Easy Camera Mount - The Unofficial BMW M5 Messageboard (m5board.com)

Tom Burns · 8th October 2004, 08:13

Just made a nifty camera mount for my 03 M5 that cost about 1/4 of anything I saw on the web.

Get a cheapo tripod with a standard camera/video mount at any camera shop. Just make sure the piece that the mount connects to and moves up and down in the tripod is at least 16-18" long. All mounts will let you adjust pan/tilt/level.

Remove this piece from the tripod and take it to your car. Lay it in the desired position between the seat and headrest and mark where the 2 headrest bars meet the piece.

Go to Home Depot and buy a piece of metal (could also be wood), and a couple of fasteners which you can tighten down (basically just a couple of bolts with a wingnut fastener, or a nut and bolt with a knob, etc. Just look around for whatever looks good.

Drill holes so that the bolts can go though the metal piece and into the tripod piece on either side of the headrest poles. Attach to the headrest, add your camera, and roll tape!

The only thing you need to think about is which type of fastener to use. If you are really lazy you could just get the right lenght bolts (2) and use standard nuts. Only thing is you'll need a wrench or ratchet to install and remove.

I also glued some rubber on the inward facing surfaces for a non-slip grip. I was also able to find bolts that had a black plastic knob on the end, so I can install and remove without any tools.

Enjoy.

MAH · 8th October 2004, 17:03

Interesting design. I have a cheaper one for you. Raise the headrest all the way up on the passanger seat. Insert camera, lower headrest until the camera is firmly held. Adjust camera angle by moving the seat back up and down or forward and backward.

I have actully seen this used on some drives with reasonable results. You better have a camera that compensates for the bumps.

Mark

cali6869 · 8th October 2004, 21:10

LOL.... good cheap idea

foxyboym5 · 8th October 2004, 21:11

Quote:

Originally Posted by MAH

Interesting design. I have a cheaper one for you. Raise the headrest all the way up on the passanger seat. Insert camera, lower headrest until the camera is firmly held. Adjust camera angle by moving the seat back up and down or forward and backward.

I have actully seen this used on some drives with reasonable results. You better have a camera that compensates for the bumps.

Mark

i did this in my old m3 at donnington on a track event....the pics and sound were awesome, and that was with an old sony Hi8 camcorder!

cheers

louv · 9th October 2004, 01:40

Just be careful with this kind of a setup...

Think about what a hard point of the tripod & mount would do in the case of a crash. That would make for some nasty video.

You should consider two safety measures:
1. Safety strap between the camera and a rear seat belt buckle. Just in case the camera comes off the mount, you want it to stay in the back seat area, not be thrashing around in front.

2. Breakaway mounting. In case of a crash, you want the the mounting to break away if it hits something hard... like your helmet. It's a balancing act: strong enough mounting so the camera is steady, yet frail enough to snap itself, not you.