Evolution of a Windshield Camera Mount!!

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sanioll
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Car: Nissan 240SX SE
Toyota Camry

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I have done a seat headrest mounts before, for the camcorder. Results well, they were okay, but there was awful a lot of vibration, due to tripod head design which was part of it.EARLY ATTEMPTS:http://nissaninfiniticlub.net/...age/4

Anyhow, this is a new design of mine.

IDEA CAME:Make a mount that is universal for every car, and lacks vibration in every axis, while keeping the price under $100.

Well I have found the strong suction mounts for the window, now it was time to find a frame, strong enough, but with just enough density to be light enough.

First was thinking mounting it on one suction cup, but each suction cup supports upto 3 pounds safely, and whole assembly weights 3.1 pounds. Thus 2 suction cups, which I am grateful for.

When viewed from behind, no vibration at all in x-axis, slight shock absorbing movement in z-axis, and no movement at all in y-axis. It is made from 95% metal, so it is rock hard.

I did record some videos with my 15 year old sony camcorder, and results were amazing. It is part of the car, NOW IT IS TIME TO SHELL OUT AND BUY AN EXPENSIVE SONY DVD CAMCORDER, SO I CAN RECORD MY SKI TRIPS.

images are in order. FRAME WILL BE REPAINTED PROPERLY!!
Modified by sanioll at 3:38 PM 11/24/2006


sanioll
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.

sanioll
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..

sanioll
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NOW THIS MOUNT WAS FOR $105, AND I AM SURE WITH THAT ONE SUCTION CUP, THE CAMCORDER WOULD'VE BEEN SWINGING LIKE A PENDULUM, EVEN SLIGHTLY, STILL. I AM A PERFECTIONIST!

sanioll
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last

sanioll
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So I am happy, because it can be used in any vehicle. Also it can be adjusted almost at any angle. Almost!

*just thought to share it with you petrolheads.

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corey240
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nice job! i made one of the old ones of yours lol how much would you sell one of thes for?

sanioll
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sorry mate, I don't make any for profit. I can tell you how to make it though.

If you're not into too many fanatical details to cut down the weight, simply:

order two of these "Vacuum Window Mounts" :http://www.panaviseonline.com/products.phpcan be also obtained from target.com

then make a small frame of your choice with given size and dimensions and holes.

Then use 1/4-20 screw and a bolt[fingertightened one, with ears] to mount the camcorder to the mount.

For mine price was under $100. And it is better than any product that you can buy in that price range. Yes you can buy a better mounts, with big suction cups, and full range of motion, but they are priced at over $300-400 and are made for professional camera crew to record car shows for example "top gear."

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OriginalWheelman
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Looks like some nice work. Props for striving for perfection. If you miss the mark at least you land near excelence. Makes me want to get a cam but I don't do any real driving anymore. (Stupd back.)

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Red coupe
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Bullet cams are cheaper then that mount alone, and are light enough to be held in place with nothing more then electrical tape, and still not show any vibrations....

Then all you need is a small recorder with video inputs...This camera and mount was about $50 together. It looks ok, but I cheaped on the camera, and the video quality shows it...Sony makes a decent one for $60, the magnetic base was like $7

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Urabus GodofTraction
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Looks well designed. Impressive.

That being said, I'd never use a windshield mounted camera. Obscures too much of the view.

sanioll
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Red coupe wrote:Bullet cams are cheaper then that mount alone, and are light enough to be held in place with nothing more then electrical tape, and still not show any vibrations....

Then all you need is a small recorder with video inputs...This camera and mount was about $50 together. It looks ok, but I cheaped on the camera, and the video quality shows it...Sony makes a decent one for $60, the magnetic base was like $7
That will be the path to go, if you'd like to mount it on your helmet for extreme sports, like skydiving, skiing, etc... which I will be getting or making one soon.

You need the camera plus recorder, which if you want somewhat okay quality are at least $700.

But I cannot live with low quality video, and want the best quality possible. So mount your expensive camcorder and enjoy the quality. I mean come on, those bullet cams can't even get close to regular handheld good camcorder.

But whatever satisfies your requirements.

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Red coupe
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lol what are you even using this video for?

I have a record that records TV quality that was like $250, expensive I know, but if you wanna be ghetto enough about it you could hook up a power inverter and VCR in the trunk

The $60 bullet cams from sony are just about TV quality, though the videos I saw from them were recorded on a crappy recorder....

I would rather have quality on par with a year old VHS then have a huge cam blocking my view....Besides Ive heard plenty of people killing their camera with vibrations from a solid mount.

sanioll
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well, I am getting old, and very soon won't be doing the stuff that I do, and the places I go to now. Simply want to keep a record of it in edited nice videos, so I can look at them 20 years down the road.


NSR_s30
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DIY FTW!

sanioll
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last update:Was thinking to get this as a camcorder, we need a new one anyways.http://www.newegg.com/Product/...79040

Digital, with dvd recording capability. Only dissappointment is that there is no "full size dvd" camcorder out there. Bleh. Only 30 minutes on a single disk. 20 minutes at high quality, 60 minutes at low I presume. Technology is moving backwards!


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bloodspread
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oops wrong post
Modified by bloodspread at 6:11 PM 5/12/2008

yelnatsch517
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bloodspread wrote:oops wrong post

Modified by bloodspread at 6:11 PM 5/12/2008
How do you wrongly post on a thread a bajillion years old?!?!

Kinda interested what it looks now after 2 years.

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bloodspread
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yelnatsch517 wrote:
How do you wrongly post on a thread a bajillion years old?!?!

Kinda interested what it looks now after 2 years.
it was a link on one of the post i wanted to reply to I know i fail

sanioll
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hahaha


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