Really Right Stuff FH-350 User manual

FH-350
Fluid Head

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SPECIFICATIONS: FH-350
Counterbalance Range* .........................................................................1.6 - 10 pounds (0.7 - 4.5kg)
Sinusoidal Restoring Torque .............................................Infinite Adjustment, 8- 50 inch-pounds
Tilt Range .............................................................................................................................. ±90º
Damping Adjustment ....................................................................................................3 levels + O
Height .................................................................................................................5.9 inches (150mm)
Weight (including handle) ...................................................................................4.2 pounds (1.9kg)
Operating Temperature Range .......................................................................0º - 140ºF (-18º - 60ºC)
• Range measured at 5 inches (127mm) above Tilt Axis. Maximum weight supported
is 50 pounds, but loads weighing more than 10 pounds will have increasingly
diminished counterbalance support.
RECOMMENDED INSTALLATION
Fluid heads perform best when installed on a tripod fitted with a 75mm or 100mm video bowl
with leveling base.
RRS tripods that accept 75mm bowls .................................................all Versa Series 2 or Series 3
RRS tripods that accept 100mm bowls .................................................................all Versa Series 4
GUARANTEE
ALL REALLY RIGHT STUFF BRAND PRODUCTS ARE GUARANTEED TO
THE ORIGINAL PURCHASER TO BE FREE OF DEFECTS IN MATERIALS OR
WORKMANSHIP FOR FIVE (5) YEARS FROM THE DATE OF PURCHASE. PRODUCTS
WILL BE REPAIRED OR REPLACED AT OUR OPTION.
® , ™, © 2014 Really Right Stuff, Inc. All rights reserved.
FH-350
Fluid Head

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SAFETY & INITIAL SET-UP
Your FH-350 Fluid Head was designed to incorporate the highly desirable features found
in larger, top-tier fluid heads in a compact package better suited for smaller video
camera systems like DSLRs and other similar units.
Designed with a true sinusoidal counterbalance system with infinite adjustability
within its weight rating, the FH-350 ensures the camera feels smooth and consistent
throughout the entire 180° of tilt. Proprietary damping grease maintains a consistent
pan-and-tilt feel over a wide range of temperatures.
Also built into the fluidhead is our patented lever-release clamping system; a perfect
mate with RRS lens plates and rails, the FH-350 is a DSLR videographer’s dream come
true! A distinctive feature of the FH-350 is the integrated dovetail base, which allows
quickly swapping between tripods and various setups.
The included handle can be positioned at any angle within a 180° range by utilizing a
clutch-style locking system. Say goodbye to slipping handles because of teeth wearing
out, like what happens with classic Rosettes or poker-chip interfaces. Choose between
left-hand or right-hand positions or purchase a second handle assembly and use both.
Please follow the safety and set-up points below to assure safe and proper use of
your FH-350 fluid head.
• Read this User Manual before installing or using the fluid head.
• Never disassemble any part of the FH-350. Aside from routine lever-release clamp
maintenance, head is not serviceable by user.
• Use a tripod with sufficient load capacity and rigidity to support your load. Ensure
the tripod is stable, balanced, and that all leg and angle locks are firmly locked.
• Fluid heads perform best when installed on a tripod fitted with a 75mm or 100mm
video bowl leveling base. Ensure that the leveling base is securely fitted to the tripod.
• The FH-350 can be installed onto a platform with 3/8”-16 threaded stud.
• The FH-350 can be installed onto any tripod or leveling base fitted with a Really
Right Stuff-style quick-release clamp. When using this installation method, double
check that the quick-release clamp is properly closed before using the head.
• Level and balance the FH-350 and camera using instructions provided in the
“Balance the Camera” section.

