VortexOptics Mountain Pass Tripod Kit | Aluminum Tripod & Pan Head

I compared this tripod to two others - one was a Nikon and the other was an off-brand. The Nikon is more compact and a little lighter, but it didn't extend tall enough to stand and look through my spotting scope. Also the Nikon was more wobbly. The Vortex is made of quality material and is very stable. It does take up more room in my pack while hiking, but it's worth it. Highly recommend.

Very sturdy hose my spotting scope very well.

Very solid. Easy to set up. It's not the lightest (but wouldn't call it heavy either) but that wasn't what i was looking for. Collapses down very nicely and could be fit into a pack fairly easily.

Very stable and good quality. Not heavy at all

It’s kinda flimsy

This version is like 1/3 of a pound heaver than the carbon and less than half the cost. It's solid and works great.

I've been looking at Vortex for a while now and I'm happy with that they sent me. It's just a very rugged Tripod that not only looks great I think it could potentially survive a year with an active seal team, ranger team it's built to take a ton of ***t. Ordered this Tripod to film and spot Wolves behind and on my property and have owned many Tripods this happens to be one I feel I'll never be able to destroy this one within reason will last most backpackers a lifetime, it's very rugged and I paid less than 150 Dollars on Amazon.Big thumbs up to Vortex and Amazon who found this for me.

I own an 80mm Vortex spotting scope, which is a quite good quality optic. I thought I would pair it with a Vortex tripod (the Amazon listing actually shows the Vortex scope attached to the tripod). Now that I own the tripod, I find that the quality is not quite what I expected for the over-$100 price (it wasn't one of those knockoffs priced under $100). Particularly, the tripod head itself seems cheaply made. The 1/4" - 20 screw thread attachment made it easier for me to change the head out for a higher quality head, so for now the setup is adequate for my needs, which is casual spotting scope use and maybe still photography. However, if the buyer needs a high-quality tripod for serious videography, look elsewhere and expect to pay much more. The stock tripod head does not allow any kind of smooth tracking movement for any kind of panning operation. You can only set it and tighten it. Only time will tell if the tripod itself holds up to use. There are enough plastic parts that could eventually fail, but nothing obvious for now. It sets up takes down easily enough. Each individual leg has its own 2-position lock, so there is no master knob to set leg width. However, you'll have to be content with the 2 leg positions, narrow vs. wide stance.