Allie's home made camera mount

[Allie]

This little project turned out well so I thought I'd just post the idea with pictures here.

I started with a cheapie telescoping camera tripod, a training wheel, and some spare hardware - junk lying around the house.

Here's the original Tripod:



I removed the mounting platform from the tripod and drilled a hole in the body to accommodate a mounting bolt, thus:

I drilled the larger hole, the smaller one was already there. Saving that small screw and square nut allows me to put the platform back on the tripod and use it.

I removed the wheel from a training wheel arm, and sawed the slotted end off. I then drilled a small hole for the platform mounting bolt (slightly off center of course, oops ). The larger hole happened to be a good size to mount to the triple clamp.



Here is the hardware used to mount the platform to the arm:

The piece of rubber is automotive hose and helps isolate vibrations. I'm not sure if the teflon washer helps in this respect or not.

Here is everything put together, and mounted on the bike. Note the location of the square rubber washer.

I usually put the camera on while the base is flipped up like that, then flip it down and adjust the angle.

There it is, all ready to go!


Here's a short clip shot with it.


It has turned out to be pretty stable, sturdy, and easy to use. It's not as versatile as a RAM camera mount, which at about US $30 is well worth it in my opinion, but it works just as well within its limited range. A little more ingenuity with finding a mounting arm would let me mount it back a little so the guages are in the picture, which would be cool.

Camera sold separately!

[dpep]

Very clever. I've got a small backpacker tripod I might need to look at for something similar.

[Billy Ricks]

Nice work Allie, is there anything you can't do?

[Planecrazy]

Nice, Allie, but what about your kid that keeps falling over on the one side of the bike?

Regards,

[azr]

Very slick. I've been wanting to do something for a camera, thanks for the "thrifty" idea, right up my alley.

[Allie]

Nice, Allie, but what about your kid that keeps falling over on the one side of the bike?

Regards,

He could use that bike as a roller blade now.

Nice work Allie, is there anything you can't do?

I have a mental block about certain things, such as math, parallel parking, and not getting lost.

[Buffalo Bill]

Great leap forward…But…

That's a great idea, but…What about vibration coming up the bike frame? Remember how your hands feel the vibration?
I think your results may be somewhat fuzzy, only in wide angle you may get something recognizable.
Sorry, I'm just skeptical about the sharpness verses vibration factor.
If the camera was mounted to your helmet or chest, then your body would absorb most of the vibration from the bike.
You Go Girl!

[Steve]

That's a great idea, but…What about vibration coming up the bike frame? Remember how your hands feel the vibration?

Did you watch the video in the link?

Very little shaking going on there.

.

[Allie]

That's a great idea, but…What about vibration coming up the bike frame? Remember how your hands feel the vibration?
I think your results may be somewhat fuzzy, only in wide angle you may get something recognizable.
Sorry, I'm just skeptical about the sharpness verses vibration factor.
If the camera was mounted to your helmet or chest, then your body would absorb most of the vibration from the bike.
You Go Girl!

Well my reasoning went like this: The mirrors are rubber mounted, and stay pretty clear until high revs - probably because I need to do some ahem, maintenance items.

The platform has a rubber pad where the camera mounts to it, and additionally I did put that rubber spacer where it mounts to the arm. Between the two I really don't see much blurriness in the picture. I've run it up to 8-9 grand without any real blur happening. Follow the link to see for yourself. I do notice a little jiggly-joo going on here and there, and wonder if perhaps stiffer rubber would help, or thinner rubber, or just making the mounting bolt a little tighter. I may also take a run without the extra spacer to see what happens.

[Billy Ricks]

Well my reasoning went like this: The mirrors are rubber mounted, and stay pretty clear until high revs - probably because I need to do some ahem, maintenance items.

The platform has a rubber pad where the camera mounts to it, and additionally I did put that rubber spacer where it mounts to the arm. Between the two I really don't see much blurriness in the picture. I've run it up to 8-9 grand without any real blur happening. Follow the link to see for yourself. I do notice a little jiggly-joo going on here and there, and wonder if perhaps stiffer rubber would help, or thinner rubber, or just making the mounting bolt a little tighter. I may also take a run without the extra spacer to see what happens.

I didn't see anything wrong with the video. I've seen chase bike video that wasn't as good as yours.

[Dogma]

Nice. In comparison to other riding videos, I do miss being able to read the gages. OTOH, I can understand why one might not want them visible.

[tkent02]

Actually a different shaped steel bar would put the camera anywhere you want.
I like the gauges in the picture. I am also thinking a small clear windscreen mounted just in front of the camera and angled upwards to deflect air above the camera might allow engine sound to be heard instead of wind noise.

[spyug]

You sure you're a girl? Nice job on the "bodging" as our Limey buddies say.

The vid is rock steady so your isolation gaskets worked out well. What kind of camera are you using bye the bye?

I've been toying with the idea of mounting a camera myself and while I can't mount mine the same way (clipons) you have given me some ideas. Much appreciated.

Now post some more of your rides.

Cheers,
spyug

[850 Combat]

Clever idea.

Is that 750 of yours as clean as it looks in your posts? It looks pretty sharp.

[Buffalo Bill]

The results on utube are good…

I did not see the link for a sample before I wrote my post. What I saw was good! I could even see the cracks in the pavement. I'm a Certified Professional Photographer, so I have to think in terms of perfect results.
Have you ever had to listen to a bridezilla trying to get a bitch discount from you? I have. You got good enough results for your personal or eBay postings. I like it!
Bill

Well my reasoning went like this: The mirrors are rubber mounted, and stay pretty clear until high revs - probably because I need to do some ahem, maintenance items.

The platform has a rubber pad where the camera mounts to it, and additionally I did put that rubber spacer where it mounts to the arm. Between the two I really don't see much blurriness in the picture. I've run it up to 8-9 grand without any real blur happening. Follow the link to see for yourself. I do notice a little jiggly-joo going on here and there, and wonder if perhaps stiffer rubber would help, or thinner rubber, or just making the mounting bolt a little tighter. I may also take a run without the extra spacer to see what happens.