Cullmann Magnesit MB6.1 Review

[gordonfraser]

Hello,

Please move this to the review section if required. This review goes hand-in-hand with my Feisol tripod review.

Maker/Provider: Cullmann Germany

Product: Magnesit MB6.1 (No QR plate)

Price:£ 84.99 (Free Postage) Amazon.

Overall Rating: 10 /10

Overall Summary: Very sturdy and well made. Brilliant fit and finish. Great aesthetics.
-----------------------------------------------
Detailed Review

So a few days ago I posted up the initial review of my new Feisol CT-3301 and said at the end I had a ballhead on the way. It arrived today after yesterday's frankly frightening weather carnage.

I chose the Cullman Magnesit MB6 model for a few reasons. I had planned on getting a Giottos as I had one before and it was really good. But in thinking about my setup and how clean it looked, I didn't fancy a standard looking black ball head. I wanted to go for something a bit different but with a higher spec.

The Cullman Magnesit fits the bill. It arrives in a nice box in which is a padded bag. Unzipping this you see a microfibre cloth within which sits the ballhead. It's nice to see some extra bits rather than just a box and a head.

Specs are as thus:

Overall Diameter 56 mm
Carrying capacity 23 kg
Weight 530 g
Height 103 mm

The ball diameter is roughly 40mm +.

In Use

The ball movement is very smooth and can be released using the large 37mm knob on the left in the image above. This knob has a rubber grip which is brilliantly grippy, almost tacky. It has a lovely action, smooth and damped.

Grafted on to this main knob is a smaller nob which controls the friction/speed of ball movement. This is ratcheted 7 times allowing you to quickly and precisely set any of the friction settings. Again this has the same grippy rubber coating on it as the main nob. My only concern with this execution of rubber for these is wet gloved hands. However to be totally honest, there's not that much of a worry since the rubber is soft and the knob is large enough to allow a proper level of pinch.

On the other side of the head is the second main knob which controls the pan axis.

As per the other 2 knobs, this has the same rubber treatment. All 3 knobs are trimmed with brushed aluminium rings/plates which really exudes quality, and offers a bright flash in a sea of black, which I absolutely love.

The panning movement is very...thick I guess is the way to describe it, almost if you are pushing through treacle. It's a lovely movement and there's a small scale peaking from a cut-away in the panning base which allows you to see the incremental adjustments if needed.

I should note here the ball itself. It's brushed aluminium finished and has the QR post in the same finish...but what's that black band? That is a ring of the very same soft rubber as used for the knobs. It's a lovely design element which, when the ball is moved to the horizontal position, stops the metal ball post from hitting the metal body and scratching/damaging either. It's great when things are so thoughtfully designed.

The base itself is plain jane with an adapter thread if needed.

 

[gordonfraser]

Mounted on the tripod it's just perfect the way it's worked out. The diameter of the ballhead pefectly fits the diameter of the Feisol CT-3301 platform.

A quick twist on and the ballhead is secure. I made sure the panning knob was suitably locked and boy does it lock tight without much pressure!

It's a match made in heaven for me. The height of the ballhead on top of the tripod is absolutely spot on for my height.

The whole setup seems to go well aesthetically. With the minimalist design of both tripod and ballhead matching up. The brushed aluminium elements of the Cullmann match the brushed steel (I guess) elements of the Feisol, like the leg angle locks, leg bolts and bag hanger. It all looks very minimal - something I really love.

Here you can see just above the pano scale is a recessed screw. I would assume this is to disassemble it, which shows how easily it must be to do. Great news. The panning knob looks to be sitting out here but it's only due to me releasing it to swivel the head around to take photos. When it's tightened it's flush against the body.

The horizontal position showing how brilliant that wee ring of rubber is. It produces a satisfying soft thunk rather than metal to metal clash. The ball itself is an almost raw-tooled look and I'm very happy they decided against anodising it. The black parts all seem to be a hardened finish. I'm not able to say if it is enamelled or what but compared to an anodised part, it seems to have an exterior coating on it. The white logos are engraved and paint-filled, another indication of a quality product.

So there you go. I am over the moon with my tripod setup. I can't wait to get out in the field with it. I have an Arca Swiss style QR clamp on the way, as well as a Peak Design Capture Pro which I am hoping will all work with my other gear - Herringbone wrist strap included. This setup will hopefully allow me to clamp my camera to my hip for walking around shots, and easily remove it to mount on to the tripod for landscape shots.

Many thanks for reading and I hope you see, like I did, that there's far more to this world than the big guns of Manfrotto, Giottos, Gitzo et al. For a budget of little over £350, I've got a robust, light, very attractive, easy to use setup.