It happened already. I got a Vivitar 283 and the hot shoe broke on my second shoot! (It was used so I can't call Vivitar). Should I replace it with a metal hot shoe or a plastic shoe? What's the good word ya'll?! -Justin

That's a common problem - I used to have a 285 but either no one had a metal foot for it or I wasn't aware of it at the time (years ago). I use Nikon SB28's now and they can have the same problem although it hasn't happened to me (yet?).

Obviously, if you go to a metal foot it won't break as easily. But eventually something will, maybe you will do serious damage to the flash or camera which could be very expensive. I know Nikon went to metal for their newer flashes. I've seen a replacement metal foot on ebay for 283/285's and they say that they can be user-installed. If you don't have a warranty, I'd probably try to find a replacement plastic one (or two for a spare) and fix it myself. If you've never used a soldering iron, you may want to take it somewhere though.

as I've read about this happening. I guess it's just a bad break rather than a design flaw...I've used a 285HV for 8 years without a glitch. If you do some research, I know that a metal shoe on the Vivitars works well, and the 283 is an excellent flash worth keeping.



It happened already. I got a Vivitar 283 and the hot shoe broke on my second shoot! (It was used so I can't call Vivitar). Should I replace it with a metal hot shoe or a plastic shoe? What's the good word ya'll?! -Justin