Bicycle Mechanics - HOW TO: DIY Camera Bike Video/Camera Mount

I got this idea after seeing the bottle cap tripod (http://www.jakeludington.com/archives/000227.html) . I have a small digital camera that also takes video. I figured if I mounted it on my bike I could record some of my trips. So I thought I'd share how I did it for less than $5.

1/4-20 x 3/4 inch stainless steel pan head machine screw
Hose clamp long enough to wrap around my bars and wide enough to drill a 1/4" hole into
A few 1/4" Washers
One 1/4" lock washer
About 1 foot length of bike tube
A digital camera that has a tripod mount

Drill a 1/4" hole in the hose clamp. Put screw into hole in hose clamp. Wrap the bike tube around your handlebars. Attach hose clamp around bike tube with screw facing up. Screw camera on for test fit. Remove camera and experiment with number of washers needed to fill empty space. Last washer should be a lock washer.

I ended up using a piece of folded over duct tape with a hole poked through it instead of a lock washer. Experiment with whatever you have until the camera feels solid tightened down and pointing forward.

The video is not the best quality, but I think it's good enough. If you did something similar and mounted it to your helmet, it would probably be a bit more steady, but way more dorky.

Here's some pictures of the mount

http://www.kittylitterspitbox.com/CameraBikeMount/parts.jpg

http://www.kittylitterspitbox.com/CameraBikeMount/mounted.jpg

That is a really great idea- thanks!

Koffee

Nice!

Be gentle when screwing the camera onto the bolt to see how far down it goes - some cameras can be damaged by screwing something in too far. The thin metal at the top can be punctured, or, if the threads are a plastic sleeve, they can be forced out like a crank puller removing a crankarm.

A locknut on the bolt is a good idea.

Hope you post some video on the web!

pretty cool, I might try something like this

Very clever! Video footage of commute to give to the cops next time I'm cut off. :D No worries about running out of battery or memory as it should only take a few minutes. ;)

Sorry to resurrect...I'd like to do something similar and I'm wondering how this setup works in dampening road vibration? Anyone have any feedback?

I am trying to mod the CVS video camera for a helmet mount. You can get the camera for $30(The idea is to return it to CVS and they will give you a dvd of your work) There are some websites with info on hooking a serial/usb cable to it and thefirmware is available online.

Sorry to resurrect...I'd like to do something similar and I'm wondering how this setup works in dampening road vibration? Anyone have any feedback?

I didn't really find road vibrations to be a problem. More of a problem is the unconcious movement of my handlebars from side to side. But hey for around $5 you can find out how it works first hand.

Heck, I'm going to do this. You've got the exact idea I had...with the exception of drilling a hole in the clamp. I hadn't thought of that. And the potential damage from the head of the screw on the bars is eliminated by the mass of tube. Clever indeed. Those were the two problems I coudln't solve :)

I'll try it out myself!

Check out this one I made for the 2004 CapTech Classic:

http://www.worldbike.com/ofotoprobike/Images/Richmond/06fs.jpg

Survived a brutal pro criterium including several sections over cobblestones. We also used a handlebar mounted mini dv camera consisting of a carbon fiber enclosure bolted on with hose clamps..

I've got a little clamping tripod gadget that clamps to poles, posts, handlebars, and even car windows. It works very well, but I can see where this setup might offer a alternative. Now if only I can figure out a way to mount a pair of flashes...

One of these days I'd like to experiment mounting a vid cam on my bike.
But as far as still shots are concerned, I don't see a point in mounting a camera for still shots as you can easily hand hold a digicam with infinite possibilities with composition.:)

On the odd night ride where I came across a deer or coyote, it would have been nice to have a camera mounted and fired by remote. Not quite National Geographic, but still easily doable, except for the flashes.

I saw a camera system for a bicycle called boomstick360 looks pretty good.

http://www.kittylitterspitbox.com/CameraBikeMount/mounted.jpg

That is hilarious! Looks like it just might work!

Thanks for the idea.

Steve

Works Great

a handlebar tripod, amazing!

not the handle bar cam rat boy, its at boomstick360.com

Has anyone got examples of video's shot with this technique? I'm interested in seeing how the tube helps dampen vibrations.

An even better way is to use an EMT conduit hanger from the electrical supply section of any hardware or building supply store. You will also need an old mouse pad. Purchase your conduit hanger or clamp selecting a size about 1/4" larger than your handlebar. Cut a strip of the mouse pad to fit the inside surface of the hanger and glue in place. Put a 1/4 X 20 screw and nut on the hangers mounting hole. Screw the camera on the 1/4" screw and put the hanger on your handlebar and tighten the hangers clamp screw. The mouse pad will provide vibration isolation and a nice gripping action on the handlebar. Below is a photo of two hangers bolted back to back for mounting a Mag-Lite Mini-Mag AA 3-watt LED flashlight to a handlebar so you can see how easy it would be to use one for clamping your camera to your handlebar.
http://img157.imageshack.us/img157/3053/pict0074xc1.jpg

This is totally cool! I thought I was going to get a Bogen Superclamp but this is a nice idea! I think I'd like to do on my seat stay.

I made a mount recently as well:



The clamp is from an old light or bell, the rest is fabricated from aluminum square tube, misc. bolts, washers, and wingnuts.