All the genuine tripod collars of any brands appear to be die-cast.
I have also been searching for Arca-Swiss solution for my Nikkor 300 f2.8G VRII and found this, which works very well:
http://www.jobu-design.com/Replacement-Foot-for-Nikon-FL-lenses_p_140.htmlThese are machined from high quality 6061-T6 aluminum i.e. not a casting. It uses the original capscrews factory fitted by Nikon, but I have now fixed mine on with Loctite.
On a more general observation is that the original tripod collars on telep[hotos are often the achilles heel. It seems some of the Nikkor zoom telephotos require a more supportive and tighter tripod collar first and foremost, and then fit this Arca-Swiss integral foot or rather try and find a better designed 3rd party collar with integral Arca-Swiss foot.... In each case, the solution is lens-specific, and challenging where the tripod collar cannot be detached.
On an allied note, I finally executed the final solution on the piss-awful tripod collar/foot of my 70-180 Micro-Nikkor using a TY-60 Sirui Arca-Swiss plate (measures 60 x 49 mm). It is now permanently locked in with epoxy resin supporting 2 by 3mm stainless steel capscrews countersunk up through the tripod collar neck, and tapped 1mm shy of the lens body. This is a delicate operation and requires firm support and careful measurements - Rechecked! Then I drilled and tapped the new holes with a dremel on a strong, firmly mounted drill press. The Sirui plate is now secured very firmly at 3 points (2 x 3mm capscrews and 1 x 1/4" tripod bolt) locked down with epoxy and torqued as tight as I dared using my Allenkey sockets on 1/4" wrench.... This plan was inspired by Bjorn's wise advice earlier in 2016.
This thread:
http://nikongear.net/revival/index.php/topic,3328.0.html
