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- Richard
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My main worry about lever clamps is that it's quite easy to imagine a scenario, and one that isn't too unlikely, where something (say, a camera strap) can unlock it. This is virtually impossible with a screw clamp.
To be fair, a lot of lever-clamps have a safety catch that prevents the lever opening accidentally. However, that's a good example of how another mechanical device has to be introduced to overcome a potential problem that doesn't exist with screw clamps. Paul TB makes another good point, too - levers tend to be either fully locked or fully unlocked which is not so secure when sliding a heavy lens into optimum balance, though again some lever clamps address this as part of the safety catch business.
On the other hand, I guess it should be said that some folks prefer lever locks. All I would say is, try before you buy because they're not the all-round improvement that they appear to be at first glance.