K&F Concept 64 inch/163cm Camera Tripod,Lightweight Aluminum

I thought I’d leave a review here after using this for a few years now. This tripod is solid, durable and sturdy. I’ve used this so many times and it still performs as new. Not a single problem whatsoever. If you want a decent tripod that lasts, get this. Stop looking at those cheap 10 tripod that only last a few months. I know because I got one of those and it’s a big disappointment.

I haven’t had the time to use it properly. but it seems up to the job. I’m going up to The Hebrides this weekend so will be able to give a better opinion then.

Got this as a replacement back in July 2020. Used it many times now and i cant fault it. Feels well made and holds my DSLR camera tight. Even for capturing any moon image. My old one would drop.
Happy with this item, i now just got Square filter set from K&F. Worth looking at there main website , if you dont mind a wait.

I could not decide at first whether I should invest in a much more expensive brand for a tripod but after carefully reviewing this, I decided to go for it.

I recently upgraded my camera to Fujifilm XT4 and so I wanted to buy a tripod that can hold my camera safely. After all, the camera itself and the lens are expensive.

For the tripod, my main purpose will be taking family travel photos for our content on Instagram. I must admit, I did not want to actually spend so much money for just a tripod. Also, I knew that I am always careful with my stuffs so I know this will last me long as I care for my things.

I haven’t tried this yet apart from putting it beside my travel/camera backpack and I am very pleased as this fits perfectly!

It is quite heavy though, I expected this to be lighter. But, since there’s a carry on bag included which is very helpful, I guess I could make it work.

The bag that comes with the tripod feels high quality and its thick.

UPDATE: brought this out on our first trip in october to kotor & dubrovnik and it worked perfectly, used for making videos and taking photos, here are some samples

Having evaluated several tripods, this is by far the nicest in terms of quality of materials – there are few plastics, and they’re of good quality.

However my camera will only be used indoors, and there’s no spreader – which I should have realised before buying.

The ball adjustment to level the camera is fine too, but I probably want a 2-axis or 3-axis tripod head – with a pan/tilt handle. Again, I should have realised this tripod doesn’t have that.

So, if none of these things are negatives for you – buy one! I think you’ll be pleased you did.

Mostly very good, for the price I wouldn’t want or expect more. The only real issue I’m having is the ball head, when tightening it can adjust from the desired position which means a bit of tweaking but I expect this is a common issue across all ball heads. Incredibly light and compact, especially compared to my full size Manfrotto. Perfect for shoots on the move such as weddings, I use it predominantly for video- pan/tilt isn’t that smooth but again, ball head, so it’s great for convenience as I tend to use this set up for static shots.

The legs are pretty durable, although I did manage to bend one by jamming it in between some rails while walking with it extended. User error. The rest of it has held up well and I don’t think it’ll fall short functionally if it’s used normally.

Having used some K&F Concept products in the past it was no surprise to me that the quality of this tripod would be brilliant. For the money you would be crazy not to buy this over a Manfrotto Befree in my opinion. The whole tripod from top to bottom feels premium, from the latches which lock the legs into place to the buttery smooth ball head that pans beautifully to the left and right (can also be locked to stay stationary). One thing I really like about this tripod is the center pole which can be reversed to get the camera as low to the ground as possible, great for getting some really unique shots, on the flip side of that though the tripod can extend very high indeed almost reaching the ceiling in my house! I like how they included the hook on the bottom too so you can add weight to the tripod to increase the stability, good for those windy days which I see many of where I live. All in all it’s a great piece of kit and if you’re torn between this and something else I’d pick this as the safe option, it’s great quality and amazing value for money.

let me start by saying being one of my tripods is not a easy life. I use my tripods regularly in Salt water.
Recently I’ve started to use cheaper lighter tripods because I just don’t want to be carrying a heavy tripod around so bought one of these.
The tripod has lots of useful features such as one of the legs having foam on it, the panning action for panos is nice and the tripod is Arca Swiss head (much more stability on portrait shots because the lens is centrally above the legs rather than hanging over the side). The main problem with the tripod is that all the legs eventually fell off after less than a years service. This may be due to the hard life my tripods get. The reason why I’d buy this again is because I’ve just superglued the legs back in and it’s as good as new. Everything else about this tripod is perfect for me. I’m also past the stage of worrying about portraying myself as a good photographer by having a more established Manfrotto or similar. I’m more confident in actually knowing what I’m doing and knowing that this is a better tripod for me. Plenty out there …..with all the gear and no idea.

