Integral to its equipment portfolio, Kite’s newly improved tripod is designed for birders. Mike Alibone checks out the support on offer.
Integral to its equipment portfolio, Kite’s newly improved tripod is designed specifically for birders. Mike Alibone checks out the support on offer.
Kite Optics Ardea CF tripod
KITE Optics continues its inroads into the birding optics market with the introduction of an improved version of its established Ardea CF carbonfibre tripod. There is just the one model and it’s designed to cater for all users, regardless of height. Before delving deeper into the pros and cons, though, it should be noted that it is ‘legs-only’ equipment which can be purchased with or without a head.
While we’re talking heads,
Kite is offering the Manfrotto 128RC as standard to complete the package, while generally recommending the heads of either Manfrotto and Gitzo to complement the tripod. Other heads are available, of course, but for testing purposes, I used a Gitzo GHF2W 2-way head, reviewed in Birdwatch 323: 56-57.
The tripod itself comprises three leg sections, all of which are three-twist carbon fibre, while the ‘central spider’ – including hinges, angle-setting mechanism and head-mounting platform – is magnesium alloy. Two of the top leg sections are wrapped in durable foam covers, increasing the comfort factor by extending the ‘soft’ area of the tripod in contact with the body when the equipment is carried over the shoulder.
There are distinct advantages associated with having just three leg sections. Put simply, the more leg sections, the less stable the tripod and the more susceptible it is to vibration. In this model, the lowest section has a diameter of 22 mm, which also helps to increase stability over tripods with a narrower fourth section.
Furthermore, if the tripod legs are secured in position by twistlocks – which they are on the Ardea – the more leg sections, the longer it takes to extend and secure them and the greater your chances of overlooking one of the locks in haste, which could result in a collapsed tripod. Not ideal when you need to leap out the car quickly to scope that passing raptor!
I was pleased to have only two lock-levels to operate, their grippy, rubber-milled rings offering good three-finger contact. The leg sections extend smoothly under gravity, while should one of the locks become inadvertently loosened, there is a built-in anticollapse mechanism, whereby one twist loosens the lock and a second twist is required to release the leg.
The fully extended tripod legs,
including the attached head, brought my angled scope to the perfect viewing height on level ground (I am 1.83 m) without me having to extend the centre