Customer Reviews

Pedco UltraClamp Assembly

5 star:		(61)
4 star:		(18)
3 star:		(5)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

I used this clamp to suspend a microphone from the crossbars of a jeep. Its unique joints allow you to swivel 360 degrees in all three dimensions! What's more, the head of the screw is flat ended, intended for tables, but the curve on the top edge works really nicely for my purposes.

Because the mic stays mounted on a moving (bouncing) vehicle, one of the joints tended to keep getting loose. Not a problem if you're stationary. My previous one mysteriously locked up though - maybe the threads of the screw oxidized. After much searching (I couldn't remember the make or model) I'm thrilled I finally found it again - there's nothing else configured like it. Just remember to clean it once in a while!

I use this for my rig with a Canon 5d MKII and a Zoom h4n. I have an L bracket attached to my camera then I attached this to the L bracket. The build quality is a lot better then expected. I was filming helicopter flight operations on a ship out in the ocean. This piece of gear held up to my expectations. While I intended on purchasing it to hold the Zoom audio recorder and microphones, I ended up trusting it with my 5D MKII, hanging off one of the rails on the ship as we took a sharp turn at full speed.

While shooting on the flight deck, I was directly underneath a CH-46 helicopter as it was coming in for a landing. Anyone who has been there or seen the footage, knows that there is a lot of thrust that blows off the rotors. My camera with a 70-200mm 2.8 lens mounted on a tripod, ended up snapping the bolt that mounts to the camera from the base plate. But this thing held strong.

If you want a cheap piece of gear to hold some audio equipment, or want to use this to get interesting shots, I wouldn't even think twice.

Jason

I got the Ultraclamp to mount a small digital camcorder on the frame of my motorcycle to shoot some scenic ride videos. (NOT crazy tricks). The clamp is very sturdy and holds quite well to the frame. It has a multitude of mounting configurations and angle adjustments.
Overall I am very happy with it and it is built quite well.

Length:: 0:59 Mins

I bought this to use on my beloved 30 year old Suzuki GS1000G motorcycle. I knew it would be a tough environment due to vibration, so I tried a couple different locations and angles. The video with this review was the best of the locations I tried initially- I'm still experimenting. This one has the camera, a Sanyo Full HD VPC-FH1, on the left handlebar with the camera as high as it could go. The other location I tried on top of the Vetter cycle sound box gave a better view, but it was too jumpy. Viewed in a lower resolution it may not have been so bad. The video was shot in 32 degree weather and the maximum speed was 65 MPH at the end of the video.

The mount was very easy to use. It has rubberized mounting surfaces to help with grip and vibration. The fixed surface has a notch in it to help with mounting on round objects like handlebars. It seemed very secure in my evaluation. There are two axis adjustments- a knurled knob that allows you to pivot the arm 360 degrees, and then a tri-arm knob that controls the fore-aft placement of the arm as well as the ball that holds the camera stud, which is the standard 1/4-20. The knurled knob on the ball does not spin independent of the ball, so you have to leave the tri-knob loose until your camera is secured. Overall, this gives a great range of movement. I tried many locations on my bike, but most of the handlebar mounts were too low for my application.

I would rate this as a good value for the money, and it would likely work well in a majority of applications.

This is a great product.

It is made out of high-quality strong impregnated plastic and the clamp part is metal with rubber covers where it actually clamps on. This can clamp anything from a glass car door window to wooden or metal fence post or slat. The clamp part comes off so you can use just the top portion screwed onto any 1/4 x20 stud ore even a small tri/bi-pod.

I've used this on both my bicycle and motorcycle. It clamps securely to a frame member, handlebar and even a brake master cylinder reservoir. It seems pretty darn solid and I've never had an issue with it falling off. Still, I loop the camera strap through a mini carabiner as a back-up. That's why cameras have a strap in the first place -as a back-up.

The top portion is very adjustable and the two ball-joints give almost infinite adjustability. Once the setting thumb screw is tightened down it is SOLID.

I've heard a few complaints that the screw is easily stripped. Come on folks, you don't need to tighten this thing down like a GORILLA. People tend to seriously over-tighten fasteners of all types. This is made out of a strong high-impact plastic but it is still plastic. It tightens down very securely but if you bear down on it like a GORILLA you are going to strip it. You can strip any fastener -even a metal one by over-tightening. It's only a 1/4 x 20 screw in there that is molded to a plastic thumb handle. If you strip this out then you are OVER-TIGHTENING it folks.