UPDATE:
Since writing this review about the piece that broke which I fixed, the seller contacted me and offered me a partial refund which I accepted. I was not expecting this level of customer service and have upgraded to 4 stars because of this.

The Good:
Good quality right out of the box, and first impressions were good on how robust it is, how stiff the joints are, how tightly it can be locked off, and how versatile it is at maneuvering into any position you care to think of.
Overall, it is a pleasure to use, it looks nice, feels nice and is easy to set up. The foam grip is really nice to handle. The ball head locks off with a heavy DSLR nice an stable. The legs adjust in or out individually at any arbitrary angle from 0-180 degrees, but lock off at 4 separate fixed points for more stability with the spring loaded buttons at the top of each leg. It goes quite high and also pretty low, and if you flip it upside-down it goes that extra bit right down to the floor for macro photography or dramatic shots.
The bag it comes with, with optional shoulder strap is very robust and padded, and would be suited to mountaineering. It’s quite portable too. There is a sprung loaded clip on the bottom which you can hang a bag of shopping off of to keep it more sturdy in the wind if needs be. There is also a 360 spirit bubble on the head if anyone ever uses them.
The panning is very useful for panoramic photo merges, because it has markers to follow for each shot, giving you a very consistent photo merge, at least that’s the idea, which leads me into the bad….

The bad:
1. Upon only the second use, the pan head tightening screw, which is the smallest one, wasn’t quite tightening up and locking it, so I gave it another good twist and the threads in the pan head stripped easily and the screw was now useless. Not only would it not tighten, but the whole head became loose and wobbly, and generally unusable, because the threads were way too shallow and easy to strip. Luckily I was able to use an M8 bolt to grind out new threads (it’s only aluminium so was easy with a vice and spanner) and then use my 3D printer to print a new knob (bigger and easier to use this time) to hot glue on the hex head. After rounding off the tip of the bolt on my bench grinder this is a marked improvement on the original design as it takes less finger strength to lock it off now. It took me a whole morning to fix this, but I didn’t want to have to send it all back.
2. The panning does have another problem which could have cost me a new camera were I not able to catch it in time: If you try panning to the right while locked off (easy to do), it can force the head to unscrew from the base of the shaft, and this is a short bolt. If you don’t notice it, the whole head can just fall off, as it nearly did before I caught it. One more thing to watch out for. I took it apart and moved the inner bolt further down and gave it more thread to grip to the shaft and used all my strength to force it tight so it doesn’t easily do this again.
3. There is one more thing with panning… the whole shaft sometimes wiggles with the pan, where you think you’ve locked off the shaft after raising/lowering it, but you need a bit more strength to really lock it off. I’m sure I’ll just get used to having to do this though.
4. The feet should be more dome shaped, since the angles of the legs allow you do ridiculous angles. It’s okay on carpet, but the flat feet seem misplaced on this tripod when on a solid floor going at extreme angles.

Overall, this is my 3rd tripod now, and is instantly my favourite, despite it’s issues which I can overcome. I’m more pleased since I got it in Amazon lightning deals. My other tripods are more traditional, and very cheaply made. You can do a lot worse than this tripod, but then it also shows why there are more expensive ones on the market.

Really good tripod. Solid and not heavy but good stability even for outdoors conditions. Folds easily and become really compact to carry it with you. Legs adjust to different angles and cover a big range of heights, foot are cover with rubber to avoid slippery, good especially if you are going to use it inside. It is coming with a small plate to attach to the camera it really makes it easier to quickly attach and detach the camera. It is a ball head adjustment which I prefer rather that the three axis ones, it is easier and quicker to find and lock the perfect position. An extra point is that is coming with a nice bag to carry it and the straps as well. Happy with my purchase.

