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|| SportsShooter.com: Member Message Board
Manfrotto 244 Magic Arm Issue
Justin Berl, Photographer, Assistant
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Moon Township | PA | USA | Posted: 7:59 PM on 02.17.16 |
->> Looking for some help, one of the studs at the end of my varible friction magic arm (Model 244) is completely locked into place not matter what I do it won't budge. I unscrew the center dial and the stud still won't budge (The other end moves freely). I've tried to take the whole thing apart, spray it with WD40 and it's still locked into place. Manfrotto was no help when I called, apparently I'm only the 2nd person the rep I spoke to said that this has happened to, Any help would be greatly appreciated.
https://goo.gl/1M2NFV (Link to a cell phone photo of the arm on my Facebook wall) |
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Ron Manfredi, Photographer
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Merrick (Long Island) | NY | | Posted: 11:26 AM on 02.18.16 |
->> You might want to try a penetrating oil/solvent like Liquid Wrench, and allow it to soak in for a time, and tap gently every so often to try to get in into the threads. It may take a few application/tapping sessions, but it might free things up. There is a product I have used, and it works well. It is Kano's "Kroil", but I imagine you don't want to take the time to mail order something.
http://www.kanolabs.com/google/ |
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Justin Berl, Photographer, Assistant
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Moon Township | PA | USA | Posted: 1:35 PM on 02.18.16 |
| ->> Thanks to an email from Shawn Cullen last night, I was able to follow his directions, take the arm apart and put it back together. Everything is working fine now, thanks to those who reached out to me with advice! |
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Dave Prelosky, Photographer
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Lower Burrell | Pa | US | Posted: 1:48 AM on 02.19.16 |
| ->> So what do they hide in there? |
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Kevin M. Cox, Photographer
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Galveston & Houston | TX | US | Posted: 12:04 AM on 02.21.16 |
| ->> Please share the solution so anyone else in the same situation in the future will be able to get it solved quickly. |
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Justin Berl, Photographer, Assistant
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Moon Township | PA | USA | Posted: 4:26 PM on 02.21.16 |
->> Here are the instructions Shawn Cullen sent me
"The problem you are having is that
there is a ball bearing inside the magic arm that
has locked up the cylinder that moves up and
down the arm to put friction on the ball joint at
the top to lock it in place.
So here is what you will need to do. You will
need 2 crescent wrenches. You need to loosen
the very thin nut that is right below the black
cap that holds the ball joint in place. Use the
other wrench to clamp onto the other small nut
below it, or just above your label on the arm.
Once you loosen this thin nut, start to unscrew
the black cap. Remember how many times you
turn it. You will need to tighten it the same
number of turns. I would go at least 5 to 6
turns. Once you have done this, then unscrew
the black handle and pull off the two arms.
There is a short thick cylinder in the elbow joint,
and this is where the ball bearing sits. It is
supposed to sit in a grove on the thick black
cylinder. So it needs to be reset back into this
grove. So pull out the cylinder and find the ball
bearing, put it into place on the cylinder and
reinsert back into the elbow joint, but make sure
the ball bearing is facing straight up at the arm.
Once it is in place, then tighten up the thin nut
and black cap. This should keep the ball bearing
in place."
And here is a link to another article about the same issue that another person sent me
http://tbone-tech.blogspot.com/2015/05/manfrotto-magic-arm-244-disassembled... |
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Kevin Krows, Photographer
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Forsyth | IL | USA | Posted: 4:54 PM on 02.21.16 |
->> Justin - Thanks for the details. If mine arms ever have problems I'll know where to send them to for service :)
(Appreciate you taking time to post this info for us) |
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Dennis Wierzbicki, Photographer
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Chicago | IL | USA | Posted: 10:45 AM on 02.23.16 |
->> Man, Justin, wish I'd have known that a couple years ago. I had one of my Magic Arms seize up and nobody, including Manfrotto, could tell me how to fix it, so I ended up tossing it out.
Good to know. |
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