Manfrotto 410 Install Them When#

The Manfrotto 410/Bogen 3275 is still a good choice for a sturdy and not terribly expensive head for times when you need precise movements and a ball head won't do. It is made this way so one only needs to turn the knob to unlock (disengage the two gears), and it re-locks when the knob is. The worm gear is pressed against the cog-wheel by a spring. These geared heads with the quick set option have the same design principle. I have it for over 10 years and it worked without fail.

Fortunately, this is a highly repairable head.Manfrotto 410 junior geared head with quick release. After a lot of use (or abuse), it can become extremely difficult to turn the knobs because a key gear has worn out, and sometimes sections can come loose. Unfortunately, these heads have some parts that are 'consumable'. This combination is plenty sturdy for a camera in the 6 lb range (like my Wista 45VX).

A few pictures are at bottom. So for posterity, I'm pleased to share this summary. Related Topics tripod head use a socket wrench 681 manfrotto monopod flip open tripod uses manfrotto 3066 viola tripod coastar tripod monopod manfrotto 410 tripod 6156 manfrotto 3405 manfrotto 3030 optex tripod bf 681 manfrotto There have been other threads years ago about these heads, but I couldn't find one that walked me through the repair process with pictures. Manfrotto 680b how to repair. RC4 compatible quick release plates such as the 410PL can removed from the head by pulling the cam locks spring. It includes an integrated RC4 quick release cam lock and a 410PL Quick Release Plate.

Manfrotto 410 Install Them When

Lift it off, and then use your goo remover to clean off the tape that was left on the sticker and on the tripod where the sticker was attached.(2) Next, you need to undo the screw that holds the two pieces of each section together. You'll probably want to reinstall them when you're done, so remove them carefully by slipping the tip of a razor knife underneath and gently cutting through the foam core of the tape. These disks are made of a thin, tough plastic material that is held on with thin, foam-cored double-sided tape.

On a head where the parts are loose, it might be easy to undo them (because they're already loose). You will wreck the screw head if you use the wrong sized Allen key so make sure it's 4mm and not an Imperial one that 'nearly' fits. I didn't see any signs of Loctite or other substances holding them down on mine, but they were very firm.

It might fall off on its own, or it might be stuck on with a bit of grease. On one or the other of the parts, you'll see a small thin plastic gasket (ring). It's holding down a small round plate onto which the sticker was attached.Removing the screw will allow you to separate the two components of that section. Unscrew the screw completely.

There's one picture that shows the ring properly installed over a post.Wipe the ring clean, and clean off old grease on the 'teeth' of the section that doesn't have the knob. In my pictures, you'll see several photos where the wrong ring was being used someone had previously tried to repair the head and didn't notice the notch and post. Take note of how the notch in the ring fits into a short post in the part of the section that is still attached to the head. The ring on the bottom section (which attaches to the tripod) has no notch.

Take a picture so you'll remember how it lines up.To remove the thimble gear, operate the large movements mechanism. On the toothed-side of the thimble gear, while it's still inside the main part, make a tiny scratch in the aluminum to indicate where it was in case you want to put it back in exactly the same spot. The thimble gear has teeth at one end that mate with the teeth on the part to which it was attached with the bolt. Notice how it has what seems to be an inner part made out of aluminum and is smooth on the visible inside surface. Make sure to wipe the parts clean and dry.(3) Now you have to remove what I'll call the 'thimble gear' from the section that came off the head (the part with the knob).

Dry both parts, being careful not to leave behind bits of cloth or paper towel.Once you've cleaned and dried the thimble gear, examine the teeth. Hold the part in such a way that the solvent will drip down and away from the knob as you're working. You don't want to get solvent into the mechanism that has the knob. You can dunk the thimble gear into the solvent, but easy does it on the worm gear side.

However, on the top two sections, the worm gear only ever touches one section (that 1/3rd zone). If the damage is extreme, you should probably replace the part (Manfrotto sells still sells them). On the bottom section the damage could go all the way around. If you're working on one of the two upper sections, the damage may be limited to the 1/3rd of the thimble gear that engages the worm gear.

Practice twisting it first to see how far you have to turn to get the worm gear completely out of the way. Easy does it with the grease - just use enough to lubricate the parts that will move against each other.(5) The only tricky step in reassembly is you have to operate the large movements mechanism to get the thimble gear back into the housing. I actually swapped out the bottom one, which was in better shape, with the top one.(4) Use a good quality grease and lubricate the teeth of the worm gear, the face of the thimble, and the top and bottom lip of the thimble. Note that the thimble gears are interchangeable. It's not perfect, but it's vastly better than it was.

If it's a used head you most probably will want to install fresh gear teeth against the worm gear side.Next, you have to put the thin plastic gasket ring back in position between the teeth on the top of the thimble gear, and the teeth on the tripod head side. If the teeth are undamaged and you want to put it back together in the original position, take note of the mark you made before disassembly. Gently ease back on the large movements mechanism until the gears mesh. It should just slip into place if you're doing it right.

However, the top two sections have limited ranges of movement, so make sure to seat them so that the post on the head side fits into the space that has been carved out to take the post on the part that has the knob. You can see the gasket properly installed in one of the pictures.You can seat the two pieces of the bottom section together at any point (because the head can rotate 360 degrees). If you put a bit of grease on those teeth, the ring will stay in place on its own.

Manfrotto 410 Manual