Sirui ET-1004 Aluminum tripod experience

[WI in the west]

Anybody have this tripod? I saw it on camera land with the va5 head on it. I cant find much on reviews but saw it can handle 15 pounds. Im trying to find something in that $300 range to hold my vortex razor 85mm steady. It weights in around three pounds which isnt that bad in my opinion, but due to lack of reviews im not sure how to take just reading specifications

 

[Ben RT]

I think Sirui makes pretty decent stuff (...in China), and that deal on Cameraland looks pretty good. I say give them a call tomorrow and see what they can do for you. With the mail in rebate, I don't think that's a bad deal at all. The 1.3kg weight is just the legs and I imagine the whole setup will be around 4lbs (maybe a couple ounces over)

I recently picked up a used ET-2004 (big brother to the ET-1004) and it is super solid and well built. I already have a VA-5 head on a ProMaster carbon tripod, and I like that setup fairly well, but I wanted to have a heavier built aluminum tripod for when I'm not packing. I'm pretty impressed with the VA-5 head and want another...

 

[WI in the west]

Yeah i saw a bunch of good stuff ablut that head just not a lick of english speaking reviews on the legs portion so im still a little skeptical of it at that price

 

[IrkedCitizen]

I have no experience with that tripod. People report good things from that head though.

An 85mm spotter catches a lot of wind. Holding it steady requires good legs and keeping the spotter as close to the apex as possible. Center columns add instability. The ET-1004 might not be up to that task even with the 8kg load capacity rating.

 

[Beararms]

If your budget is $300, you can buy a Sirui tripod & head priced at $400 and mention Rokslide and Cameraland will knock 15% off taking it down to $340. Then Sirui gives a 15% rebate making the total $290

 

[Ben RT]

If your budget is $300, you can buy a Sirui tripod & head priced at $400 and mention Rokslide and Cameraland will knock 15% off taking it down to $340. Then Sirui gives a 15% rebate making the total $290

That's a good point! The deals they have going on are pretty hard to pass up.

I actually just called and ordered the ET-1004 tripod and VA-5 head combo myself because I was in the market for the head and also needed the puck/spacer that sits on top of the tripod (it was missing on my ET-2004). The total price for tripod and head was only $40 more than if I just the head alone (after discounts and rebates were considered). The ET-2004 tripod is super stout, and I imagine the ET-1004 would be a pretty sweet tripod -- especially for the price!

 

[WI in the west]

That's a good point! The deals they have going on are pretty hard to pass up.

I actually just called and ordered the ET-1004 tripod and VA-5 head combo myself because I was in the market for the head and also needed the puck/spacer that sits on top of the tripod (it was missing on my ET-2004). The total price for tripod and head was only $40 more than if I just the head alone (after discounts and rebates were considered). The ET-2004 tripod is super stout, and I imagine the ET-1004 would be a pretty sweet tripod -- especially for the price!

Nice please come back with your thoughts on how it preforms. What are you using on it?

 

[WI in the west]

Any word on that tripod you ordered?

 

[Ben RT]

Yeah, funny you ask! I got a box from cameraland last week and when I opened it I found somebody else's riflescope. I mailed the riflescope to that guy, and hopefully he mailed my tripod to me! As of now, I am just waiting still.

To be honest, I thought it was a little weird that camera land would have their customers mail the packages to each other instead of returning them to camera land and them (CL) mail out new packages from their store with some sort of expedited service. I'm fairly sure everything will work out, but I did not think it was very good business. I know I am trustworthy, but I have no clue about the other guy.

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[Ben RT]

I also have no tracking number for the package that is supposedly coming my way.

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[WI in the west]

Oh nice thats quite the situation ha, hopefully its an honest guy, id imagine camera land would stand behind there deal and give you a new one of that guy doesnt send it

 

[Camera Land]

Yeah, funny you ask! I got a box from cameraland last week and when I opened it I found somebody else's riflescope. I mailed the riflescope to that guy, and hopefully he mailed my tripod to me! As of now, I am just waiting still.

To be honest, I thought it was a little weird that camera land would have their customers mail the packages to each other instead of returning them to camera land and them (CL) mail out new packages from their store with some sort of expedited service. I'm fairly sure everything will work out, but I did not think it was very good business. I know I am trustworthy, but I have no clue about the other guy.

Sent from my SM-G935V using Tapatalk

We apologize for the shipping error. We wanted to save time getting you both the right product and that was the fastest way to do it. Both of you are on forums we sponsor and we have NEVER had a member of a forum try to get over so the trust level was there and appreciate what you did
Thank you again
Joel

 

[WI in the west]

We apologize for the shipping error. We wanted to save time getting you both the right product and that was the fastest way to do it. Both of you are on forums we sponsor and we have NEVER had a member of a forum try to get over so the trust level was there and appreciate what you did
Thank you again
Joel

I Cant argue with that, knowing its another forumn guy and not some random person. thanks for throwing that in here.

 

[Camera Land]

We would NEVER do it if we did not trust both parties.
Thanks so much

 

[Ben RT]

My package did arrive just fine yesterday. I've always had a great experience with Cameraland, and the deals they give us Roksliders is unbeatable... so I have no business complaining. I also dont think the shipping error is a common one, because when I called to say I received the wrong package they knew what was up and were already working on a solution. Sorry for venting frustration here.

