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Upgrading the Bogen / Manfrotto 719B / 724B / 728B tripod

Those Italian made tripod is a bargain if you are looking for a light weight tripod
if you already own one, then you probably bought it for being light and at the same
time cheep.

For the same reason you didn't buy that carbon tripod that you really wanted :0)

Anyhow you have now found the real weak point of this tripod, THE BALL HEAD!

The integrated ball head is way to weak for the DSLR / SLR camera you just
bough and since you bought a lens/camera combo with optical stabilization you
feel that the need of a tripod is limited and you can't really motivate the cost of
that new lightweight carbon tripod!

I own a Manfrotto 719B and intend to modify it to get a tripod that will serve as a
good enough light enough camera tripod for hiking.

the only real drawback with this mod is that the total working height of the tripod will
decrease since the center column will be removed/replaced with a shorter option.

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The modification!

If you have read my Cullman 40180 ball head review then you also know that I liked
that ball for it's price/performance ratio, so I will use that ball for the 719B tripod.

But the 719B don't have a replaceable ball head!
No that's wy I have to do this easy modification, just watch :0)

All you need is a door stop a 3/8 UNC bolt some glue and a new ball head.

manfrotto 724b / 719B / 728B
Doorstop 85mm long stainless steel 3/8" UNC
The door stop is Made by Habo Sweden and
have a pipe that have thin walls are made of stainless steel, are 22mm in diameter and 85mm long. It also has a plate that is
50mm in diameter Perfect for this mod!
Cullman 40180 25nm
Cullmann Magnesit Ball Head 25nm

Manfrotto 724B the one that replaced the 719B model that I own!

The ball head choice for this upgrade.
When you have collected all parts everything will be done in less than 30 minutes.

1. Pull of the rubber part from the door bumper.
2. Drill the hole in the plate of the bumper to 3/8".
3. Put the 3/8" bolt thru the hole (Check for correct length and correct if necessary)
4. Use steel epoxy to fix the bolt inside the door stop (Use enough to cover the bolt head)
5. When the epoxy has cured, screw the head to you new mini column.
6. Remove the original long column on your tripod and replace it with your new
    ball head assembly.
7. Admire your work!
Original head of the 724B tripod
The original dinky head!
Buy the Cullmann Magnesit Ball Head 25nm from Amazon.com


Suggestions for further improvements

  • Replace the round ball head to camera interface with a quick release mount
  • The maximum height of the tripod after this mod has been performed is 132 cm
    if yo fell that 103cm will be enough for you than I suggest that you remove the
    lowest leg section, if you do so you will improve rigidity and make the whole
    assembly lighter.
  • Mount a hook on the tripod to make it possible to weight load it to improve
    stability in windy conditions.
New center collumn shortThis is how the new center column should look!


Installed in the Manfrotto 719B Digipod to    
become a solid ground for the new ball head.



Cullman 40180 25nm Magnesite mounted on 
the new stainless steel D.I.Y center column! 


The Modified Manfrotto 719B Digipod gets a    
much more refined look and feel with the       
smooth operating ball head from Cullman.      
Total weight for the whole assembly is 1.75kg
Total max height with the new short center     column is 132 cm                                        
Was it worth it? I will say that i think it was :0)
Also read the comparing review of Manfrotto 719B vs Gitzo Mountaineer G1158 ...
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