Nissan 370Z Forum - DIY Adjustable In-car Camera Mount

I'll try to show you how to make your own in-car camera mouint. I don't have any drawings or plans since I designed this darn thing while I was also building it. I am basing most of this tutorial on memory, so please verify the measurements before drilling or cutting.

Parts needed:
1x 1/8"x1"x36" Flat aluminum or steel bar. (Aluminum is highly recommended)
1x 1/8"x5/8"x36" angled aluminum or steel bar. (Aluminum is recommended) See picture below.
4x 1/4" 20 1/2" bolts
5x 1/4" washers. (may need more depending on situation)
4x 1/4" 20 nuts.
1x 1/4" 20 1/2" bolts. 1/4" 20 is a common size/thread for most cameras.
Check your camera for the right size bolt.
3x U-bolts for 1/2" pipes. The should come w/ nuts and spacer plates.
1x Rust-Oleum Flat black Enamel

Tools needed:
Band saw, hammer, adjustable wrench, filer, grinder, drill press w/1/4" bit,
heavy shop vise, c-clamps.

Step 1:
Cut a 32" piece of the angled aluminum bar. File or grind the edges to prevent cutting yourself or harming the interior of your car. I will refer to this piece as the headrest bracket. See fig. 1.

Step 2:
The metal poles of the headrest in the car is 6" apart. With the flat part of the headrest bracket facing up (look like up side down L), mark and measure positions for the 3 U-bolts on the front side.
This step is very important. Make sure all measurements are correct before drilling. See Fig. 2 and Fig. 3. Drill the 3 pairs of holes for the 3 U-bolt anchor points. Test the headrest bracket by mounting it to the driver's and passenger's headrest using the U-bolts, spacer plate and nuts. The headrest bracket should be behind the metal headrest poles while the U-bolts go from the front of the metal poles. If the holes are a little bit off, you can cheat by making the holes a little bit bigger. That would give you some wiggle room. I had to add extra spacers in the back of the U-bolt since the smallest U-bolt I found at home depot was too big.

Step 3:
Measure and mark 2.5" from each ends of the flat aluminum bar. Clamp at 2.5" mark using the heavy shop vise. Its much easier to make the 90 degree bend with the 2.5" clamped instead of leaving the 2.5" piece outside the vise. Lightly tap on the aluminum perpendicular to the surface of the piece using the hammer as close to the vise as possible. Don't be lazy and rush things. Slowly and lightly hammer the piece to make a sharp 90 degree bend. Do the same on the other side. Make sure the orientation is the same. In other words, the end result should look like a ]. Measure and mark 1.5" from the bend. Cut at the mark. The end results should be 2 L-shaped brackets. The longer leg should be 2.5" long and the shorter side should be 1.5" long. I will refer to these parts as camera mount brackets. See Fig. 1. Grind or file down the sharp edges.

Step 4:
Measure and mark 0.5" from the outter end of the longer side(2.5") of the camera mount brackets. Make sure the measurments are the same on both piece to keep the camera level. Drill a hole at the mark using the 1/4" bit. On the shorter end(1.5"), drill a hole on each piece somewher near the center. See Fig. 1 and Fig. 2.

Step 5:
This step really depends on what size your camera is and how many cameras you plan to mount. After you decide the length of actual camera mounting surface, add 4" to that. Cut the flat aluminum bar to that length. File or grind off the rough edges. Measure and mark 2" from both ends. Make a 90 degree bend at the 2" mark on each end. You should have a bracket the shape of ]. I will refer to this part as the camera mounting plate. See Fig. 1.

Step 6:
On each leg of the camera mounting plate, mark and drill 3 equal distant holes. Make sure the holes on one side is exactly the same as the other side to prevent camera tilt. You should end up with 3 holes on each leg. See Fig. 2 for reference.

Step 7:
Depending how you want to setup your camera, drill holes on top of the camera mounting plate. I have 3 holes at various distances to mount 3 cameras. See Fig. 3.

Step 8(optional):
All parts have been fabricated. If you wish to paint it, this is the time. Paint will bubble on smooth aluminum surfaces. So use the rotary grinder and roughen up all surfaces that you plan to paint on. Paint several layers using the Rust-Oleum flat black.

Step 9:
Secure the camera mounting plate to the camera mount brackets (L-shaped) using the bolts, washers, and nuts. The bolt should go through the 2.5" side of the L-shaped bracket. See Fig. 2 and Fig. 3.

Step 10:
Put the camera mounting plate assembly on the top flat surface of the headrest bracket. Mark the holes and drill 2 holes to mount the assembly onto the headrest bracket using the bolts, washers, and nuts. See Fig. 2 and Fig. 3.

Step 11:
Mount the entire assembly to the passenger and driver's headrest poles. The bracket should go behind the headrest while the U-bolt should go in-front of the metal headrest poles. See Fig. 2 and Fig. 3.

Step 12:
Adjust the height and camera plate angle depending on the reclination angle of your seatback. In my case, my wife likes the seat more forward then mine, so I could only use 2 of the 3 U-bolt anchor points. Make sure the entire assembly is secured tightly. There shouldn't be any play anywhere.

I've had good success shooting video during last weekend's TMPCC canyon run. The video looked pretty solid. Vibration was very minimal.
Good luck with yours!

*********Don't forget the rep points*********:hello: