# Crazy RF 100-500 Disaster!!



## digigal (May 20, 2021)

I've been using my RF 100-500 + RF 1.4 on a monopod with the Wimberly MonoGimbel Head which works great! The only problem I had was with my tripod mount ring which I have had difficulty tightening it around the lens and it would pop open easily and finally got to the point I couldn't even close it around the lens. I sent it in to Canon and they said that the screws were damaged by over tightening and was bent and it was a non serviceable accessory and I would need to buy a new one. OK--well, the hooker is they _don't offer_ a tripod mount ring for sale for this lens! I'm leaving for Iceland in 6 weeks for bird photography.
What a fine kettle of fish I'm in!!  What to do?!?!?!
Catherine


----------



## Mt Spokane Photography (May 20, 2021)

I bet I could fix it. Problem is that it might be cheaper to buy new than pay me. A rental lens might be a solution, but if your tripod ring was never right, I'd keep after Canon to replace the lens if they can't sell a tripod ring for it.


----------



## digigal (May 20, 2021)

While I was in Washington State last week shooting (camera!) foxes, I borrowed one from someone else and theirs worked fine on my lens. Mine was never like that when I put it on the MonoGimbel head. 
Catherine


----------



## jprusa (May 20, 2021)

I would take the tripod collar to a machinist and have him look at it .


----------



## AlanF (May 20, 2021)

It's another Canon design with a flimsy weak point (the base of the foot of the 100-400mm II mount is secured by four tiny screws). The closing of the 100-500 hinged tripod ring relies on a bolt pressing against an indentation. Could you describe the damage better or post a photo to give a better idea where the problem is? Is it the knurled bolt slipping or is the hinge damaged? Depending on the damage, it could be difficult to fix. Given the time constraints, sending it to an ingenious fixer like Mt Spokane may be necessary.


----------



## Otara (May 20, 2021)

A removable part thats fairly fundamental to use and cant actually be serviced or replaced is uh - weird, in this price bracket. 

Im similar to Spokane, this needs to be remedied by them, one way or the other.


----------



## unfocused (May 20, 2021)

Canon repair didn't give you a price on a new mount? That seems bizarre. 

Are you a member of CPS? If not, join at the Gold or Platinum level now and then contact CPS and explain the situation and see what they can do. It's possible that while Canon may not sell the tripod mount rings as a regular accessory, they may have them on their parts list and may sell you one as repair part. The biggest worry I have is that given the supply chain issues with Canon currently, they may not have a tripod ring in stock as a spare/replacement part. 

How does the 100-500 ring compare in size to others. Would it be possible to use the ring from another lens, like the 70-200? 

Lastly, if all else fails, how about using the camera's tripod mounting hole. Unbalanced, but given that the 100-500 isn't a super heavy lens, it might work as a temporary solution. The camera's lens mount is certainly designed to be strong enough to support the lens, as not everyone uses the lens with a tripod or monopod.

Ultimately though, I think Canon needs to resolve this, even if it is at your cost. It is unacceptable for them to say you need a replacement part, but we can't sell you the replacement part. Contact CPS and start escalating it up the food chain.


----------



## digigal (May 20, 2021)

I am a Gold CPS member and eligible for Platinum but never moved to that level because I didn't see enough benefit to do so. I'll be calling them today to see what can be done. The lens can easily be handheld but with a higher megapixel camera, I find I need to shoot a a much higher speed so now I will use a monopod to keep my ISO as low as possible.
Catherine


----------



## AlanF (May 20, 2021)

digigal said:


> I am a Gold CPS member and eligible for Platinum but never moved to that level because I didn't see enough benefit to do so. I'll be calling them today to see what can be done. The lens can easily be handheld but with a higher megapixel camera, I find I need to shoot a a much higher speed so now I will use a monopod to keep my ISO as low as possible.
> Catherine


I am still avoiding mono/tripods. I tend to keep the speed at 1/1250s or greater - and it works well.


----------



## Fischer (May 20, 2021)

digigal said:


> I've been using my RF 100-500 + RF 1.4 on a monopod with the Wimberly MonoGimbel Head which works great! The only problem I had was with my tripod mount ring which I have had difficulty tightening it around the lens and it would pop open easily and finally got to the point I couldn't even close it around the lens. I sent it in to Canon and they said that the screws were damaged by over tightening and was bent and it was a non serviceable accessory and I would need to buy a new one. OK--well, the hooker is they _don't offer_ a tripod mount ring for sale for this lens! I'm leaving for Iceland in 6 weeks for bird photography.
> What a fine kettle of fish I'm in!!  What to do?!?!?!
> Catherine


Hate the new style tripod mount ring. This just confirms my fears.


----------



## Bdbtoys (May 20, 2021)

jprusa said:


> I would take the tripod collar to a machinist and have him look at it


The above is the easiest.

However if you want a quick turnaround... is the screw stripped or the mount stripped? If it's the screw you can probably fashion a replacement screw that will get you by. If it's the mount you can retap the hole in the mount and put an insert in it. However it almost sound like your whole ring is bent a little.


----------



## Bdbtoys (May 20, 2021)

unfocused said:


> How does the 100-500 ring compare in size to others. Would it be possible to use the ring from another lens, like the 70-200?



Unfortunately, they are different.

However, I was doing a little searching and found an aftermarket one for the 70-200 (that includes an arca-swiss base for about $60)... so a bit more digging might uncover one for the 100-500. If they get a Canon branded one, they can expect it to be $200... so might be worth it to search for the aftermarket.