The fact that it comes apart makes it not only more handy with more options to work with other gear but it fits into a smaller bag when it is in 2 parts. This is how I carry mine. The thumb wheels make it fast and easy to put back together or adjust.

I can't say enough good things about this product.

Cons:

None, unless you are an oafish GORILLA who over-tightens things to the point that they break. 300 ft-lbs will strip just about anything out.

The idea behind this clamp is brilliant. Unfortunately, the design misses on a key point: the knob used to tighten and loosen the clamp may be subjected to a lot of force. I clamped mine down pretty tight on a railing to be sure my camera was secure. When I came back to unclamp it, the knob simply twisted off. Upon closer inspection, the knob has threads in the center that screw onto the same threaded piece that holds the clamping foot pad. With very little force, it simply unscrewed itself since the foot had enough pressure to stay stationary. It took quite a bit of effort to get the the clamp off in the end because the knob would simply not stay on for me to unscrew. Perhaps there was some kind of glue and I just got a bad one. Not sure, but it has definitely rendered it useless for the moment. Perhaps some SuperGlue might work...

It is also worth nothing that this retailer has marked this up over twice what the MSRP is. Check B&H Photo or REI for a more reasonable price.

EDIT: After the discussion with J. Moll, I'm putting a few stars back. The clamp really is a decent device, but I think the decision of not adding a thread locking agent to nut in the clamp is a potential design flaw. If you're dealing with a surface that is not slick, but sure to pay extra close attention to how hard you tighten it down. That being said, if you're cognizant of the limitations (or add threadlock like I did), it really is a decent little gadget to have.

This is an absolute priceless little gadget. It's better than my gorilla pod, and much more handy than my tripod. This will take the shake out of those long distant nature shots (or anything you don't need to be moving the camera around for). I'd pay $50.00 bucks for one if I had to. I'm glad I didn't :)

To begin, I'll give it four stars for now after having it only a week and running it through its paces with several cameras. I suspect its a five star product but can't confirm that from a standpoint of long term durability yet with such short ownership. Versatility-wise this clamp is a jewel. I've got a half dozen still and video cameras and they will all see "action" with this handy clamp and camera mount since its rated for 4 lbs. and engineered to handle up to 6 lb. cameras in a pinch. The clamp itself is very strong solid aluminum and will never fail to provide the holding strength needed on whatever substrate it will attach to -- tree branch, water pipe, electrical conduit, car window, table edge, atv/bike/snowmobile handlebars, or a tripod leg. The rest of the components are reinforced nylon and injection molded parts that provide the light weight and should hold up well. The adjustments on this unit allow absolutely any angle of camera view you will ever need. Essentially the camera can be moved in all three dimensions for perfect pan/tilt alignment of the scene or shot. I have even configured the components to allow it to sit solidly on the table top for shooting macro close ups of items. It will just fit in my blue jeans pocket if needed and is perfect for taking on backpack trips. Lastly this product is Made in USA. I'll buy another if I ever need one.

This indeed is the best camera mounting accessory I have ever encountered and have personally used. I am an action camera POV fanatic who was hunting down for the best mounting accessories in the market which I could pair with my trusty Vholdr Contour HD 1080p. (Vholdr makes probably one of the best action cameras to date but their mounting accessories are either poorly designed or made of poor material.)

The Ultra Clamp design is very well thought of. I nailed down about five secured mounting locations and configurations on my mountain bike and tested them on the first 30 mins I had this thing out of the box. So you could imagine how many camera perspectives I thought of the weekend after... a lot.

The product is made with high quality materials and feels like it is meant to withstand a lot of beating. The C-clamp has tremendous grip and works well with both round, square or any flat surface under 1.5 inches thick.

You can believe the high reviews like I did when I first read about this product
and just thank those who left their positive reviews once you have this in your hands.

I was looking for a way to be able to remove my memory card quickly without having to fuss so much with the tripod. This gadget tripled my work but it has some nice features and some irritating ones. For a smallish camera (Panasonic FZ40), it is more than sufficiently sturdy but to release the camera (and access the memory card), the settings (positions) are lost. If they are important (which they are in my situation), this is not good, but worse even than that is the fact that two knobs have to twisted to loosen the locking feature so "quick" simply does not describe this but if I wanted to take time lapsed pictures and keep the camera in the same place for a long time, this would be great. I like the compact size and stability but the knobs are a nuisance.