tcho82

iTrader: (1)

So I'm going to "The Dragon" with the S2000 crowd in april but since I sold my S I'm bringing the IS. I want to film the car going through the twisties, but does anyone have any ideas for an in car camera mount? That isn't too pricey?

I'd also like the same option for the occasional auto cross and track day.

In case you don't know what the dragon is. Here it is.
http://www.tailofthedragon.com/maps_dragon_road.html

Andoskyy

iTrader: (1)

what about a simple web cam hooked up to a laptop? you can probably pick up a decent one for under 50 bucks. shouldnt be hard to find a place to mount it

Gernby

iTrader: (1)

It shouldn't be too hard to rig something up to the head rest, but it might be a little shaky.

tcho82

iTrader: (1)

That's not too shabby of an idea.... I wonder about picture quality though. Also not sure I want my laptop around the cabin flying back and forth. When you close it it goes into sleep mode. I've got a macbook with built in isight too, but don't think I'd want to mount that on the dash.

tcho82

iTrader: (1)

Yeah I've thought about just putting my normal tripod around the tunnel in the back seat, and then securing the tripod to the rear doors somehow, not sure how effective that would be though.

I've seen a mount that clips onto the headrest but can't find it. The other option would be a sticky pod where I actually have the camera on the outside of the car, suction cupped on.

Gernby

iTrader: (1)

If they allow an external camera, I really like the video I get from my bumper mount.

Gernby

iTrader: (1)

Here's a low-res sample from the bumper cam.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nbHrOAg6DHM

tcho82

iTrader: (1)

That is awesome. How'd you do that?

tcho82

iTrader: (1)

The camera won't bang into your bumper on hard bumps?

hapaboy

nice job pulling out the tow cover. did you access it from the exterior like it says in the manual?

there are also some other mounts. most common is some suction cups and you can mount those anywhere on the exterior. or a window clamp.

Gernby

iTrader: (1)

The camera mount doesn't have enough play to allow the camera to touch the bumper. I just purchased a cheap tripod from Walmart, and bolted the top to the factory tow ring. Removing the tow ring cover from the bumper isn't very hard with a flat head screw driver wrapped in electrical tape.

I considered a suction cup, but they are much more expensive, and I don't feel very warm and fuzzy about them. If the mount looses suction, the camera is destroyed. Also, if the suction cup and paint isn't perfectly clean, it can scratch the paint.

Gernby

iTrader: (1)

Here's another view.

RX469

iTrader: (1)

Very ingenious!!! Good job on that.

pisaykotik

Gernby, nice setup you got there. But I suggest you put on some kind of protection for the camera's lens like a UV filter or something similar (if it even exists for your camera). Being close to the ground, I think it's susceptible to rocks, etc. and at high speeds it could definitely shatter the front element. Something to think about.

Gernby

iTrader: (1)

I would normally have a wide angle lens on the camera, but it I've rarely even used the bumper mount in situations where it could be damaged by rocks.

Here is an old video from an autocross when I had my S2000. The surface is so bumpy, that my alignment got screwed up at EVERY event. I eventually just quit going to events at that location. BTW, this was an FTD run.

Below is the mount I used for my S2000. It was a little more versatile since I used a longer threaded rod, and it would work on the front and back bumpers. The OEM tow ring isn't quite long enough to use on the back of the IS.