When the tripod arrived I was quite impressed. For the price, it seemed sturdy and although light, I was confident it could easily handle my DSLR camera, with battery pack and a large lens.
As I’m not using the camera much in the winter, I put the tripod up in a spare room, with a field telescope mounted. I noticed the ball head movement seemed rather stiff, making panning awkward, but never having had a modern tripod before, I assumed they were “all like that.”
I barely used it in the first week I had it, but was getting concerned about the stiffness when panning, and started to wonder if there was a problem. I had backed of the adjusters to their minimum friction, but it didn’t make any difference. On day six, I went to look through the telescope and guided it with my hand on the ball head…..only to feel a very sticky, glue like substance leaking out where it rotates.
I have had to return the tripod, and cannot praise Amazon enough for their prompt refund.
I can not recommend this item though, for the reasons stated.

Add!
Since writing this report I have had some positive responses from the seller, and they acknowledged there was an issue with the oil leaking from the ball head…which they have now sorted out. They have also replaced the tripod with another one (and indeed uprated me to a better one!)
So I have to amend this review and mark it differently in the light of the great customer service. Very happy with this tripod, and it works and looks brilliantly. Thanks to dcmall (the seller) for sorting this out for me and proving that good customer service can be achieved. It’s appreciated.

I had always used a standard/basic tripod but realised that it’s lack of flexibility was restricting my opportunities for taking photos because I couldn’t get very low with it, so I set off on a mission to seek a tripod that could get low to the ground. After quite substantial searching on Amazon I came across this tripod. I noted that the legs could be extended out to create a low angle, but also the head could be removed and the camera mounted below the tripod.

I have used this tripod on numerous occasions and I can confirm that it is excellent value for money and I’m delighted with the purchase.

The tripod arrives in a strong, well made carry case – which has a very comfortable shoulder strap too. The tripod fits in the carry case easily – although you do have to make sure it is all fully collapsed for it to fit.

The tripod is made from a very sturdy magnesium aluminium alloy and it certainly feels solid and robust when in use. It provides excellent stability for long exposure photography. It is not too heavy to carry – but it’s certainly not the lightest out there.

A nice touch is one of the legs is covered with foam padding to make the tripod comfortable to carry – and this is how I usually carry it as I find it bulky and inconvenient to have the bag too.
The legs extend with flip out clips, which enable easy extension of the legs and when fully extended the tripod reaches approx 1.3m. As I bought the tripod to use at low level, I have rarely used it fully extended but I feel it will provide adequate stability.

The tripod mounting plate attaches to the camera by standard screw fit and it easily slips into the tripod and is tightened by a screw. The head of the tripod is a kind of ball mount which allows numerous pivot angles and tilts. I have found this a very useful feature to help level the camera.

I was disappointed when I ordered the item and then realised it was coming from abroad and would take a month for delivery. The tripod was shipped out the day after I placed my order and arrived 12 days later which is fantastic service. The item was well packaged, plastic outer wrap over a layer of bubble wrap which meant the box was in perfect condition when I unwrapped it. Inside the box was a heavy duty nylon carrier bag with handle and detachable shoulder strap. The tripod inside was in a plastic bag and silicon packs were included to keep the damp off the tripod. The head was covered with a velvet bag for extra protection which was a nice touch. I was immediately impressed with the weight and quality of the tripod and appreciated the foam sleeve on one leg as tripods are always cold to handle. The legs extend with simple clip release action and they are in four sections so plenty of height without having to extend the neck, The clips are stiff but not so much that you have to fight with them and they ensure the legs are able to support the camera. The clips at the tops of the legs are easy to use and allows you to move the leg position for more stability or simply to lower the tripod height. The centre pole can be removed and inverted so the camera can be placed lower to the ground. The ball head is smooth and once secured very stable. It can be turned smoothly through 360 degrees and the ball once locked in place is very secure. The plate to attach the camera to the head is metal and the attachment is very secure I would have no worries about hanging my camera upside down on this head. There is a wrist strap to ensure you have complete control of your tripod if holding it in a precarious position such as the edge of a cliff or waterfall or balanced on the side of a boat, where ever you balance it the strap will ensure you don’t lose both tripod and camera. Aesthetically the tripod looks expensive, the black and gold makes it look classy and although not an important feature of a tripod is still worth noting. I would happily recommend this tripod to others, for the cost of under fifty pounds including ball head and postage you can’t go wrong with this fabulous item. I am sure it will give me many years of use.