Kirk DS-1 threaded stud 1/4"-3/8" UNC photo thread

Kirk DS-1 threaded stud 1/4"-3/8" UNC photo thread, compact adapter for your everyday photography

Sometimes a seemingly inconspicuous threaded stud decides whether your setup feels solid or wobbles like a house of cards. The Kirk DS-1 threaded stud 1/4"-3/8" UNC photo thread is built exactly for these moments: a precise adapter that cleanly converts your gear from 1/4 inch to 3/8 inch UNC while doing its job in an impressively unobtrusive way.

You use tripod heads, quick-release plates, camera rails or accessories with different photo threads and don’t want to improvise all the time? Then this screw-type adapter is a very pragmatic solution that you simply leave in your camera bag and quickly use when needed.

Adapter 3/8" UNC male thread to 1/4" UNC male thread

The DS-1 is designed as a screw-type adapter and connects a 3/8 inch UNC male thread with a 1/4 inch UNC male thread. In practical terms, this means you can screw it into a 3/8 inch socket of a tripod head, a rail or a camera accessory and get a 1/4 inch male thread on top for cameras, ball heads, quick-release adapters or other components with standard photo threads.

This way you elegantly bridge the typical size difference between 1/4 inch photo threads (commonly used on cameras and smaller heads) and 3/8 inch photo threads (often found on tripods, larger heads, video platforms). No fiddling with wobbly makeshift solutions, but a cleanly manufactured adapter that simply fits.

Precise dimensions for a perfect fit

The dimensions are deliberately kept compact so that the adapter doesn’t protrude more than necessary and integrates harmoniously into your setup. At the same time, there is enough material to ensure a stable connection.

• Total length: approx. 19.5 mm, short enough to stay out of the way, long enough for a secure hold
• 3/8" thread length: approx. 9.2 mm, ideal for being securely screwed into common 3/8 inch sockets
• 1/4" thread length: approx. 10.3 mm, provides sufficient thread turns for a solid connection with cameras or accessories

These clearly defined dimensions help you estimate in advance how the adapter will sit in your existing system, for example in a quick-release plate, on a tripod head or on a camera rail.

Hex socket for secure tightening

There is a hex socket in the head of the 1/4 inch threaded stud. This allows you to tighten the adapter in a controlled manner using the included hex key, without improvised tools or risky finger acrobatics. This reduces the risk of the adapter coming loose unintentionally when you rotate the camera or frequently reconfigure your setup.

The matching hex key is included, so you don’t have to rummage through your toolbox first. Simply insert, tighten, done—and if you want to readjust later, it’s just as straightforward.

Made in the USA, solid manufacturing quality for continuous use

The Kirk DS-1 threaded stud is manufactured in the USA, and you can definitely notice that in practice. The clean machining of the UNC photo threads ensures smooth screwing without the material fraying or the thread feeling “scratchy”. Especially when frequently swapping cameras, tripod heads or quick-release plates, precise manufacturing pays off because the connections don’t wear out as quickly.

We’d say: this is not a spectacular part, but one of those you buy once and then use for years without giving it much thought. And that’s exactly how a good photo adapter should be.

Versatile use in photo and video applications

Whether you work in the studio, shoot on location or simply want to make your travel tripod a bit more flexible, the Kirk DS-1 fits into many setups. You can use it, for example, to:

• Mount cameras with 1/4 inch photo threads on 3/8 inch tripod heads
• Adapt quick-release plates with 3/8 inch sockets to 1/4 inch accessories
• Combine ball heads, video heads or sliders with differing threads
• sensibly connect older and newer equipment with different UNC photo threads

Especially if you mix several systems, such as photo and video gear, such an adapter threaded stud is almost mandatory. In everyday use it saves you time, nerves and, in case of doubt, also improvised DIY solutions you might later regret.

Robust, compact and always at hand

Thanks to its small size, the DS-1 easily disappears into any pocket, a compartment of your camera bag or directly into a small accessory box. At the same time, the adapter is designed to be stable enough to safely support even heavier setups, as long as the rest of the equipment is dimensioned accordingly.

We recommend getting into the habit of always keeping at least one such threaded stud in your backpack. Because exactly when you don’t have it with you, a tripod head or plate with the “wrong” thread is guaranteed to turn up. And that really doesn’t have to happen.