Locline vs. Ultralight arms for Inon D-2000

[adjuster-jd]

I have an Oly C5050 and PT-015 and I have pretty much decided to purchase the Inon D-2000 strobe (not sure from which vendor yet) but can't decide whether to purchase the fisheye tray with Locline arm or to get a ULCS arm. Yuzo sells the tray with locline arm and has given me a price of $730 USD including shipping for the strobe, sync cable and tray/arm.

Marine Camera has the DS-2000 packed with a ULCS arm and tray for $818 and I am assuming this would be a US warranty. They don't appear to have the fisheye trays on their web site (I like the looks of the fisheye tray and handle more than the ULCS).

I have never owned an underwater strobe so I don't have any experience with either locline or ulcs. I've read a bunch of threads and still can't seem to figure out advantages of one over the other.

Can anyone give me some guidance on pros-cons of each arm system?

Thanks.

 

[Dee]

The jointed arm systems like the ULCS are very popular but I can only give you my opinion. I prefer the locline arms for several reasons. They are very easy to maneuver into any postion, no maintanence other than rinsing, light weight and cheap. My first locline arms came from Light & Motion, listed as Infinity Arms, and are priced at $69 for about 20-22" length. That's plenty long enough. And the locline arms are stiff enough to hold the strobe in any position underwater. Topside I keep the arm bent over the housing to keep it contained.

I have used the ULCS arms and found them a pain to put together. The tension on the joints have to be just right to keep them from being too stiff to move or so floppy it wouldn't hold the strobe. It also took an effort move them into position when I wanted to move them to a new position, especially down low. I didn't need the weight of them and I never felt they were worth the $200+.

Like I said, some people love them. So take my different opinion and experience as you will.

 

[dive]

Check Ryan at http://www.reefphotovideo.com/ he can answer any question you have.

 

[ReyeR]

There are no right or wrong answers, it just depends on your prefrences.

Locline arms are very easy to manoeuvre.

Ball-and-clamp arms are a bit more fiddly but once you get used to them you will instictively know how much to tighten them so they hold the strobe in place and also allow you to position it without having to loosen the clamps everytime. BaC arms take no more maintenance than the usual soak and rinse. They will not go loose over time. Weight difference is negligible. They are probably better if you tend to place your strobes far away from your housing/camera.

You can just order the fisheye tray from Yuzo and order the tray adapter and segments and clamps from the US - either from someone like Ryan or directly from Terry at ULCS.

 

[alcina]

I've used both and I prefer my loclines right now.

In addition to what's been said, I often pop my strobe head off to put it in a hole or other hard to reach place. Locline just works better for me. I think I have 18 or 20 pieces in my loc line arm and I can fully extend them with the strobe head without droop.

you can get loclin parts online for cheap cheap too...I think Gilligan has a link on his webpage.

 

[herman]

I have not had the oppertunity to use it but I just built a Locline arm for my D180 (DIY post to come soon). For a 1ft arm I have about $22 invested and I can make it almost any length I want. Additional lengths 1ft sections can be very easily added for about $7. I used the 3/4 inch size. Here is a link to where I purchased it on line. I ordered it on Sun and it was at my home on Wed. http://www.modularhose.com/

Here is a link to the web page I based my arm on. I did change a couple of things and am evaluating a couple of other changes to what Bart did. He also has a simple but effective tray design as well. Both are worth considering. Off hand I would say the cost of his tray would run in the $20-25 range.
http://www.digitaldiver.net/library.php

 

[maractwin]

A comment about separating the strobe from the camera - you can do this with ULCS arms too. I've got a quick-disconnect handle on my tray, and the strobe arm mounted on top of the handle. It's easy to push the button on the base of the handle and slide it off the tray so that you can move it further from the camera or into awkard positions. I also do this to pack my camera for traveling. I leave the tray on the housing, and the strobe on the arm, but separate those two halves so that it fits better into my travel case.

-Mark

 

[jpurdie]

I have an Oly C5050 and PT-015 and I have pretty much decided to purchase the Inon D-2000 strobe (not sure from which vendor yet) but can't decide whether to purchase the fisheye tray with Locline arm or to get a ULCS arm. Yuzo sells the tray with locline arm and has given me a price of $730 USD including shipping for the strobe, sync cable and tray/arm.

Marine Camera has the DS-2000 packed with a ULCS arm and tray for $818 and I am assuming this would be a US warranty. They don't appear to have the fisheye trays on their web site (I like the looks of the fisheye tray and handle more than the ULCS).

I have never owned an underwater strobe so I don't have any experience with either locline or ulcs. I've read a bunch of threads and still can't seem to figure out advantages of one over the other.

Can anyone give me some guidance on pros-cons of each arm system?

Thanks.

I purchased the Fisheye Tray with the Locline arm from Yuzo and am very happy with it. It very easy to maneuver underwater and light weight!

 

[Ryan]

ULCS' soft bicycle grip handle is more durable than the padding supplied on the Fisheye tray handle. I don't think you will go wrong with either part, that being said, my customers have been extremely happy with the digital tray and handle.

Our "Scubaboard Special" package consists of the Digital Tray & Handle from Ultralight, D-2000, Optical D Cable W-5 Set for PT-015, Infinity Locline Arm, and YS-Fixing Bolt, and Free FedEx Shipping for $745. This strobe is shipped with English user's manuals, and is fully supported by our store and Inon America.

Many of my customers can't reassemble their locline arms without a specialized tool after breaking them apart, so I would be a bit wary of Alcina's hand holding technique. I don't suggest taking the arms apart, as eventually the joints will wear, and the arm can pop off at in-opportune times (just ask digital diver member Albatross, who saw her YS-90dx strobe hanging on by only a fiber optic sync cord and Velcro after a dive in Tahiti!).

My personal opinion is that ULCS arms are the best, most flexible ball arm system available, but for small strobe entry level systems locline is a viable cost saving alternative.

 

[Dee]

ULCS' soft bicycle grip handle is more durable than the padding supplied on the Fisheye tray handle. I don't think you will go wrong with either part, that being said, my customers have been extremely happy with the digital tray and handle.

I totally agree. I have them both and while I love the Fisheye tray design, the thinly padded flat handle isn't as comfortable as the round textured grip on the ULCS Digital Tray. The design of the trays themselves are very similar.