I had been agonizing about buying this Manfrotto RCO Rapid Connect Adapter for months. There was always something better I could take instead and there are practical matters against buying it.
For starters all the RCO does is allow you to change over the fastening system—camera to tripod—to a hexagonal plate that you can mount on all your cameras and then rapidly mount—and dismount—all of them in the RCO. The Hex QR plates have the advantage the plate snaps into the adapter and locks in until a separate release is pressed.
That sounds nice enough until you find the list price of each hexagonal Quick Release plate is $54. Yikes! Bad as that sounds the complete RCO adapter complete with one Hex QR plate is $157.95. Double Yikes!
Secondly the Hex QR plate in most versions has a tower of tightening screw projecting from the bottom of the plate. There is a special Hex QR plate with a flat bottom but it uses a slot head camera mounting screw you would need some kind of slot blade to attach and remove. The whole mounted Hex plate is still projecting to make the camera tippy.
Anyway, let’s continue on to other matters.
The RCO adapter has a Quick Release toggle that could make an excellent mouse trap. In this top view of the toggle that bronze post is pressed down by the Hex QR plate and then a spring from hell rotates the cam into the edge of the Hex QR plate.
This is the bottom view of the RCO adapter. That hex bronze bolt head is at the hub of that straight bronze spring that tensions the lock lever for the main QR arm (Upper right lever).
Let’s start the action of the RCO adapter with the adapter closed as you see it here.
This is a top view of the same state. The Hex QR plate would be held by the closed state of the grey cam (with the silver hex head hub) and most importantly trying to release the Hex QR plate is impossible as the small release on the top right side of the RCO adapter has to be held in to allow the cam to rotate far enough to allow the bronze “post” to pop up. Then the Hex QR plate is completely free to tilt out of the RCO adapter.
To summarize with Hex QR plate mounted on the camera and the RCO adapter “cocked” with the toggle arm projecting straight away from the RCO adapter you capture the front of the Hex QR plate under the two catches and as you press down the bronze post “fires” that arm in and the cam rotates locking the third side of the Hex QR plate.
This is the dangerous part—that snapping in arm—could literally behead a mouse. Or at least crack a nut! People say you can learn to operate this RCO adapter so you can release the camera from the adapter with one hand. I suspect you use your thumb to press in the lock and then pull the arm towards your thumb using the other fingers on that same hand.
The RCO adapter now comes with bubble levels and a long bronze mounting screw. This adapter plate is missing those. It has two threaded holes for either European or North American tripod head threads as well as two set screws that can lock the adapter in orientation once mounted so the adapter can’t be rotated loose
I found I had two other Hex QR plate adapters. Notice this one has a knob tightened clamp instead of the snap/cam RCO version. It has cast-in surface web thickening visible on the near corner with two bubble levels underneath. This tripod’s Hex QR plate has quite quite a few holes—three small in the middle of each of the three black rubber pads, two middle size holes close to the center on two sides and a large hole on the third side and then two further middle size holes on two sides. All holes are unthreaded.
This tripod’s Hex head has a painted cam that matches the Hex QR plate’s finish. Note the differences in the styling of the Hex QR plate. Now the top of the plate has a cork surface and the pattern of through holes has changed. One of the holes is now threaded. Not visible but the cam arm has no lock (you have to rotate the cam through most of its 90 degree travel before the Hex QR plate is released).
Note: When I bought the adapter plate (for $1) I was told the Hex QR plates are sold in the $20 range. I found I could buy a Hex QR plate that supposedly is similar to the Manfrotto version for slightly under $20 delivered to my closest Walmart store. It was ordered and delivery was guaranteed in two weeks. As soon as I ordered it offers appeared for the same item for $1 less. Those were coming directly from China and delivery was measured in months.
Blog on the China Hex Plate continues—See Chinese Hex Plate
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