Archived posting to the Leica Users Group, 2002/11/26
[Author Prev] [Author Next] [Thread Prev] [Thread Next] [Author Index] [Topic Index] [Home] [Search]- --On Tuesday, November 26, 2002 01:00:08 AM -0500 Stan Yoder <vze2myh5@verizon.net> wrote: > I understood that the story went like this: when the Marchioni brothers > (of NJ) died, the widows EACH sold the production rights, one to Leitz > USA, the other to Davidson/Star-D, which at the time was an American > firm. But that may be partly apocryphal. Leitz USA published a pamphlet > on the Tiltall that states that it approached the brothers in 1973 about > an "affiliation." The brothers then decided to retire from tripod > production, Leitz moved their machinery to Rockleigh NJ, and the brothers > trained the Leitz staff. It could be, then, that Leitz subsequently (what > year?) sold the Tiltall to the entrepreneur who owned Star-D. OR, maybe > the story is partially correct after all, and Davidson was producing its > version concurrently (but after the bros. died?) > > The Star-D could be had in at least two models, the better/best of which > (the "Professional") had the brass collets in the leglocks, like the > original. I own (and prize) one of these and the only difference I can > detect is that the two tilt handles have black plastic grips rather than > the aluminum knobs of the Marchioni bros. original. Otherwise, built like > the proverbial brick s---house, and NOT lightweight. Sturdy is as sturdy > does. > > I dunno about the current Tiltall, having neither seen nor handled one. > I've heard that it's not made like the older ones. "They don't build 'em > like they useter, Horace!" :-) > > Can anyone shed conclusive light on this history? The Star-D and the Leitz branded Tiltall were definitely produced concurrently. The Star-D was cheaper, both in price and in fit and feel. The current Tiltall seems to be somewhere in between, IMHO. I can't get the legs tight enough on my modern Tiltall -- they want to screw right off the head up at the top. Also, the redesign of the feet was certainly a questionable one. On my Leitz, there is no way you are going to lose a foot but on the modern tiltall, it only seems a matter of time before one comes unscrewed without being noticed. - -- Rolfe Tessem Lucky Duck Productions, Inc. rolfe@ldp.com - -- To unsubscribe, see http://mejac.palo-alto.ca.us/leica-users/unsub.html