Price when reviewed
While I’d avoid using it at full extension, the 3 Legged Thing Corey 2 is a good travel tripod made from great-quality materials and built with an eye for detail. It’s also paired with an excellent ball head and is well-priced for the feature set.
The Punks range is 3 Legged Thing’s entry-level tripod range and the 3 Legged Thing Corey 2, is the latest incarnation of the most affordable of the tripods in that series. Nevertheless, the Corey 2 has all the refinements introduced to the other tripods in the second generation of the 3 Legged Thing Punks series.
Notably, the 3 Legged Thing Punks Corey 2 packs down to just 36.1cm, making it an attractive tripod for travel.
3 Legged Thing sells the Corey 2 with the new AirHed Neo 2.
Travel tripods occupy a pretty competitive area of the tripod market so 3 Legged Thing has thrown some nice features at the Punks Corey 2 to add to its appeal.
Crucially, it packs down to just 36.1cm but with the two-section centre column extended, it has a maximum height of 146cm, which tall enough for most situations. The downside is that it weighs 1.78Kg, which is quite substantial for a travel tripod.
It’s also possible to reverse the centre column quickly which means that provided you don’t mind shooting with your camera upside-down, you can shoot very close to ground level.
The original 3 Legged Thing Corey had a removable leg that could be attached to the centre column to make a monopod. Like the other 3 Legged Thing Punks 2 tripods, however, all three of the Corey 2’s legs can be removed. This means that as well as creating a monopod, you can create a mic boom or a pole for holding a light or something.
Alternatively, the legs can be exchanged for a set of optional Vanz feet to turn the Corey into a mini tripod.
Corey’s 5-section legs and 2-section centre column are made from aluminium/magnesium alloy. They also feature upgraded chunky locks with a mixture of rubber pads and knurled metal.
Inside the locks, the Corey 2 has the same anti-rotation shims (aka Chicken Lips) as 3 Legged Things Pro Range 2 tripods like the Winston 2.
3 Legged Thing has also refined the tri-mount plate that sits at the top of the Corey’s legs under the tripod head. This has three large loops that are perfect to attaching accessories using a carabiner or looping cables through.
In addition, there’s a 1/4-20 thread integrated into the Corey 2’s canopy which is useful for mounting an accessory arm to hold a filed monitor or a light or other accessory.
In a nice upgrade on the simple draw-string bag supplied with the original Corey, 3 Legged Thing supplies a padded zip-close bag with the Corey 2. This has a fabric handle and comes with a detachable shoulder strap. There’s also a handy zip-close side pocket that’s useful for stashing things like optional tripod footwear.
The 3 Legged Thing AirHed Neo 2 has two large knurled metal knobs of different colours, one controls the panning movement while the other locks and releases the ball. There are also two spirit levels on the head, one for use when the camera is held in landscape orientation and the other when the head’s drop slot is used to put the camera in portrait orientation.
It may be 3 Legged Thing’s most affordable Punks tripod, but the Corey 2 is made from high-quality materials and the machining is to a high standard so the legs unscrew and rethread smoothly with no cross-threading or sticky sections.
The Fast Latches at the top of each leg are well-shaped and it’s easy to adjust the leg angle quickly. When it’s folded for storage, the Corey 2’s legs flip up over the tripod head, so the first step in using it is to release the latches and fold the legs down.
It only takes around a quarter of a turn to release the wide leg locks and when they are collapsed, they can be unlocked together by one hand. Thanks to the textured rubber grip and knurled metal, the leg locks have excellent purchase even when they’re wet.
It’s impressive how small a size the Corey 2 collapses down to, as at 36.1cm it’s 3cm shorter than the Peak Design Travel Tripod. As it uses the up-over-the-head collapsing method, the Corey 2’s legs don’t tuck in as tightly as the Peak Design tripod so its diameter is larger, but it fits neatly in the supplied case which makes a great way of carrying the tripod you’re just carrying the camera on a strap.
I found that with the Corey 2 fully extended, most of the images I shot at 0.5-sec with the 200mm end of a Sony 70-200mm f/2.8 weren’t sharp when the self-timer wasn’t in use. I could see the image moving on the camera screen for 2-4 seconds after I pressed the shutter release. This means a 5 or 10-second self-timer is required and it boosted my hit rate significantly.
Dropping the centre column to its shortest point created a much more solid platform and delivered a 100% hit rate in my tests with the 70-200mm lens and 0.5-sec exposures.
I’m around 5ft 2inches and at full extension, the Corey puts the camera’s viewfinder above my eye-level. However, it looks a bit top-heavy and I’d try to keep the centre column to a maximum of around half its length if possible. That puts it just below my eye-level.
Of course, the loop on the base of the centre column can be used to attach a weight to the tripod to create more downward force and a lower centre of gravity. The bag supplied with the Corey 2 is the logical thing to attach, perhaps weighed down with a water bottle or a spare lens or two.
Helpfully, the bag has a carabiner clip and its straps connect with carabiners, but they are a snug fit on the centre column loop. I found it easy to attache the clips to the loop, but it took a few moments fiddling to remove them. It would be easier if the loop was a bit bigger – like the ones on the tri-plate for example.
The AirHed Neo 2 is a nice match for the Corey 2, it seems made to the same high standard. Its panning and ball movements are also nice and smooth and the large knobs enable you to lock them tight without having exert excessive force or hurt your hand.
While there are sturdier tripods in 3 Legged Things range, the Corey 2 performs well for a travel tripod. It’s not the best choice for shooting with long lenses in a stiff breeze, but it will serve you well if you observe good tripod technique with shorter lenses and either the camera’s self-timer or a remote release.
I’d be cautious about using it at full-stretch, but with the centre column down, it creates a pretty solid shooting platform.
The Corey 2, it feels like a high-quality tripod, it packs down neatly for travel, has a reversible centre column and can be converted to a mini tripod with addition of some optiona Vans footwear.
It’s not quite as quick to deploy or pack away as the Peak Design Travel tripod, and it’s not as tall or stable, but it’s also a heck of a lot more affordable and it comes with a conventional ball head.
