Looking for opinions on 67mm flip adaptors

[KeithG]

the FiT magnetic holder is interesting. but it introduces the following issues:
- where to stow the lens when not in use - i could not find an arm mount holder for it
- i would want my lens on a lanyard

 

[KeithG]

So the el-supreme o big dollar choice seems to be the Saga Dive. I understand the concept of spring and ball bearing indents, but want to learn more about the number of available indents.

Questions:
- Is there an indent that holds the lens (more than) fully closed?
- Is there an indent that holds the lens fully open?
- is there more than the closed and open indents?

My worst case would be 2 indents that were the open and closed positions. An alternate solution would be to provide multiple open indents to allow different lens positions as required by the lens / housing / hinge geometry.

 

[KeithG]

The Deeproof bit arrived today so I thought I would post my initial impressions (no under water experience yet, xmas in Bonaire is coming soon).

The base mounts via 2 supplied screws to the bottom of the housing. The base is sturdy and positions the rotating ring snuggly against the housing port. There is no flex or wobble even with a heavy Subsee +10 attached. Close fit and rigidity were my main concerns. No issues. The product is sturdy.

The hinge uses a plastic spacer as a friction component. It is able to hold the +10 lens at any position. It has an indent that locks the lens in front of the port. The plastic spacer may "polish" up a bit and lose stiffness (I have witnessed this in a buddys downriggers), but this may not be a huge issue as the hinge allows the lens to rotate way over center. So no worries about the flipped lens falling back in front of the port. Life span of the friction pad is a future concern.

The base has 5 holes:
- 2 chamfered non-threaded holes used to mount the base to the housing - works perfectly as the supplied screws do not protrude, hole alignment is perfect
- 3 standard tripod thread holes in a triangular pattern - 2 inline with the housing holes and 1 forward

I am not sure what type of housing the pair of threaded holes are designed for. My ancient Sea & Sea tray has holes 43mm apart. They do not match. The Deeproof base has holes 35mm apart. Not really an issue as I can use the single central mounting hole. The central hole is 14mm forward of the housing mounting holes so this will move my tray forward a bit. Again not an issue.

Once tightened, everything seems firm and sturdy. No wobble or flex.

One difference I identified with the rotate design is that the out-of-position lens is left to protrude in front of the housing. My prior camera used a swing away mount and the lens swung back behind the port (and sometimes rubbed my shutter hand knuckles). I do not think this should be an issue.

Bottom Line: I will take this diving, but will inquire about obtaining spare friction plates.

 

[KeithG]

the FiT magnetic holder is interesting. but it introduces the following issues:
- where to stow the lens when not in use - i could not find an arm mount holder for it
- i would want my lens on a lanyard

Real world feedback as my FIT magnetic holder arrived today (so cheap that I was willing to take a flyer on it).

Fit & finish is very good. The male & female threads are good quality. 2 solid pieces.

The female flange which goes on the diopter has an outer rim that centers in on the male flange that mounts on the housing. This means the diopter will always be centered the same every time you attach it.

The 2 pieces appear to be anodized or powder coated aluminum (I could be wrong). The flanges are not magnetic.

The flanges have 8 "super magnets" (or not?) press fit into their rim. The flanges are 3mm thick. So they move your diopter about 6mm away from your port.

I was unable to pry the 2 flanges apart with my fingers. I had to screw in a diopter and then screw the flanges into my housing in order to get enough leverage to pry the flanges apart. The magnets firmly clamp the 2 flanges together. If you get them close, they will engage and self center due to the rim on the diopter flange. Well designed.

The only downside I can think of so far is that a slight twist will release the flanges. The 8 magnets are approx 8mm in diameter spaced 30mm apart. This gives a 22mm "non magnetic hole" between the magnets. So it is easy to rotate the dipoter and lose all magnetic cling. Removing the dipoter is easy, twist it a bit and it falls away.

For this mounting option I would definitely want a tether of some sort. I also would want some secure method of stowing the diopter (I bought 2 sets planning on using half of the second set to either create a stow point for the diopter or to allow me to switch between my 2 diopters).

cheers...

