Build Quality. The build quality of the GIT304 is good, but only good. The tripod feels like it is overbuilt, with each of the components feeling slightly larger than necessary. The primary problem is that the components of the apex and leg attachments are all made of molded aluminum components. These have a rougher fit and finish than the machined aluminum components used by nearly every one of Induro’s competitors in the systematic tripod space. The bolts that hold the legs on are secured with locking washers. Again, this works fine. But all of the other modern tripods have managed a much cleaner and precision fit with grease and locktite. There is nothing wrong with the build quality here, but it doesn’t have the feel of a tripod manufactured in the 21st century.
Leg Locks. The leg locks are of the standard twist lock type. The rubber grips are are over sized but do not slip. Each lock is a little bit taller than normal. This isn’t necessarily a bad thing, but is an inefficiency in the design. Most tripods have more compact locks allowing the tripod to fold up into a more compact package. The threads are finer than they ideally should be, and there is not rubber gasket to keep water and dirt out. The locks work just fine, but this isn’t exactly the pinnacle of design.
Feet. The Induro takes standard 3/8″ screw in feet. This is ideal as it means that it will be compatible with a wide array of available replacements such as spikes from third parties. The feet that came on my copy of the GIT304 are the rubber nub type. I find these to be the most flexible. They work well on any type of surface except for very loose surfaces such as soft snow and sand. Also included is a set of what Induro calls “Rubber Ovoid Feet” and what I have termed, for lack of a better word “Platform Feet”. These are the type that have a flat surface attached to a ball mount to lay flush with the ground. These are great on perfectly flat surfaces such as concrete, but a hindrance on uneven ones.
Top Plate. The top plate is the standard Gtizo style that clamps apex around the top plate with a screw. A detent pin sits into a groove in the top plate to prevent it from falling out if the screw is loose. This is a standard, but good design. The 70mm top plate is compatible with any of the Gitzo 3 series style top plates, video bowls, and center columns.
Angle Selectors. The GIT304 has standard pull tab style angle selectors. This is a proven design and works well. The operation of these particular pull tabs is fairly rough compared to the competitors. They don’t pull out or push in smoothly. They perform their job just fine, but may slow you down just a fraction of a second every time you need to use them. That’s not a lot, but its one of the little things you pay for in a higher end tripod.
Carbon Fiber Quality. Induro doesn’t say much about the carbon fiber used in the GIT304 and its very difficult to discover much from a purely visual inspection. This certainly isn’t the lowest quality carbon fiber I have seen a tripod, but as the test results imply, neither is it amongst the highest. This isn’t surprising. High quality carbon fiber tubing is expensive and it would be unreasonable to find it on a tripod at this price point.