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My tripod ballhead ball is frozen (locked) is position, I cannot adjust the camera position, although the main knob in the head can rotate, the ball is frozen and very stiff.

Any idea how to unlock the ball?

My ball head is Oben BE-126T

https://www.obensupports.com/product/2051/Oben-BE_126T-Ball-Head

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  • \$\begingroup\$ What have you tried ? Have you asked the manufacturers for advice - they'll at least know what's a bad idea. Is there corrosion from e.g. sea spray ? \$\endgroup\$
    – StephenG - Help Ukraine
    Commented Jun 1, 2020 at 14:37
  • \$\begingroup\$ "main knob in the head can rotate" Do you mean the knob that has the blue stripe in the photo of the link you posted ? If so have you have turned it counter clockwise as far as it will go ? Was it functioning properly and something changed? \$\endgroup\$
    – Alaska Man
    Commented Jun 1, 2020 at 18:50
  • \$\begingroup\$ Some ballheads can lock-up if the tightening knob is too loose when the tripod is transported. The fix for one of the famous ballheads was to lock it really hard repeatedly. \$\endgroup\$
    – Mattman944
    Commented Jun 2, 2020 at 7:34
  • \$\begingroup\$ @StephenG: I have tried rotating the main knob counter clockwise as much as i can , and didn't help. There are no signs of corrosion and i didn't take it to the sea recently. I have rapproached the manufacturer and waiting for their advice, \$\endgroup\$
    – alnabhani
    Commented Jun 2, 2020 at 8:01
  • \$\begingroup\$ @AlaskaMan: Yes, the main knob is the one with the blue stripe.I tried to rotate it counterclockwise as much as i can but didn't help. It was functioning well before but sometimes it use to be slightly stiff. \$\endgroup\$
    – alnabhani
    Commented Jun 2, 2020 at 8:02

1 Answer 1

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Have you tried something like WD40 or some other general lubricant? Things like that ball aren't necessarily specialized equipment, you should be fine to take some oil to it to loosen it up.

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  • \$\begingroup\$ Didn't try it before, and i was afried from trying it . Will test it and let you know. \$\endgroup\$
    – alnabhani
    Commented Jun 2, 2020 at 8:12
  • \$\begingroup\$ WD-40 is a water dispersant that will eventually evaporate and leave the ball dryer than before. \$\endgroup\$
    – Michael C
    Commented Jun 3, 2020 at 5:45
  • \$\begingroup\$ Today i have sprayed it with WD40, now the ball is moving but it takes a lot of efforts to do so, but still unusable for photography in the field. \$\endgroup\$
    – alnabhani
    Commented Jun 5, 2020 at 11:53
  • \$\begingroup\$ I have used a lot of force to move the main tension knob counter clockwise, it was really hard, i thought i am braking the head, but finally it moved !! yes, now the head is smooth and i mounted the camera on it to try the wait and it is working perfectly! Thanks all for helping and advicing. \$\endgroup\$
    – alnabhani
    Commented Jun 5, 2020 at 15:01

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