I bought a Trekpod two years ago, and have used it on a 16 day trip in Grand Canyon and several hiking trips in the Cascades. It is sturdy and works well as advertized. The feet are relatively stable in adjusting to numerous uneven surfaces. It is generally well designed, but by the standards of people who climb in alpine environments, it is very heavy steel. It would have been much better if they designed it with a strong modern lightweight steel, like Columbus Life. Also, there are numerous threads that are affected by sand, dirt and grit. The magnetic head is great--works fabulously, as long as you do not need to set a SLR in portrait mode--if you do, make sure to use the aluminum retaining brace (which I have now lost because the cheap shock cord broke). If you do not, you will quickly drop your camera. Ouch. The tripod also has many moving parts--too many--so you need to constantly pay attention to the tightness of the head pieces and be careful that you do not lose one, and that one of the many separate pieces does not fall off with your camera attached. I have been fortunate, and have caught loose flanges, etc., but have had too many near misses because screw threads loosened. Two small moveable pieces attach with cheap shock cords,and both have been lost. I asked for replacements within the warranty period, but did not receive them--in fact, Trek ignored my request for replacement parts and has never responded to me. Not very great customer service.
Due to the weight, and because it is inevitable that some pieces will fail due to the numerous moving parts, and some of the design weaknesses, I cannot recommend this product for alpine climbers or those for whom weight and reliability are important.
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Reviewed in the United States on December 8, 2009
Reviewed in the United States on June 26, 2008
Reviewed in the United States on February 17, 2009
I did some research on Trek-Tech's Monopod & I noticed a recurring theme in that there was some sort of stability issue. When I received it i thought it might have been the legs but they were not the issue, it was just that the top tube will move a little, but that's just a design issue in that the top tube is thinner than the lower tubes, so i took it outdoors to a park on a very windy day to test it out.
I purchased the Creative Vado HD, Canon A590IS, and the SLIK 504QF-II Video Head to go along with the Monopod and here's what happened at the park...
It was very windy (15 m.p.h) and the Monopod was moving noticeably and the Monopod wrist strap was hitting the top tube constantly (but I didn't notice that until i reviewed my test footage) and I began to worry that the footage i recorded was going to be bad, but it wasn't! All the test footage came out super smooth with the Canon A590 (which has Image Stabilization) and especially the Vado HD which doesn't have (IS). I did use the Mag-Mount that came with the Monopod (for the Vado HD on top of the Slik Video Head), the Canon was a direct mount to the Video Head. If your wary about purchasing this Monopod I suggest you look into getting the SLIK 504 Fluid Video Head..it's inexpensive (under $75), smooth, has 3-way adjustability, and is designed for small camcorders, digi-cams, and DSLR's. I hope this review helps...good luck.
* Look under the products picture 'Customer Images' to see my pictures of the TrekPod. *
I purchased the Creative Vado HD, Canon A590IS, and the SLIK 504QF-II Video Head to go along with the Monopod and here's what happened at the park...
It was very windy (15 m.p.h) and the Monopod was moving noticeably and the Monopod wrist strap was hitting the top tube constantly (but I didn't notice that until i reviewed my test footage) and I began to worry that the footage i recorded was going to be bad, but it wasn't! All the test footage came out super smooth with the Canon A590 (which has Image Stabilization) and especially the Vado HD which doesn't have (IS). I did use the Mag-Mount that came with the Monopod (for the Vado HD on top of the Slik Video Head), the Canon was a direct mount to the Video Head. If your wary about purchasing this Monopod I suggest you look into getting the SLIK 504 Fluid Video Head..it's inexpensive (under $75), smooth, has 3-way adjustability, and is designed for small camcorders, digi-cams, and DSLR's. I hope this review helps...good luck.
* Look under the products picture 'Customer Images' to see my pictures of the TrekPod. *
Images in this review
Reviewed in the United States on June 19, 2008
Reviewed in the United States on January 30, 2008
