Acratech manufactures ball heads and other fine photography accessories in Southern California. We blended our passion for outdoor photography with our experience in manufacturing design to produce products that are strong, lightweight and versatile. Our products are engineered for nature, landscape, travel and wildlife photography. Wander farther, explore longer and create more!
Acratech (acratech.net) has 436 customer reviews on Five Star Index, with an average rating of 4.9 out of 5.
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Claim this listingAudio & Visual · Marina Del Rey, California
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Showing 19 reviews with 4 stars · Clear filters
Mike D.
Excellent craftmanship! This is one solid crafted piece and works perfectly. I only knock it down one star because of the cost. It is really high cost for what you use it for. But I suppose if you can afford it you won't be sorry. It is really well made.
Response from AcratechSep 8, 2020
Hi Mike, Thank you from all of us at Acratech.
Michael
My mistake was ordering the tripod head on a Friday because it took until Monday to see PayPal acknowledge the transaction even though I had a PayPay charge against my bank account for the cost of the item plus a "0" charge that PayPal normally places on the account. It was acknowledged on Monday and I received the item on Wednesday. I had ordered the same day a tripod from Amazon and it hit my bank account in the same fashion but delivery was on Saturday. The tripod head is a very nice unit and met all of the claims about sturdiness and light weight. It will be a nice change from backpacking any of my other tripod/head combinations.
Response from AcratechJul 13, 2020
Hi Michael, Thank you so much for taking the time to leave a review. The reason why there was no acknowledgement until Monday is that we are closed Friday, Saturday and Sunday. It is nice to hear that we were faster than Amazon and for that we are ever so thankful for FedEx and their small business incentives on 2nd Day air. The original ballhead was designed during our backpacking days. It was designed to be strong, light and easy to clean if it got dirty while on hiking on a dusty trail. Many thanks, From all of us at Acratech. Enjoy!
Tony B.
Good prompt service. The product itself was ok but not as good as its hype (as one would expect)
Response from AcratechJun 11, 2020
Hi Tony, Thank you for taking the time to share your opinion with others. We appreciate your honesty and maybe over time, you will grow to appreciate the design. It is really what sets us apart from the rest. Sincerely, Acratech
Koshiro H.
Two weeks have passed since I received my GP Ball head with lever clamp and one week for 5" lens plate. With 5" lens plate, I started o set up Nikon 70-200 telephoto zoom and TC-17 EII teleconverter to take Landscape and several bird/s picture. Bird picture is new category for me with tis GP Ball head with gimbal feature. During two weeks experimental practice, I have been working for routine setup and process. This is very important for trained efficiency . I dropped whole system from clamp system which broke lens food. I was lucky that I dropped it on floor carpet, not outdoor. Damage to food was minor one, need bond repairing and D850 and telephoto lens are all OK. I still need to work on Clamp lever, Main Control knob and Tension knob for best routine and tightness. Need to confirm for each step as you work on it. I also found some loose condition when you shake the system after I have tighten the system. I also found that ball slide has some tendency on direction, but it might be a margnal and not a serious one. A gimbal worked very well and easy to find to measure the balance center for free move with 5" lens plate. Only suggestion to report is to add scale dot or line to plate so that you can control the position on clamp system. (I put several dot/s to the plate by marker for each lens to indicate the best weight balance) I am enjoying it very much taking picture of bird/s visiting water fountain at backyard of my house. After all these trial, I will go out to take outdoor scenery and wild life. This Ball Head is a big fun!
Response from AcratechJun 10, 2020
Hi Koshiro, Thank you for the in-depth report. Please take careful note of the lever clamp instructions in bold print. Do not overtighten, as this can prevent the lock from engaging. You should hear an audible click and when pulled, it will not open. If you are using plates from another manufacturer that has pins on the bottom, we have found that these pins do not always clear the clamp body and they do not allow the plates to sit flat in the clamp. We are in the process of transitioning all of our clamps to the newer style GXP clamp which has clearance for these pins and the lever lock that will not open unless it is pulled halfway open. Some of our other clamps have markings on the quick release clamp that shows center but our plates do not. As you mentioned, it is different on different lenses. The gimbal is my favorite feature on our ball heads and I am glad that you found it to be easy to use. It is great to hear that even though you have had a few issues, you are still enjoying the ball head. Sincerely, Acratech
Ed
Good stuff but even something as simple as a quick release plate is expensive.
Response from AcratechMay 4, 2020
Hi Ed, Thank you for your review. Our plate prices have been the same for almost 20 years. It used to be that we were the most affordable plates and now with many are being made in China. We thank you, our employees thank you and feel good knowing that you are supporting American made products.
Joe H.
Thus far I'm very pleased with my new Acratch GP ballhead. It's 1.6 lbs. lighter than my old NPC ballhead and has more flexibility and nice features I look forward to exploring. I'm surprised Acratech does not recommend carrying a tripod and camera attached to the Acratech GP. Detaching the camera from the tripod ballhead each time I change to a new nearby site doesn't seem practical. My older Arca-Swiss plates appear to have edges that extend further into the receiving channel edges of the new GP. So I'll use the old release plates on the GP, continue to carry my camera on the tripod in the field and hope for the best. The much lighter Acratech now makes my camera rig a candidate for a weight loss ad. .
Response from AcratechFeb 13, 2020
Thank you for the terrific review. We, as well as other manufacturers, use an abundance of caution in our instructions. If you plan on carrying your camera on your tripod, please know that straps, loose clothing, branches, etc. can get tangled in your set up.
Gustave
I give a 5 stars rating for the product quality. I have been using Acratech ball heads for years. They never let me down. This model (GXP) takes some time to get used to, as there is an extra knob. I wish the level was bigger, it's not easy to see in low light. But I had the ballhead order sent overseas (to France). There was a VAT to pay (perfectly normal) but delivery was not possible unless there was someone home. It would be easier to pay the VAT upon ordering so that the parcel can be delivered moreeasily. But it may not be possible for logistic resons.
Response from AcratechDec 30, 2019
Hi Gustave, Thank you for sharing your experience. I believe the issues with the VAT payment would be different if choosing a different carrier like FedEx. The cost to ship through the better carriers is so high that we have not offered them as an option when checking out. But I should put them on to at least give you the option. Thank you for being a long-time user of our products. Sincerely, Acratech
Donald M.
Super product. A bit expensive but .....
Response from AcratechNov 18, 2019
Hi Donald, Thank you for your review. We wish we could be more competitive with the foreign market but that is the struggle for many a US manufacturer. We are truly appreciative to all of our customers for supporting us and buying American. We thank you but more importantly, our employees thank you. Sincerely, Acratech