Since 2017 I have been an enthusiastic hobby photographer and photograph almost everything that jumps in front of my lens, especially animals.
When I bought the Sigma 100-400mm lens in summer 2018, I immediately realized that a tripod mount was missing.
As Sigma does not offer any accessories for this lens, the idea of developing a tripod mount was born. Nowadays, 3D printers and 3D printing services can be used to make prototypes immediately.
As a trained computer scientist, thanks to a colleague of mine, I have familiarized myself with OpenSCAD.
The challenges were to accurately measure the lens and keep the lock switch operational.
The first prototype was quickly made and printed.
![](https://stativschellen.de/wp-content/uploads/2019/02/IMG_20190213_204258876-1024x859.jpg)
As it is so often, the first version is not ideal at first. Leverage forces are too high to get this structure absolutely vibration-free.
Iteratively, I designed further versions. A socket was added.
![](https://stativschellen.de/wp-content/uploads/2019/02/oneRing.png)
This solution was also unsatisfactory. This beautiful arca swiss compatible base invites too much to be used as a handle. A second ring was needed!
But also here there were several iterations until the ideal second ring was found.
![](https://stativschellen.de/wp-content/uploads/2019/02/sigmav6-2.png)
The next thought to sell this product was also obvious.
I have sold dozens already and my customers are also happy to finally have a reasonable, stable tripod mount with which they can not only make vibration-free long exposures, but can also use it as a wonderful handle to transport their heavy camera comfortably.