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FRONT VIEW
REAR VIEW
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KEY FEATURES
1. Multi-Lock Swivel — Patent Pending swappable Handle & Multi-Lock Swivel deliver solid
control for your fluid head. Loosening the Multi-Lock Swivel allows you to position your
handle precisely where you want it, then lock it down by tightening the Handle Lock Knob.
This gives you the flexibility and reliability conventional toothed designs cannot.
2. Handle — The 15 inch aluminum Handle with grip can be installed on either side of the
fluid head. No tools required; rotate Handle Lock Knob to release Multi-Lock Swivel, then
swap sides and tighten in place.
3. Tilt Damping Adjustment Wheel — Rotate wheel to adjust tilt damping. Chevrons
align with index mark in four positions to deliver: O (empty chevrons), Low, Medium,
and High (filled chevrons) levels of fluid damping. Note that there is no damping between
the chevron marks.
4. Counterbalance Adjustment Knob — Rotate the Counterbalance Adjustment Knob
clockwise to increase the counterbalance restoring torque. Decrease the counterbalance
restoring torque by rotating the knob in the counter-clockwise direction.
5. Pan Damping Adjustment Wheel — Similar to Tilt-Damping Adjustment Wheel, rotate
the Pan Damping Adjustment Wheel to change the level of fluid damping. There are no
intermediate settings between the chevron marks.
6. Pan Lock Knob — Rotate the Pan Lock Knob clockwise to tighten the panning base and
prevent rotation. Rotate a single turn counter-clockwise in order to loosen the panning base.
Partially engaging the pan lock is not recommended. Note that the knob can be removed
for replacement by continuing to turn the knob counterclockwise.
7. Tilt Lock Lever — Rotate the Tilt Lock Lever toward the direction of the Lock symbol on the
arrow to lock the head’s tilt axis at any position. Loosen the tilt axis by rotating the lever the
opposite direction. Note that the lever is captive and is factory-set with the proper amount
of clamping force. User adjustment is not required.
8. Clamp Lever — The clamp lever incorporates a Release Latch. To open the lever, first press
the Release Latch, then swing lever open 90°; this is the fully open position. The clamp is
fully closed and locked on the quick-release plate when the lever is firmly closed back to its
original position. Rotate the lever 45° to the half-open position to enable rail to slide fore & aft.
9. Quick-Release Clamp — Lever-release clamp* accepts all Really Right Stu-compatible
plates and rails. Clamp jaws are laser engraved in 1mm increments from (+)25- 0 - (-)25 on
center. Dual index marks aid positioning.
10. Precision Laser Markings — Use precision laser markings on the pan and tilt axes to
produce repeatable positioning of the fluid head. Tilt axes are laser engraved in 5° increments;
numbers and chevrons are lasered in 15° increments.
11. Circular Spirit Level— (not visible at le) Use the spirit level to ensure the pan axis is level
with the horizon. Center the bubble in the circle marked on the top of the spirit level. Tilting
the head forward, locking it at 45°, and viewing the bubble directly downward will produce
the most accurate bubble reading.
* Clamp automatically adjusts to accept all Arca-Swiss style plates except Arca-Swiss P0 (“PZero”) Slidefix
plates or plates made by Novoflex.

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SUGGESTED ACCESSORIES
QUICK-RELEASE PLATE
Your camera must be fitted with a Really Right Stuff-style quick-release plate; not included.
Please call us or visit our website to purchase the model-specific plate for your camera.
BALANCE RAIL
A balanced camera load is key to achieving consistent results with the FH-350. To achieve
balance, you must shift the camera forwards and backwards until the center of gravity is
positioned over the center of the fluid head. Most cameras fitted with RRS quick-release
plates, however, cannot slide fore & aft in the quick-release clamp on the FH-350 (most
plates only allow left/right shifts). Use a Balance Rail to translate left/right shift to fore/
aft shift. We recommend using either our MPR-CL or MPR-CL II rails. SOLD SEPARATELY.
BALANCE THE CAMERA
A balanced camera load is key to achieving consistent results with the FH-350. Without
properly balancing the camera, the operator will have to compensate by balancing
the camera load with their operating hand. This increases the difficulty of achieving
a smooth tilting motion and also limits the effectiveness of the true sinusoidal
counterbalancing mechanism found in the FH-350. Ensure the camera load is balanced
before making adjustments to the Counterbalance Adjustment Knob. Balance the
camera quickly using these steps.
Level the head
Use the built-in spirit level to level the head. The head is level when the
bubble is centered within the scribed black circle.
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MPR-CL
Suitable for
most camera &
lens combos
MPR-CL II
2.4” longer than
MPR-CL; use when
more fore/aft shift
is needed

