I love everything about the tripod; weight, height, strength, stability, mechanicals. But, self-leveling base seems a bit squirrelly. The tightening lever does hold the position the way I would expect. Heavy lens tends to move the positioning. You have to really crank on the tightening lever to make it stable. The Leofoto tripod takes the place of a gitzo that cost twice as much and not nearly as sophisticated.