GoPro mount repurposing

3D printed an adapter to go from the GoPro mount, to a cheap dash cam.



Going to look into running a direct wire 5-volt connection to something under the sun glasses / map light area.

 

thats badass dude! i should get my brother in law to print me out one for my dash cam too lol.

 

Thats pretty sweet. My dashcam came with a 3M stick-on mount, but it looks like its not going to last though the summer here in CA. I've been trying to come up with a better way to mount it, but I got a 2nd gen, so no sweet GoPro mount.

 

This is the camera I bought.

PanguKing 2.46" LCD Full HD 1080P Dashcam Car Dvr Camera G-sensor Parking Monitor Motion Detection Loop Recording Night Vision

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01F0NJ56G/ref=cm_sw_r_tw_dp_zeGDxbT6S5EP2

Found an existing G1W mount and a 2 blade GpPro part and meshed them, but the G1W mount isn't wide enough for this camera. I widened it up a bit and tried again.



And then printed it out...




Turned out a bit too wide, but a little sand paper fixed that.

If anyone wants to print it for their use, I shared it here:
http://www.thingiverse.com/thing:1653915

 

You should do a write up for the hard wire. I want to get a dash cam but I don't want to take that mount up. My father-in-law wired his to his sunroof switch. Unfortunately I don't have a sunroof. I figure I will have to run the wire along the headliner and down the A pillar.

 

pull power from the IG1 fuse behind the dash. when you turn the key, it gets power, which means your camera will turn on and off with the truck. all you need to do is turn the 12 volts from the truck into the 5 volts that a cig lighter puts out. just crack open the cigarette lighter plug that comes with about every dash cam, and solder some wires into it.





red goes to IG1 fuse, and black gets grounded. power cable coming out of the left side goes to the camera

 

Or you just get one of these

SpyTec Dash Cam Hardwire Kit with Mini USB for Dashboard Camera Power Supply - Low Voltage Protection for Dash Cams

https://www.amazon.com/Dash-Camera-Vehicle-Hard-Wire/dp/B00MH4ZVHO

 

Before I got the Mobius camera, I was trying to figure out how to mount a normal dash cam and couldnt find anything like you have printed.

I would suggest listing it on eBay, you may get some bites from people like us who were looking for one.

 

I'm not looking to make any money from it. If someone where wants one bad enough, I might be willing to help some guys out.

This one was just a prototype in PLA. After I get the dimensions printing right, the final one will be in black ABS. I might even add a 17mm ball mount in the middle so it's more adjustable, but judging from the first videos I pulled this morning, it's not needed.

 

The lighter plug that came with mine has a curled cord. The other ones I have around the house (that I'm willing to sacrifice) have low A output AND curled cords. I thought about replacing the coiled cable with a standard micro-usb cable, but as pruchai mentioned above, the fused direct connection kits are not that expensive. And the circuitry is probably a little better than whats in these cheap 12v adapters. I'm going to find one that takes USB A, so I can swap it out to other cables (Micro, C) if needed later.

I don't want to run cabling all the way down to the fuse panel, but I might. But there is both always on, and switch 12v power at the map light switch, so that would theoretically be a sound place to tap power for this. Might even put a USB A port on the back of the sunglasses drawer.

 

great option for anyone who doesn't want to solder. for me, 5 minutes of my time and $0.10 of solder was a better option than $9 and a two day wait.

 

How the heck did you spend that much in solder for two darn wires? Using pure gold?

That said, I use a multisafer and fuse taps for dash cam hardwiring. Crimped butt connections for me at the moment, but it'll get soldered nice and neat when it's not 2000 degrees or so outside.

 

So I threw all caution to the wind and tried the least invasive route possible. I put in an add-a-fuse in the spot for the power outlet in the bed. Then wired a cigarette lighter receptacle. All I had to do was run the cord down to the drivers side kick plate and plug it in. The only pain was getting the cord behind the side curtain airbag. No w I just need to find someone with a 3D printer to make that mount piece.

 

Go pro also makes adapters for all sorts of things. If you get their bag of mounts, I'd be shocked if you couldn't cobble something together.

 

How much would you charge for a mount? I have a go pro mount on my windshield already and I have been wanting to add a camera for a while.

 

Anyone wanting to use the GoPro mount for anything on-road needs to be careful. As crazy at it may sound, Tacoma put the mount in an area of the windshield that many (probably most) states do not allow to be used for mounting anything. The idea behind the laws is that things mounted in that area could obstruct vision. Typically there are limited areas of the windshield on which items may be mounted, and then only certain types of items may be mounted. The top, center of the windshield (behind the rear view mirror) and lower left and lower right corners of the windshield are the most likely to be legal mounting areas. Here is a link to a site that has some info on GPS mounting, and those laws generally address other electronic devices: http://www.poi-factory.com/node/34521

I guess Toyota put the GoPro mount where they did so the selfie-obsessed crowd could shoot videos of them and their passengers squealing while bashing around offroad, and not with any thought of actual utility.

 

You can order them printed using this link. Specifying ABS would get you a more heat tolerant part.
http://www.thingiverse.com/apps/3d-print-with-3d-hubs/run?thing_id=1653915

 

Gentex Homelink mirror installed, and no more wires.

 

My how-to on installing a overhead 5v connection.

Parts:

• Right-Angle USB A --> USB Micro B
• 5v direct wire --> female USB A socket
• 18-22 AWG splice connectors

Tools:

• 10mm socket
• Panel / Trim tools
• Philips Screw Driver
• Wire strippers
• Zip Ties

Time: About 1.5 Hours

Headliner

1. Grip the center console in the headline at the two corners toward the back of the truck, and pull until the two clips on that end release.
2. Grip the opposite end toward the windshield and pull until the console comes loose.
3. Unplug the harness from the console, and set it aside.
4. Using a panel tool, remove the bolt covers from the drivers side windshield pillar.
5. Remove bolt covers from passenger side "Oh S### Handle" bolt covers.
6. Remove all three 10mm bolts.
7. Pull trim away from headliner a bit.
8. Remove both Philips screws holding each sun visor.
9. Gently pull sun visor to release retention clip
10. Disconnect vanity light plugs and set aside sun visors.
11. Twist each sun visor clip 45 degrees and pull to remove.
12. GENTLY pull head liner away from sun visor clip sockets.

Direct 5v connection:

1. Since I was installing a Gentex Homelink mirror that came with a 8" adapter cable, I spliced into this. (I had originally planned to use the switched or always-on wires running to the map / dome lights. Others run to the fuse box.)
2. Normally I would solder and shrink wrap, but I got lazy. I used splice connectors to connect the 5v adapter leads to the Gentex adapter cable.
3. I used a right-angle USB Micro B to USB A cable to connect the camera to the 5v adapter.
4. I zip tied the adapter and leads to the console support bracket to keep it from rattling.

Button it back up:

1. Push the headliner back over the sun visor clip anchors.
2. Push the sun visor clips straight back into their sockets.
3. Reinstall console wire harness.
4. Push console clips back into their resting place.
5. Tuck headliner into door weather stripping (if it came loose).
6. Reinstall pillar trim, also tucking it under weather stripping.
7. Reinstall bolts and bolt covers.
8. Plug in vanity light connectors into sun visors and tuck into recess.
9. Reinstall sun visors (4 bolts).

 

Nice work!