SMALLRIGRosette Magic Arm 11 Inch with Ball Head, 1/4"-20 Screws, and Anti-Twist Pins, for Cameras/iPads/Monitors/LED Lights/Smartphones/Action Cameras, Max Load Capacity 3kg

As with many SmallRig products, there is an attempt to improve, to make a truly awesome product, and they do some things right. BUT still there is not enough thought, research and (dare I say) common sense when designing them. The arm is very heavy weighing 282g - that is heavier than many 7” on camera monitors, not to mention 5” ones ! As a comparison, my ball-joint UUrig articulating arm weighs less than a half, 130g. You might say, it is great that the arm is so sturdy, this way it can mount heavier accessories (such as bigger monitors with batteries, lights, transmitters, etc, etc) but while the arm locks firmly and does not slip thanks to the rosette design and the Arri locating pins, the designers chose the 1/4” screws for mounting instead of 3/8”. This does not make any sense, 1/4” screws are NOT strong enough to hold heavier accessories, I’ve seen them snap many times - don’t forget the arm acts as a lever so it will break the 1/4” very easily, almost by its own weight! So forget about taking advantage of the sturdy built of this arm to safely mount heavier accessories. Meanwhile for something like a 7” or 5” monitor this arm is an overkill (as mentioned earlier, itself it weighs way more than those monitors). So it is neither: NOT a heavy duty arm due to 1/4” screws and NOT a lightweight arm due to its ridiculous weight. It is a bad, crude design and I will be returning it. Instead of making hundreds of versions of similar products SmallRig should really and quite literally go to the drawing board and design one but good articulating arm.

I have never owned a magic arm before but when I saw this I was immediately interested as it would enable me to use my monitor off camera to a much greater extent than currently possible.Nearly all my existing video cage gear is by SmallRig so I had no hesitation in ordering this item. Everything I already have from them is well made.The magic arm arrived and upon opening the box it was immediately apparent that this was a quality item. Aircraft grade aluminum and stainless steel - all exceptionally well machined.This is a substantial item which according to the listing is 330g but when I weighed it myself it came in at 10 oz. or 283g. Fully extended it is 11.25 inches or 286mm.In use, the ball heads are locked into place by tightening the thumbscrew at the "elbow" joint. And I do mean locked. I could not believe just how immovable they were.The ball heads are equipped with 1/4"- 20 screws and Arri retaining pins so they will have compatibility with almost anything you might want to attach. The pins are retractable so if you are attaching the arm to a non-Arri attachment they will simply push out of the way. The load capacity is rated at 3kg which is more than most of us are likely to use.The arm and ball heads are incredibly flexible in configuration and can be moved into just about any position. So, whatever it is you wish to attach, the chances are this rig will cope with it.Overall, this is another particularly well made SmallRig accessory that will prove to be useful to me. If you are in need of a strong and flexible device to handle your video monitor, microphone, etc. etc. then I recommend you take a serious look at this magic arm.

The media could not be loaded.  Item: SMALLRIG Rosette Magic Arm 11 Inch, Mdl. 3959Price: $28.41 after vendor 5% discount on 02 01 23The Smallrig rosette arm is an extremely adjustable device for positioning any photo-video accessory in positions that you just wouldn’t be able to attain with the more simple ‘ball mount’ devices. It is, in fact, both an articulating arm with ball mounts on both ends. For me, I’ve found it invaluable when I mount one of my compact LED panel lights on my DSLR for the photographing of small metal products.What is completely unique about this arm is how you can loosen both ball joints and the 360-degree rotational joint where the two arm-halves join. With just one ‘easy to grasp’ wing-knob, you can loosen every articulation point of the arm. You can then twist and turn the arm assembly in any position to get, as in my case, that ‘perfect light position.’ Once you have your position, and with one knob to turn and tighten, you’ll ‘freeze’ every moveable joint in the arm. In one device it replaces two ball joints and a center connector. The Smallrig arm has all the engineering you need in just one easy to operate device.The only ‘issue’ that I had with the arm item was regarding a ‘suggested adapter’ that will allow you to attach the arm to a cold or hot-shoe mount. In my ‘review-video’ I’ll show the issue and demonstrate how do a temporary work-around, as well as sourcing a proper adapter on Amazon.I often find great utility in mounting accessories. So in my toolbox of mini-tripods, ball mounts and adapters, the Smallrig model 3959 arm will probably see a good amount of service. And I’d certainly recommend this Smallrig arm to anyone as a must have high-adjustability mounting device.

I use a gimbal on my camera, and one of the things I dislike is how my monitor arm sits my Atmos Shinobi sits close enough to my gimbal to limit some ranges of movement. That's what sent me looking for a different solution...and I love SmallRig products, so this arm felt like a no-brainer.I'm happy to report, that the arm has exceeded my expectations. It's a fairly straightforward product, but with a little forethought, there are a lot of different configurations to be had with this arm. Based on my mounting position, I can place my monitor high, low, or straight out and away from my gimbal as the situation dictates the movement I need for my camera.The arm is stable and tight, so I didn't experience any slippage. Also, it's lightweight, so it doesn't through the gimbal off center by making it too heavy to the right or left (I mount my monitor to the left).