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Lock Tilt Axis
Rotate Tilt Lock Lever to the locked position.
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Lock Panning Base
Rotate Pan Lock Knob clockwise to lock.
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Turn o tilt damping
Rotate the Tilt Damping Adjustment
Wheel to the o position (align with
empty chevrons).
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Mount camera and/or
Balance Rail
If using Balance Rail (sold separately),
install Balance Rail to camera’s quick-
release plate first. Then mount
Balance Rail into the quick-release
clamp on the FH-350 so that both
sets of dovetails are in the clamp.
Rotate the clamp lever until the jaw
fully engages the plate or rail dovetail
and the clamp is in the fully closed and
locked position (shown at right).
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Find the center of balance
(Illustrated at right without camera
mounted; to follow these steps, your
camera must be mounted.)
While holding the Handle, unlock the tilt
axis (turn Tilt Lock Lever to the unlocked
position, the opposite of Step .
When the tilt axis is unlocked, you must
hold the Handle at all times to prevent
free fall. Set the head to zero degrees of
tilt and while holding the handle lightly,
determine if the head naturally wants to
tilt forward toward the lens or rearward.
• If the camera wants to tilt forward, then
the load needs to be shied backwards.
• If the camera wants to tilt rearward,
then the load needs to be shied forward.
To shi the load, open the lever-release
clamp halfway and nudge the camera or
Balance Rail in the direction needed to
achieve balance. When the load is bal-
anced, fully close the lever-release clamp.
Beware of pinch points where the clamp
approaches the pan base at maximum tilt.
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SET COUNTERBALANCE
Properly setting the Counterbalance Adjustment Knob will result in effort-free tilting of the
camera load throughout the entire +/-90° tilt range. The true sinusoidal counterbalance
mechanism found in the FH-350 can be adjusted for each unique camera setup. Setting
the knob is quick and easy when following these steps.

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Perform all steps to BALANCE THE CAMERA
Camera should be perfectly balanced, Tilt Damping Adjustment Wheel should be OFF, and
Tilt Lock Lever is in the unlocked position.
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Tilt head forward
Tilt the head forward 15 to 30° with one hand. There should be a springy resistance.
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Set maximum Counterbalance
Rotate Counterbalance Adjustment Knob clockwise until
it comes to a hard stop at the maximum setting.
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Perform all steps to BALANCE THE CAMERA & SET COUNTERBALANCE
Camera should be perfectly balanced, Counterbalance should be set for the load, Tilt Lock
Lever in the unlocked position, and Pan Lock Knob unlocked.
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Rotate Damping Adjustment Wheel for both TILT and PAN
Rotate the Damping Adjustment Wheel to the desired setting indicated by the
filled in chevrons*. See figure on next page.
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SET DAMPING
The FH-350 features three distinct damping settings. This gives the operator the flexibility of
choosing a setting that is right for the shoot and feels comfortable for the operator. Select the
damping after balancing the camera and setting the Counterbalance Level in order to achieve
the most consistent results. Select the desired damping level by following these steps.
Set Counterbalance
While holding the head tilted forward, rotate the Counterbalance Adjustment Knob
counterclockwise until the springy resistance is reduced and the head stays in its tilted
position without user input.
• If the head falls under the weight of the camera, increase the counterbalance
by rotating the adjustment knob clockwise (in the direction of the “+” arrow).
• If the head springs back toward zero tilt, decrease the counterbalance by rotating
the adjustment knob counterclockwise (in the direction of the “-” arrow).
• When set properly, the head should stay in any tilt position without requiring
user input. Note: This feature is accurate to within +/- 5% and small changes in
angular position may occur.
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Tilt and Pan
Tilt and pan the head about 20° in each axis to
allow the damping setting to engage. Once
engaged, the head is now ready to use.
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MAXOFF
DAMPING SETTINGS
*There is no damping between the chevrons.Setting
the adjustment wheel to an intermediate position will
result in improper engagement of the damping and could
result in damage to the system. If you encounter a loss of
damping during use, check the position of the Damping
Adjustment Wheel to ensure it is properly aligned at one
of the marked settings.

1146 Farmhouse Ln, San Luis Obispo, CA 93401 USA
1-805-528-6321 | 1-888-777-5557
www.ReallyRightStuff.com