let your camera go flying. I envision it being a pain when trying to shoot quickly, though.

Oh! One last thing. There were no instructions. Good thing I've used pistol-grips before.

All in all, I like it and I will keep it. You certainly can't beat the price. Wish they'd change those two itty bitty things, though. Then it would be perfect.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A great addition to my monopod, July 6, 2011

By 

Robert Price - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Opteka SW-1 Sidewinder Joystick Pistol Grip Ball Head with Quick Release Plate for Tripods & Monopods (Electronics)

I have long wanted a ball head for my monopod and tripod. Regular tripod mounts just take too long to make adjustments. They're fine when you're doing still portraits, but for any other kind of photography, you better not need to change your setup. That's where a ball head comes in. The Opteka Sidewinder ball head has two places to mount your camera. Mounting it on the part with the pistol grip is great because it allows you to take full advantage of additional leverage for squeezing the grip. Why is that important? Because this ball head has a very strong spring inside that can't be compressed with a light touch. That's great for holding the camera's position, but it takes a little getting used to. Mounting the camera on the grip side really puts the camera up high, and makes it easy to shift from horizontal shots to vertical shots. The only downside to this position is that you can't tilt the camera forward at all, only back.

So, that leaves the other mount, which is directly above the ball itself. You still get the same great control and range of motion as the other position, but you can also tilt forward and back. The one thing to keep in mind here is that to go to a vertical position requires you to line up the ball so that you can move in that direction. Not a big deal, and it'll make more sense when you actually see the ball head.

This item is built incredibly solidly, with most of the materials being metal, not cheap plastic. The ball itself is quite large, and it is rated for up to 6 pounds, which should be enough for most cameras with average zoom. As others have mentioned, initially the ball is very hard to move, but I think that's mainly because of the paint that was used on it. I used graphite to lubricate the ball, and as the paint has worn off, I think it's getting better. All in all, I think this is a great deal!

One thing to keep in mind if you've never used anything like this with a monopod: shifting from horizontal to vertical means that your camera is now higher off the ground than it was a few seconds ago. This means you'll have to adjust the height of the monopod itself in order to compensate. Not a big deal, but I thought you might want to know.

Buy one of these if you're in the market for a ball head. This deal is tough to beat!