Lo-budget Vanity Camera Mount

msgdan on the KFS board made this nifty self-portrait camera mount

http://www.kayakfishingstuff.com/commun ... unt&page=4

and I said I was going to cobb together one of these in PVC. Well, I finally found one of those round tuits. Mine is made to fit in the Hobie mast hole, but it could easily be adapted to any rod mount.

The first one I made out of short lengths of 1" pvc, two couplers, an elbow and a tee. The idea was to make it stowable.







I added a 1/4" bolt to one of the end caps to mount the camera, then decided to screw the camera mount from a cheap mini tripod to the cap (made it waay more adjustable) It worked ok, but it had waaaay too many parts.



Then, in a momentary lapse into brilliance, it occurred to me to string them together with a bungee. That keeps all the parts together and makes it practically self assembling. So I did, it worked.



The bungee is loose for the picture. For the final assembly I took up all the slack plus a bit and tied it off to a hole drilled in the pipe where the loose end is.

Here's a short vid showing the self assembly:

http://www.youtube.com/v/TOUKMUEn1ow&hl=en&fs=1"

I built another one in 1.25" pvc to make it a bit stiffer and I used the thinner pvc (sch 30?) to minimize weight. I found a small spider tripod and decided to leave it intact. Instead of screwing it to the cap I just shoved into the end of the pipe . Simpler and I can use it elsewhere. $8 PVC and fittings+$8 mini tripod Total <$20 Stuff it with some pool noodles and it works great offshore. Add a wire and an SMA connector and you'd have a cheap dipole to extend your handheld vhf's range too! ok, maybe not.



Here's a link to an earlier discussion with some picks of Dan using his mount. I'll post some better pics as soon as I get out and catch some more fish.

http://www.northwestkayakanglers.com/in ... 677.0.html

_________________
tight lines,

Wali


"for when sleeping I dream of big fish and strong fights"

Hi,

Looks like it works well. And the bungee cord was a great idea too!

Just wondering what the purpose of having a T piece at the end of the arm was. Why not just have an elbow? I can't see the point of having the lower piece dragging in the water. In the picture on the land, it makes sense because it helps to prop the camera up, but in the water this wouldn't be the case. Am I missing something?

Cheers,
Paul.

The bottom leg of the "T" floats a bit to better support the camera and puts less of a load on the pivot. I forgot to mention to stuff it with pool noodles or spray foam. Originally, I'd intended to put a chunk of pool noodle on the end in the water for support. But it turned out that the pipe itself was enough as long as its not flooded.

It really does not drag that much in the water as I'm usually stopped when I'm doing the vanity shots. Then it breaks down as quickly as it goes together and gets stowed in the tankwell. Its pretty much worthless w/o the bungee (toooo many parts to fiddle with!)

_________________
tight lines,

Wali


"for when sleeping I dream of big fish and strong fights"

Great idea and pictures, but the video is the real treasure. It takes a great Dad to get his kids involved and excited with his interests. They are our future. Be proud, Very proud !!

_________________
2008 Revo Fish
Sailing Rudder
ST Fins
Hobie Rod Extensions
Eagle Cuda 168 FF
Up/Down Line/Cleat Rudder Upgrade

Why not just get a GO-pro with wide angle lense and keep the camera inside the boat. That setup looks like it would realy get in my way.

Mmmmm, maybe because I already have a camera that I really like and this thing cost me less that $20 bucks? I also like the boat in the picture for perspective and the lack of fisheye. I break it down and stow it after the pic and it stays out of the way.

BARRELL!! It's good to see you! Man, I have not heard you say nay in a looong time! (jeez almost 10 years) How's New Jersey?

_________________
tight lines,

Wali


"for when sleeping I dream of big fish and strong fights"

Good, but loosing to much fishing time installing fishfinders.

Waljojo, great job. You can't beat the bit of ingenuity....you should have been a small Irish farmer. But the video was the icing on the cake. Well done.

I agree with you on the perspective of having the yak in the photo. It makes the photo much more interesting. I'm working on something similar myself but I've not fully cracked it yet.

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Better to be a live donkey than a dead lion!

You can check out " spinfisher bobs" Videos on u-tube to see what the veiw looks like from the go-pro with 170mm fish eye lense.