UKC

Secondhand. ebay or the secondhand camera sites (in my recent experience, cheaper than ebay). something robust rather than lite as its for the kids to dicker about with . specific links would be great as i would like to order it later on today.

I have no idea how much a mid price  tripod costs so not sure about budget but the cheaper the better.

thanks.

In reply to mike123:

Manfroto make good tripods. Had mine almost two decades and use it every month, at the very least. Got it from eBay as a Christmas present. Here is an example of a relatively cheap one that should last year's and be kid proof.

https://www.manfrotto.com/uk-en/befree-advanced-aluminum-travel-tripod-twis...

In reply to The Lemming:

Indeed, Manfrotto and Gitzo make rather good tripods. They do come with a price premium, though.

Something like an older (heave) Manfrotto or Gitzo (Reported) would suit your need of being reasonably priced (2nd hand) and robust.

The other option would be look at reasonably priced tripods (like Cullman), not the cheapest models but the mid range (~50 to 150). CHeapo stuff like Hama will just break.

Look for all aluminun construction, and the legs preferably the flick-lock kind than twistlock.

Last option is ordering one from AliExpress, like a Zomei or Neewer or any other of those 100 or so brands. Again, aluminium (more robust and budget friendly than carbon fibre). Some not, that don't pick the cheapest model.

In reply to mike123:

A cheap tripod is false economy. When you get a big heavy lens on the front it can gradually creep forward and down.

 Also centre-braced legs adds more stability.  But a tripod is also great for any type of portraiture as you can forget about the camera and direct the subject/s  or also consider the background. So not just for landscape. Most of all it gives you time the think and plan. 

I once gave away a Manfrotto and regretted it ever since!

In reply to mike123:

I bought one of these (or very similar) from Amazon, the ball head is surprisingly good, certainly no creep, i can't find fault with it for the money to be honest, even converts to a Monopod......

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Lightweight-Aluminum-Portable-360%C2%B0Panorama-Ca...

In reply to mike123:

One on the cheap but ok end is the "silk sprint pro 2". It's reasonably robust, reasonably inexpensive, reasonably light and has a good enough ball head for smaller cameras and slrs. Don't use it with a big lens though.

A bit of a compromise but it has been serving me well for the last few years and is cheap enough that I don't mind taking it to places it might get broken.

A quick look on Amazon suggests it has been replaced by a model 3 which looks exactly the same.

In reply to mike123:

I have a Manfrotto (not sure what model but it says 732CY on it and is carbon fibre) which I found on Pike of Blisco about 6 years ago. I made every effort to reunite with its owner but to no avail. If you are interested I can deliver to the Lakes when life resumes. 

In reply to mike123:

Ball Head is the key feature, unless you do a lot of video. 

In reply to mike123:

I've got one from a company called Red Snapper.  They seem to a bit like Alpkit in the early days, decent quality kit at a lower price than the better known manufacturers.  Sturdy aluminium tripod with a ball head, would happily recommend, particularly if you can find one second hand

In reply to d_b:

Not to be pedantic but just to help the OP - it looks like autocorrect has been your enemy here!
The brand is "Slik", a long established tripod manufacturer  

In reply to mike123:

I use these.

https://www.3leggedthing.com/index

UK designed and very good.

In reply to mike123:

This is a sherpa pro tripod from Velbon and I have a suspicion that it is actually a carbon fibre tripod as it's a Sherpa Pro which as far as I am aware was only ever carbon fibre. Even if it is a magnesium alloy one it's still an excellent tripod. Worth a try in my opinion as I have a Sherpa Pro and still use it despite also having a £1200 Gitzo plus Arca Cube setup

E*Bay search for Used-Velbon-Sherpa-Pro-Tripod-SH34202/324084917040

In reply to Blue Straggler:

I have a deep hatred of my phone's autocorrect feature. It will probably rewrite the next bit of my rant to say that Android is great!

In reply to Le Sapeur:

Yes, I like them as well (both of me lighter weight tripods are from them). But hardly budget friendly.

The OP is after a robust tripod for the kids to work with...

That being said, SLIK does also fit that criteria.

In reply to mike123: thanks all for taking the time to reply . I ve just had a good look at everything mentioned  and decided on the velbon Sherpa pro recommended by tim . It's on it's way . £50 with a go pro adapter , seems like good value. Hopefully it will stand up to  the the little darlings . Although most things seem to get tested to destruction so it will probably be used as a weapon before the week is out . Couldn't find a cheapish manfotto , they seem to get snapped up or go for nearly new price. Thanks again . 

In reply to mike123:

Could you let us know how you find it?

In reply to mike123:

The choice of Tripod consistently relies upon every individual and their utilization and ability to buy. There are tripods running from 5k to 1.5 lacs. I would propose Manfrotto tripods are really solid and easy to use for a beginner and furthermore do the trick to deal with the Nikon 200–500 focal point.