BlahBoy

I'll be making a few more next month.

Erik, Are you using the lever on the side of the mount? It is 'unlocked' when the lever is loose, and you swing it over to lock it in place. On the side with the handle, there's a notch in the rubber skirt that should line up with the left plastic piece that juts up from the top section. Unlock the suction cup, place it firmly against any reasonably flat and non-porous surface (eg glass, metal), and swing the arm over to lock. As everyone who has witnessed this will agree, there is not a snowflake in heck of it falling off by itself.

OK Erik, just for you, my dodgy sketch again! You can use it at the front of the car, on the front windscreen, or at the back with the rear windscreen. You use the mini tripod if you need to raise the camera off whatever surface is underneath. For best results, put some tension into the system so that the camera mount is really snug, being pressed down by the windscreen and pushed up by whatever's underneath it - all tightened up so that the camera isn't jumping around. Hope that helps. Perhaps if people take some photos with the camera mount set up in their cars?

You connect anything that can record an A/V source, so a video camera with external inputs works nicely.

Hehehe, I've certainly asked enough of your patiences, so I'll wait.

Everyone who's paid, you either already have your mounts, or they are in the post. If anyone else wants one, let me know.

Well, Duncan and Majanal have theirs... sidewaymambo was going to drop by for his but hasn't yet... OK, time to send out emails to everyone, especially to get mailing addresses.

4th June? No worries.

Hey, Ric Shaw is on Parramatta Road, right? Let me know what day and you can pick yours up.

eriktufa, email me your mailing address, so that as soon as I have tripods, I can put your gear in a box and mail it off. You can send me the shipping costs afterwards.

Right now dude, right now! I've got a single mini tripod that I can swap with you in order to get my own tripod back. I'm in North Strathfield, next to Homebush, send me an email or ring me (0415 346 379) if you want to drop by and pick yours up.

Wouldn't you know it, Fletchers in the city was out of the mini tripods. But, if anyone wants to get their mounts sans tripod as soon as tomorrow evening, let me know! You'd have to swing by my place to pick them up, and I'd give you back $5 for the tripod if you ordered one.

funkymonkey, Yes, similar, I think the setup in the first pic is 2.4GHz. I have the receiver in the second pic. I haven't trialled it inside of a car yet, so I don't know about interference. I need to borrow a video camera that can record from an external source.

Hey guys... Can you give me until next week? The camera mount stuff is all over the living room floor, and they're not far from completion, but I'm really snowed under by uni work at the moment.

Just letting people know, assembly of the camera mounts has begun. That's not as simple as it sounds, though, there's a fair amount of manual labour required... and I've got a pinch wound on my thumb to prove it! Anyway, every mount is done by me personally, by hand, so no two mounts are exactly the same! The people who put in their deposits or payments first will of course get theirs first. For the people who said they definitely wanted one, but have not paid or put in a deposit, now would be a good time. Otherwise, I might be tempted not to offer the mounts at the group buy price anymore...

The camera I have is like this one, except that mine also has audio. I picked it up on the streets of Hong Kong for AUD $70. The mains plug pack for the receiver died though, but one of these is perfect for powering the receiver in-car, so I'll be picking up one of them. This one is probably on either 900MHz or 1.2GHz, I'm not sure. But we found this to be an advantage once when some guys had a 2.4GHz wireless cam which they couldn't use because it was receiving interference from 802.11 wireless networking, which is also at 2.4GHz... so they borrowed my camera! Score one for this wireless camera... This sort of stuff is always on eBay, however there are a few different variations. There is a smaller black plastic 'pinhole' camera, which is better for tight spaces or concealment, but the image quality is not as good. Some have audio, some don't - ones with audio seem to be rarer on eBay. Some are 2.4GHz cams. Wireless cams also come in different transmitting power levels, for greater range, but I have the lowest power (50mW iirc) and it's more than sufficient for my intended uses. Anyway, it just sort of works. The frequency of the camera is fixed, and you tune the receiver into it. The image quality is really quite good. Decent value for $70.

Majanal, I'll lend you my mount for this Saturday, plus I can also lend you a wireless cam that you can set up on the outside of the car - you just need to bring some spare 9V batteries, and a video camera to record to. Does decent quality - think T-cam view in Formula 1. Will arrange via email with you.

One more week. There was a delay with the place making the aluminium pieces, but if they come through with the goods, then I will have finished units next weekend. For people in Sydney, we might organise a meet-up where I hand deliver the units, and have a look at setting them up in each car.

Just a reminder to those who have placed an order but haven't put their deposits through yet! The camera mounts should be ready in about 2 weeks.

You mean something like this? Bakadesu got one of those off me recently to use with a really nice CCD camera he has. To be on the safe side, I would say that the ball mount should only be used for something like that, or the lighter Mini/MicroDV cameras, for rolling footage. The ball mount provides massive flexibility for setting up whatever angles you choose. The cost of one is up around the $70 mark, mainly from the Hama ball mount (made in Germany). If you want to make one yourself, I can supply you the parts, it's quite simple to put together as Bakadesu will attest to.

Met up with sidewaymambo today, he didn't have his camera with him, but I showed him how the mount could be set up front or rear. It appears that in an R33 at least, a tripod may not be necessary, as the base of the mount rests directly on the rear seats or on the front dash. A non-slip mat is useful for resting the mount on, to provide lateral grip. So, if it sounds like you do not need a tripod, let me know - if you've given me full payment, I can give you $5 back when we meet, or if I will be sending the mount to you, then the $5 will count towards postage. Having said that, the tripod doesn't cost much, and may be useful in certain situations. And if you have a stills camera, the mini tripod is definitely handy to have.

I'll get those details just before I send them out. ETA right now about 2 weeks. As usual, it's the aluminium place that's being a royal PITA. Not only is their customer service poor, but now it looks like they're trying to rip us off - the parts are heaps more expensive than my last order, even though I ordered less last time! This will be cleared up today or tomorrow.

Don't worry, as long as it's not an unusually large camera, it will fit. If it's a modern video camera (ie MiniDV or MicroDV) it will fit.

Hi guys, I think it is time I took deposits, or full payments if you are inclined. Full package is $70, minus tripod is $65, and deposit is $35. I will obviously keep track of who pays for what. For those of you who provided email addresses, I will email you after posting this. Please contact me via email (blahboy *at* iinet.net.au) if you do not have means of depositing funds into the bank account. Also below will be a list of people I have down as confirmed orders. If you want a camera mount and your name is not on this list, contact me as soon as possible. As incentive, units purchased outside of this group buy will cost more. My bank account details: Bank: Commonwealth Bank Name: Peter Lo BSB and Acc No: 062-037 2804 6968 Please include your SAU nick in the transaction description. Confirmed orders from SAU: (including people who sidewaymambo nismoman18 (no tripod) eriktufa Salps12 2crazy NRB Endorean Scotsman phantc_s15

Hehe, not as good as a HID setup, but also less expensive! If you're thinking of tracking down the Osrams, don't bother, they'll be almost exactly the same, as the Auto Express review said. I don't know what type sidelights are used in a Skyline, does it say in your car's manual? Is there anything wrong with the way your sidelights look now?