----------



## digigal (May 20, 2021)

I had just received an email that they had shipped everything back to me so I put in a frantic call to CPS repair dept and the guy that answered escalated me up to the next level after I told him that they said they couldn't fix it and I needed to buy a new one and they didn't even sell them! The fellow I spoke with did more digging. They said that the problem was caused by "over tightening the screws and that damaged where the screws went into the collar so that the collar was bent and wouldn't fit around the lens" I told him that because of the arthritis in my hands I could NEVER tighten a screw let alone over tighten one because of my impaired grip! Also I told him about borrowing another 100-500 collar last week that I used for a full week without any problem at all and that I had spoken with a rep before my trip and told him I was having trouble with it when I was in Mexico and I had slowly become unusable and I had almost lost my lens a couple of times when it suddenly popped open and if I hadn't had my camera strap around my neck the lens would have hit the ground. The tech advised me to wait until after my fox photo trip so I could send both the lens and the ring in together and it was on that trip that I was able to borrow another one that worked fine. I will say that I HATE, HATE, HATE the design of this ring because it is so snug and gives no tolerance to popping open and is so flimsy. I just really don't see it being able to support my the 100-500 + 1.4 and the R5 on a side mount gimbel over a lifetime of the lens. Anyway, the long and short of the saga, is this tech did more investigation and found out that "as a courtesy" they were sending me a new tripod ring in the box with my lens. I guess when they found out there was no mechanism for me to buy one, they were stuck! Anyway treat those rings with kid gloves!!!
Catherine


----------



## digigal (May 20, 2021)

Bdbtoys said:


> Unfortunately, they are different.
> 
> However, I was doing a little searching and found an aftermarket one for the 70-200 (that includes an arca-swiss base for about $60)... so a bit more digging might uncover one for the 100-500. If they get a Canon branded one, they can expect it to be $200... so might be worth it to search for the aftermarket.


----------



## digigal (May 20, 2021)

I think it's too early for an aftermarket one to be available, but as soon as one is available, I'm going to check it out.
Catherine


----------



## Mt Spokane Photography (May 21, 2021)

I'm glad that they replaced it. I think that you are right, something was originally wrong with it and it wasn't you overtightening it.


----------



## digigal (May 22, 2021)

Happy ending, I guess. I received my lens and the new tripod ring yesterday. I still don't like the design and wish it were more robust--maybe they are thinking it will mainly be used as a handheld lens and the ring is just a "toy" add-on.
Catheirne


----------



## Del Paso (May 23, 2021)

digigal said:


> Happy ending, I guess. I received my lens and the new tripod ring yesterday. I still don't like the design and wish it were more robust--maybe they are thinking it will mainly be used as a handheld lens and the ring is just a "toy" add-on.
> Catheirne


Catheirne ???


----------



## digigal (May 23, 2021)

Hey, cut me some slack--I'm still traumatized about my lens!!!


----------



## AlanF (May 23, 2021)

digigal said:


> Hey, cut me some slack--I'm still traumatized about my lens!!!


“I don’t care what the newspapers say about me as long as they spell my name right.” P.T. Barnum


----------



## Del Paso (May 23, 2021)

digigal said:


> Hey, cut me some slack--I'm still traumatized about my lens!!!


I case you are still traumatized, just look at your pictures.
The'll comfort you !


----------



## unfocused (May 23, 2021)

I'm glad it was resolved. I am very tired of this new approach to customer service where the main goal seems to be to reduce costs to the company rather than serve the customer. It seems to be everywhere today.


----------



## JPAZ (Sep 17, 2021)

Quick resurrection of the thread. I have avoided the 100-500 tripod foot since, I agree with others, the lens is light enough to use handheld and I am nervous about the reliability and strength of the tripod foot, itself. But, carrying the camera and lens, with or without the 1.4x TC on my Black Rapid is too unbalanced. the lens hangs down when the BR is attached to the plate on the camera.

So, I've settled on the Hejnar DO60 plate on the tripod foot (I use a lot of Kirk plates but felt that that QD point was too far forward) and use a QD from the BR to the plate BUT ALSO have a safety strap from my BR to the camera lug using a small carabiner. The camera with the lens attached is balanced hanging horizontally at my right hip and, should disaster befall the setup, the carabiner strap should stop a lens to ground event. FYI, having once lost a lens to a tripod fall (the camera survived), I never leave a camera on a tripod without a loose strap around my neck. I know I could inadvertently pull the setup with that strap but I'd rather risk that in case the tripod falls or the lens foot fails.


----------



## AlanF (Sep 17, 2021)

JPAZ said:


> Quick resurrection of the thread. I have avoided the 100-500 tripod foot since, I agree with others, it is light enough to use handheld and I am nervous about the reliability ands strength of the tripod foot, itself. But, carrying the camera and lens, with or without the 1.4x TC on my Black Rapid is too unbalanced. the lens hangs down when the BR is attached to the plate on the camera.
> 
> So, I've settled on the Hejnar DO60 plate on the tripod foot (I use a lot of Kirk plates but felt that that QD point was too far forward) and use a QD from the BR to the plate BUT ALSO have a safety strap from my BR to the camera lug using a small carabiner. The camera with the lens attached is balanced hanging horizontally at my right hip and, should disaster befall the setup, the carabiner strap should stop a lens to ground event. FYI, having once lost a lens to a tripod fall (the camera survived), I never leave a camera on a tripod without a loose strap around my neck. I know I could inadvertently pull the setup with that strap but I'd rather risk that in case the tripod falls or the lens foot fails.


For several years now, I have used two caribiners on the BR strap, one to the body and the other to the tripod foot. It gives that extra security and the camera and lens hang better.


----------

