Turn your Manfrotto Head into a Peak Design and Arca Compatible System
Best way to convert your existing Manfrotto tripod head to take an Arca Swiss system, making it compatible with the Peak Desing Capture Clip. Unlike other conversions, this one conversion does not add any bulk to the setup.
No More Tools Required
After I converted my Gorillapod into a Peak Design compatible tripod, I started to wonder if I could achieve compatibility bliss by having one plate attached to my camera at all times.
Having a Manfrotto tripod with a Manfrotto head, meant that I had to use a tool to unscrew the Peak Design plate and screw the Manfrotto (proprietary) plate. The Peak Design plate doesn’t have a coin slot and requires a hex key to be removed.
So I started to search for a solution where I could have one universal plate that fits all of my camera support gear. It turns out, there is one brand offering an Arca-style quick-release clamp conversion kit for Manfrotto ball heads.
The Trick
There are many companies offering high-quality Arca-style clamps but not many of them fit a Manfrotto ball head. Manfrotto has a pesky tradition of using proprietary designs on their equipment. While most ball heads have two prongs on top of the “neck”, Manfrotto’s has a slot instead. As you can see below, the Arca clamp and the Manfrotto ball head are not compatible. Notice how the attachment point on the Manfrotto clamp (top) is different than on the Arca one (bottom).
According to my research, Haoge is the only company offering a ball head to clamp conversion kit. You can buy just the adapter or a kit with the adapter and the Arca-compatible clamp. (links at the bottom of the page)
As pictured above, the Haoge conversion kit includes an Arca-style clamp, a Manfrotto ball head adapter, and a screw to attach the clamp to the ball head.
The adapter converts the slot on the ball head into two prongs, making the ball head attachment compatible with many Arca-style clamps offered in the market. The longer screw is essential since adding the small adapter makes the whole package a little bit thicker, making the old screw that came with the ball head too short.
With this setup, I can swap back between the Peak Design Capture Clip, the Gorillapod, and the Manfrotto tripod without having to swap plates on the camera.
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