---------- Post added October 6th, 2015 at 11:07 PM ----------

P.S. Worst case I use the FIT in the same manner as I used the screwin port on my last trip. I stowed the diopter in my BCD pocket. And then spent way too much time mounting and removing the diopter. The FIT is a huge advance. My guess is that i took 5-10 seconds to mount the dipoter and 5 seconds to remove it. The FIT reduces this to less than 1 second.

 

[James R]

After using my Nauticam flip adapter in the Maldives recently, I now definitely prefer the Saga. The Saga keeps the diopter out of the way, while the Nauticam can let it swing back and forth a bit. Having 1/4 of my SMC in the side of a shot is not so cool.

 

[JohnN]

I use one of these: H2O Tools 67mm (M67) Adaptor for Canon WP-DC28, DC34 [aft.139801067] - $51.95 : Reef Photo & Video!, The Underwater Photo Pros on a WP-DC28 housing. Not a flip up, but is on a tether and fits over the front of the housing. I find it very easy to remove when the macro lens is too much.

 

[KeithG]

I use one of these: H2O Tools 67mm (M67) Adaptor for Canon WP-DC28, DC34 [aft.139801067] - $51.95 : Reef Photo & Video!, The Underwater Photo Pros on a WP-DC28 housing. Not a flip up, but is on a tether and fits over the front of the housing. I find it very easy to remove when the macro lens is too much.

where /how do you stow the lens and adpator once you remove it?

 

[JohnN]

where /how do you stow the lens and adpator once you remove it?

I started out with a small pouch made from 1mm neoprene, but it was more trouble than it was worth.

Most of the pictures (I try to) take are macro, so the adaptor and lens lives on the front of the housing, since it is on a tether, I take it off and let it hang for the occasional wide angle shot or close-up where the macro lens is too much

 

[KeithG]

Some real world feedback from a week of diving...

The Deeproof works great. So well that I never tried the fit magnetic adapter (i have 2 sets i will sell very cheaply, any one interested?)

The Deeproof rotates the subsea +10 to my right side of the camera. The adapter is solid and secure. The lens rotates over center until it hits a peg that limits travel. The same peg is used to lock the lens in position when in use. The rotating hinge has enough friction to hold the lens at any position, above and below water.

 

[TravelDave]

i have the I-Das 67mm flip adapter - bought it for because it's the cheapest compared to other options (though it still seems expensive for what it is and what it does)

• not housing specific, will work with any 67mm threaded port
• before using, you screw it in snug to the housing then adjust the position of the rotating part be removing the two allen screws and repositioning it to your desired position. You then reattach it by screwing back the allen crews on two of the many holes surrounding the part that screws to the housing
• works well underwater, i use it with a subsee +10 with some thin generic diopters stacked on it. it is a big convenience vs screwing the diopter on and off which is what i used to do before.
• feels flimsy topside with a subsee +10 attached, so i'm a bit careful when flipping the subsee +10 out of the way when using the camera topside
• i sometimes have some difficulty when screwing on the diopter into it, the screw threads for some reason doesn't always align properly. while it is a minor annoyance, and it does go in after a few tries - i do worry that i might strip the threads of the adapter (or worse the threads on the diopter) at some time. this may be just an issue with the one i got though.
• because the diopter is only held in position by gravity with no locking mechanism to hold it in place. using the camera at odd angles sometimes causes the diopter to rotate out of position, which means you'll have to hold it in place with your other hand, an occasional inconvenience.
• when flipped out of the way, the diopter (subsee +10, which is a bit long) sometimes shows up on the photos when the camera (LX7, ikelite housing) is set to its widest setting. im not sure if i just hadn't flipped the diopter out of the way properly, but i do remember having some photos with part of the diopter in the frame

HTH

Some pretty good pricing on the I-Das right now. Your review seems mixed. After several years, are you still using this? Presumably it would work slight better with a +7 diopter, but wondering if this is one of those "you get what you pay for" items and I should be spending more on a Saga?