As for the ET-1004 tripod... considering what I paid for it with the VA-5 head, I think it's an amazing value! It doesn't have the twist down spikes on the bottom of the feet like the ET-2004, but it seems to be darn near as stable as it.

I'll put it to use and report back. Seems to be a spectacular buy so far.

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[Camera Land]

Thank you. Have a great, safe weekend

 

[Ben RT]

This is long, but the gist is that the ET-1004 is good-to-go (especially for the price!). If you are curious about what I thought compared to other tripods, then read on.

Here’s my experience with the three tripods currently in my possession. I tried to include specs to the best of my knowledge; however, I got the height and weight specs online and haven’t verified them. The specs are without a head installed, and should be fairly close. Note: I used my Cabela’s Euro HD (Meopta S2) at 70x looking 5 miles away to judge how stable these tripods are. The tripods were all at fully extended / tallest settings. I noticed they all had a different feel while focusing, and took a different amount of time to “settle down” or stabilize after I let go of the focusing wheel and stepped back. I counted how long each tripod took to stabilize after I tapped (or loaded and let go of) the eyepiece of my spotter, as that was one of the most interesting differences to me.

Sirui ET-1004: Tripod alone weighs 2lb 14oz, has a 55.1” max height, 17.6lb load rating, and 16.5” folded length. This tripod is a little bit short for standing, even with an angled spotting scope (I’m 6’1 barefoot), but did include a short extension that would bring it up another 3”. It’s definitely too short to be used with binoculars or straight optics while standing. This ET-1004 seemed a little bit wobbly while I was touching my spotter and focusing, but held pretty solid once I let go. It took 13 seconds to settle down after I gave the spotter’s eyepiece a good tap. It’s a very well built and usable tripod, and certainly a spectacular value. I paid (after rebates, valuation for the VA-5 head I was already planning on purchasing, etc.) around $40.

Sirui ET-2004. Tripod weighs 3lb 8oz, has a 57.1” max height, 26.5lb load rating, and 16.9” folded length. This tripod is probably more like 1” taller than the ET1004, but maybe the 2” difference factors in the retractable foot spikes? Fully extended this tripod is at a decent height for angled spotters, but is too short for binoculars or straight optics while standing (I don’t have an extension as I bought it used). It seems super stable while focusing (less jitters or wobble while trying to find optimal focus), and it took around 8 seconds to stabilize after springing my spotter’s eyepiece. Once everything settled down it provided me with the best view – it took my spotter to a different level. All around it just feels real solid, and I’ll keep and use it with my spotter and when weight isn’t a factor. I paid $80 on the used market.

ProMaster XC525C. Tripod weighs 2lb 1oz, has a claimed 59” max height (it’s actually quite a bit taller than the others), 13lb load rating, and 15.75” folded length. This tripod is a sweet little rig. It’s lighter and smaller (when folded), yet taller (when extended) than either of the above. It works great, but my personal preference is to have 4 leg sections and folding levers (like the above two) vs this ProMaster’s 5 sections and twist locks. The XC525c does it all though… It’s tall enough for me to use with binoculars while standing (I might have to hunch just a tiny bit). It feels pretty stable while focusing (it kind of has a jitter to it while I’m touching the optics) and it only took 7 seconds to settle down after tapping the eyepiece. I thought this tripod was the clear overall winner… but then I noticed something strange: while it settled down the fastest, it never completely got as ‘rock solid’ as the ET-2004. What I mean by that is the picture quality couldn’t get quite as locked down because it almost had a very minor vibration to it – something I never would have noticed if I didn’t have other tripods to compare it to. I did not hang a weight underneath it, which would have helped, but I wanted to keep conditions the same across the board. I also know I usually use this tripod while sitting and with the top neck lowered and bottom leg section retracted, and it’s obviously more stable like that. If I could just keep one, this would be it for sure. It cost me $275 with ball head a couple years ago.

Summary: If you’re considering the Sirui ET-1004 (especially with the VA-5 combo deal going on right now) don’t hesitate to get it. I do think a guy (especially a Roksliding gear junky) would eventually want to upgrade tripods from the ET1004, but I can’t imagine a better tripod at this price to get them by in the meantime. I’m going to probably just keep all three tripods for now, and I have a feeling the ET-1004 will be the one my son will end up packing around into the backcountry this summer and fall.

 

[Ben RT]

I got these 3 out a bit more this afternoon -- sitting and in some wind. With them set lower for seated viewing (neck all the way down, and bottom legs retracted so at equal height of 30" +/-) I think I'm starting to like the ET-1004 even more. The ET-2004 is clearly the most stable (bucks the wind real well), the XC525C jitters ever so slightly whereas the ET-1004 has more of a wobble/sway under similar situations. I think the the ET1004 essentially gives me the same quality view as the XC525C for seated height, but it weighs a bit more and won't extend as high or give quite the same stability when fully extended. It also doesn't cost nearly as much. And you also have the carbon vs aluminum, 5 legs vs 4, twist vs lever locks, etc.

 

[Camera Land]

Thanks for doing such a great review. As a thank you to you that every member will appreciate I will run the 1 day special from Saturday through this Friday and expand it
Buy ANY ET series tripod with the VA5 head and we will take off 25% and then you get back 15% from Sirui through Friday 6/12

Call me at 516-217-1000

Thanks for the support

Joel

 

[WI in the west]

awesome write up, definatly gonna pull the trigger on one this week now. leaning towards the ET-2004 now after reading that. thanks for spending your time on this, and thanks camera land for the discount!