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Thread: Kirk L bracket

  1. #1
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    Kirk L bracket

    Has anyone here got one?

    If so can you tell me if there is a dealer or shop in Oz that gets them in

    I would like one for the 750 but its not an easy task to find them
    Our Land Rover does not leak oil! it just marks its territory.......




  2. #2
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    I'm assuming a D750?
    Don't know of anyone that has them locally.

    I have one that I don't use for my D300 and D800
    I have two and I don't use the Kirk any more.
    The Kirk L I have is specifically for the D300, but I ground it down to also fit the D800, so the base is a flat(and ugly looking) surface.
    I just fitted it to my olde worlde D70s and it fits OK.

    BUT!!!(and the reason I don't use the Kirk any longer)
    Have a look at the Hejnar line of products.

    Hejnar D750 L bracket

    I got the Kirk bracket first and after reading glowing reports from many users, the main sore(and sticking) point was that even tho they have the side access port on the L side, it's pretty much useless!
    That is, it looks like you can open the access covers, but the reality is you really can't(easily!)
    I don't use them much(if at all) .. but the one time when I wanted too, I had to remove the L bracket to do so.

    The Hejnar L bracket has a removable L side, held in by two stainless dowels, and clamped in via a stainless allen headed bolt.
    The beauty of this system is it's flexibility(and it's cheaper i think .. it was when I got mine).
    But the beauty is that you can leave it as a L bracket, or remove the L side and use it as a normal tripod clamp(bottom piece only) if you want.
    Having the L bracket is also good for that tiny bit more body guard protection, but the chances are if you do any damage to the camera it will always be on the side that wasn't protected!

    The other handy/advantage of the Hejnar(say for someone like me) is that you may only need the one L side part, but can mount the base plates to each camera and move the L plate from one to the other.
    ie. no need to buy the full L bracket multiple times for multiple cameras.
    The other side of this advantage is that iff you ever update the camera to a different one and prefer a dedicated design, then again, you don't need to buy the L bracket all over again, just the base plate for it.

    One thing some 'commentators' didn't particularly like about the modular Hejnar L bracket is the point that it's a two piece design .. and thus theoretically compromised in terms of stiffness.
    If there is any, I'm damned if I can see it find it, or be inconvenienced by it.
    That is, done sharpness tests on D300 and D800 using both the Kirk and the Hejnar and could see no differences in IQ from either/or.

    ps. I have no need for the Kirk bracket I have and you're welcome to have it for the cost of the postage only if you like(ie. whatever cheap price that comes too)
    I've had it sitting here for about 5 + years or so I reckon .. never really needed to use it since I got the Hejnar

    Hope that helps.
    Arthur.

  3. #3
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    Thanks Arthur I will take a look at them.

    I don't think your D800 bracket would fit my D750 with grip would it?
    Our Land Rover does not leak oil! it just marks its territory.......




  4. #4
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    Yeah, it should.
    (but that bit I haven't tried yet!)

    The Kirk L bracket was specifically for the D300, and would fit nicely onto the D800.
    I ground the plate down to make it flat to fit the slightly different base plate on the D800.
    So technically it should fit any body now as it's not contoured for any one specific body.
    I have a grip for the D800 and mainly use the Hejnar L bracket on that, and while it's not perfect, it fits fine.
    What's not perfect is that the L side's length isn't optimised for the body + grip.
    I can get a longer side plate for that, but it's not 'worth the effort'.
    That is, it works fine as is.
    I'm primarily a landscaper, so I use it quite regularly.
    In fact, what I tend to do is leave the Hejnar bracket attached to the D800's grip, then when I do need a bracket mounted camera, it's simply a matter of screwing on the grip.
    When I'm just handholding as in just simply walking around, or whatever, I remove the grip(a couple of seconds) and I'm good to go.
    I have all manner of sliding rails and so on to tweak the position of the camera on the tripod head .. etc.
    Never had an issue with the Hejnar L bracket on the D800 via the grip.
    I have and sometimes still do remove the bracket off the grip and use it directly on the camera body(eg. to save space in the camera bag, where I may not take the grip) .. but generally I leave it on the grip.
    D750 is slightly smaller than the D800/D300 bodies(at least in terms of width) so fitting won't be a problem to either the D750 or grip(and then D750).
    It fits the D70s .. and the only thing that looks slightly odd is that there is a wider than normal gap between side plate and body.
    Not way out of place, just not as slick as on the D800/D300.

    Going on the premise that the D750 is just 0.5mm wider than the D70s, it should fit in the same manner, as it does on the D70s

  5. #5
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    Just been looking at the link you posted for the hejnar

    I take it you have to remove the side bracket if you want to access the battery in the grip too or do you have to remove the whole thing?
    Our Land Rover does not leak oil! it just marks its territory.......




  6. #6
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    Quote Originally Posted by dullbird View Post
    Just been looking at the link you posted for the hejnar

    I take it you have to remove the side bracket if you want to access the battery in the grip too or do you have to remove the whole thing?
    Yep! Have to remove the side bracket to get the grip's battery out.
    No real big issue as it's easy to do.
    I think it's easier than removing the base plate .. and then replacing it and having it all line up straight and so forth ...

    The dedicated L brackets for grips are better in that the shape of the base of the side bracket will(or should) allow for battery access without removing the bracket.
    But having seen one, they are bulky! But they do protect the base corners of the grip(battery door) from knocks and bumps better.
    The way I have my bag packed tho(very tightly, with wayyy too much stuff) .. I couldn't pack my camera in the bag with grip on and a kirk(or other) type grip L bracket mounted.
    I'd have to always pack the camera on it's own, and the grip detached and stored somewhere else.

  7. #7
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    Lou,

    I've got a Kirk Plate for the MB-D16 Grip for a D750 I picked it up second hand on eBay and have been really happy with it.

    I looked at an L Bracket , but like you I have a grip on the body and both Kirk and Really Right Stuff seem unreasonably expensive to me.... ( Maybe I'm just being tight.)

    Anyway I decided to try one of the eBay cheapies..

    L Shaped Vertical Quick Release Plate Camera Bracket FOR Nikon D750 Battery Grip | eBay

    It arrived today and first impressions are good - fits the camera well, seems really solid, I can change battery in the grip without removing it.

    And it cost me just under A$65 rather than US$185 plus postage.

    Might be worth considering - I'll update you once I've used it a bit.
    Mark

    Of all the things I've lost, I miss my mind the most

    2015 TDV6 D4.... the latest project... Llams, Traxide, Icom 455, Tuffant Kimberleys and Mofos.... so far.
    2012 SDV6 SE D4 with some stuff... gone...
    2003 D2a TD5...gone...
    2000 D2 V8...gone...
    https://bymark.photography


  8. #8
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    Thats awesome Mark funny I wondered about those grips too
    Our Land Rover does not leak oil! it just marks its territory.......




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