With a good ball head, you can adjust the tension (drag) and still have the ball loose so that you can pan, go vertical, etc. I find that a ball head actually helps me on moving targets because it smooths out my motions (not so jerky). With the Wimberley head, you have even more freedom of movement.

The Nikon TC1.4E teleconverter is not compatible with the non AFS lens. The AFS lens focuses so much faster than the non AFS 300. No more hunting for focus.