The ultimate camera mount test

[HHPhoto]

Hi,

in general I have a more critical view on Ken Wheeler, but sometimes he raises interesting questions and makes good videos about it.
This recent one belongs to the very interesting videos:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MWnL3PPMsXQ

I am not surprised by the excellent quality of the Nikon F, Canon EF and Fuji X mount.
But I am very shocked that the Sony E mount is so crappy and made from an absolutely inferior material, which lets it break so easily.
An absolutely no-go especially if you have longer telephoto lenses.

Cheers, Jan

 

[retinax]

Hi,

in general I have a more critical view on Ken Wheeler, but sometimes he is rising interesting questions and make good videos about it.
This recent one belongs to the very interesting videos:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MWnL3PPMsXQ

I am not surprised by the excellent quality of the Nikon F, Canon EF and Fuji X mount.
But I am very shocked that the Sony E mount is so crappy and made from an absolutely inferior material, which lets it break so easily.
An absolutely no-go especially if you have longer telephoto lenses.

Cheers, Jan

Is that a problem in real use? Longer tele lenses will have their own tripod mount, and the camera's lens mount only needs to carry the small weight of the camera. If anything, the mount breaking easily might limit damage to body or lens in case of a fall...

 

[HHPhoto]

Is that a problem in real use? Longer tele lenses will have their own tripod mount, and the camera's lens mount only needs to carry the small weight of the camera. If anything, the mount breaking easily might limit damage to body or lens in case of a fall...

Yes, it is. Because with such a weak material the mount is bending before breaking. That means the alignment of lens to sensor (the German technical term is "Auflagemaß"; I don't know the English word for it) is going wrong / defunct. That results in uneven sharpness (blurred parts in the picture).
For decades camera manufacturers have used very strong and solid materials for lens mounts. That isn't rocket science.
And now Sony is using such an extremely weak material.......

Cheers, Jan

 

[Phil_F_NM]

This guy is a toolbag. I don't care who he is. He's "testing" these flanges in a completely incorrect way. It doesn't matter that the Sony flange is made of powdered metal. Many car engine blocks and piston rods are made the same way.
One has to ask "what does the body flange sit on?" How is it anchored to the body? What is the body material made of?
The base material under the flange could be soft polyethylene yet still make an extremely strong mount. This test is flawed in that way and one should not base their purchase on such a material test. Testing a single component in a complex system and basing the entire reliability or durability on that component is irresponsible. The way this "tester" stressed these flanges certainly is.
If one feels this test has merit you should get rid of all complex mechanisms you own.
Phil Forrest

 

[michaelwj]

He’s doing it all wrong. I think he should do the “bend it with pliers until it breaks” test on the screw that hold the lens mount down. Of course you get less leverage on a shorter screw, so they’ll appear stronger. Therefore my next camera will be the one with the shortest lens mount screws. My bubble is awesome. Does anyone want some Kool-aid?

 

[splitimageview]

Oh geeze. Please don’t give him any more traffic...

 

[dtcls100]

I am not a Sony fanboy, although I own a Sony A7riii. This video does seem questionable as it does not identify where the Sony mount came from and the red dot on it indicates that it didn't come from any recent model which have white dots. I also have used my Sony A7riii with long and heavy lenses and never noticed any flex at the mount carrying them around, shooting them, or even trying to flex them by hand with moderate force. The original A7 and A7r models did have flex issues, but this was addressed in later models. I have plenty of critiques about the A7riii (confusing menus, no in-camera processing, no in-camera filters for monochrome mode, iffy weather-sealing), but the body feels tight and solid.

This leads me to conclude that the video is a clickbait screed and best ignored.

 

[css9450]

I can't watch the video (because Youtube is blocked here at the office), but it might be worth mentioning that for whatever reason, the aftermarket decided there needs to be an improved Sony E mount: https://fotodioxpro.com/products/snye-toughe-p-lt
Maybe it was designed more so for the earlier models mentioned in the post above?

 

[michaelwj]

The thing is, the metal lens mount isn’t supposed to provide the strength and stiffness in a “bending” way. It can be plastic and be just as solid. The reason it’s metal is so it doesn’t wear down with repeated use and to give the bayonet strength for attaching the lens.

 

[joe bosak]

There were problems with the original A7 plastic mount loosening, that's why there are metal replacements available. The later versions had metal mounts ie sony learned from their earlier model. The video is just showing that the mounts are still not up to the standards of the other manufacturers that Sony is competing with, on this particular test. Of course life is more complex but it's an interesting snippet, thanks for posting - i'd stopped watching angry photographer once he started incessantly talking about his gfx (cos i can't afford one).


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

 

[JeffS7444]

That's a misleading video because the Sony mount depicted is the older metal / plastic one as used in the NEX/A6000/original A7, and he's ignoring the plastic part which makes up the other half. Dead giveaway is the lack of metal bayonet flanges.

A7R, A7S, and newer mounts are chromed brass. I should know, I bought OEM Sony parts to replace the original in my A7. Also have an OEM A7 Mk II mount on hand which is also chromed brass.

 

[css9450]

That's a misleading video because the Sony mount depicted is the older metal / plastic one as used in the NEX/A6000/original A7...

True, but those aren't necessarily ancient history. Old NEX yeah, but the A6000 is only three years old and is still available today at B&H, so the old type mounts are still in circulation on new cameras.

 

[JeffS7444]

True, but those aren't necessarily ancient history. Old NEX yeah, but the A6000 is only three years old and is still available today at B&H, so the old type mounts are still in circulation on new cameras.

I call it misleading because he ignores the plastic component which isn't trivial.