How to Mount a Contour Camera Inside the Z4

[3002 tii]

Quick DIY on how to mount a Contour camera using an adhesive style mount. Apologies for the cr@ppy iPhone pics.

The Contour uses the standard 1/4" female thread (same as your typical tripod). This makes it difficult because any mounts for the Contour (direct from manufacturer or aftermarket) is on the bulky side; typically requires some combination of the ram mount(s) or suction mount, neither which are ideal for the interior. The GoPro on the other hand has tons of mini adhesive style mounts which are very small and unobtrusive. The question was how to get a Contour to mount with GoPro hardware.

After some searching, I found out that GoPro did indeed make a tripod style mount/adapter. The problem is it's a female thread so I needed a 1/4" male to male adapter, which I was able to find on eBay for $6.

1. Purchase GoPro tripod mount (Best Buy $8)




2. Get mount, 2 arms (included in the GoPro HD package) and 2 thumb screws:






3. Run to hardware store and buy 1/4" x 3/4" screw and 2 washers:




4. Attach 2 arms together & attach to the base.

]


5. Attach the 1/4" male to male screw to tripod mount, and remove the hex nut from the mount:




6. Mount to the arm:




7. Slide the 1/4" screw through the other end. The reason you need to do this is both the tripod mount & arm were not intended to be used together. If you relied soley on the thumbscrews, you would never be able to tighten the pieces as both ends take the hex nut. Therefore slide the screw through one end such that it sits flush inside.




8. The 3/4" length is a bit long but that's why I attached 2 washers on the end and used the hex nut on the other end to tighten it. I actually prefer this as opposed to the thumbscrew because I can tighten the piece with a socket.




9. I ended up using a washer in between the screw and camera to ensure the camera was pointing straight.





That's it! I know it sounds like a lot especially if you don't have the GoPro but finding GoPro accessories is pretty easy, and I find the final product to be less obtrusive than using any combination of Ram Mount hardware.


Product links:

1/4" male to male - http://www.ebay.com/itm/300729383019...ht_3494wt_1139
tripod mount - http://www.bestbuy.com/site/GoPro---...&skuId=1007629
gopro accessories/mounts - http://www.amazon.com/GoPro-Grab-Mou...+camera+mounts

[rsutoratosu]

If you have headrest, i just use the ram headrest mount and use a quick release that i have mounted on contour and other cameras.. i have 3 cams mounted the same way on 3 cars.

Looks like you have the fancy seats, no headrest on yours.

which contour is that, the roam? the older contour doesnt have the tripod mount.. have to use the adapter

Mine looks like this

[JasonH]

Pretty clever. Are you switching from a GoPro to a Contour? How do they compare?

[3002 tii]

Originally Posted by rsutoratosu

If you have headrest, i just use the ram headrest mount and use a quick release that i have mounted on contour and other cameras.. i have 3 cams mounted the same way on 3 cars.

Looks like you have the fancy seats, no headrest on yours.

which contour is that, the roam? the older contour doesnt have the tripod mount.. have to use the adapter

Correct unfortunately no headrest, and yes it's the Roam hands free model.

Originally Posted by JasonH

Pretty clever. Are you switching from a GoPro to a Contour? How do they compare?

Yep that's the plan be actually have yet to try out the Contour in this location. Originally I had it on my helmet but wasn't happy with the footage because whenever I'd look through the turns the camera would be way off angle.

[rsutoratosu]

I actually had horrible time with the contours.. i have the 720p and the 1080p model.

Both usb plug failed. Luckily you can take them apart easily and do repair. I bough a pack of usb replacement heads of ebay and had a friend solder it up for me.

I recently got the drift cam, pic above. What I like was you're able to charge and record at the same time so you'll never run out of battery with a 32gb memory card. drift cam also has a remote, so you dont need to fiddle with the camera to record. The encoding must suck because I'm unable to fit 5 day of commute in a 32gb memory card. I record all the rides for accident/insurance purposes

The older contour can not record and charge at the same time. You have to buy their proprietary charging cable. I thought it might be shorting the 2 middle pin in the usb cable, so I made one but it did not work. Maybe the newer one (roam or gps or etc) can charge and record without their special charging cable. Also the encoding must be better as I'm able to fit 6 days of driving on a 32gb card.. someone on ebay actually sells a battery pack, he probably figure out the wiring to charge and record at the same time. Im just out of ideas on the 4 pin usb wires..

Now that 32gb sdhc are so cheap, I end up buying more cards for like 20 bucks.. class 10. Never run out of room to record.

BTW These are really all my paintball cameras.. barrel mount, goggle mount, etc.. just doubles as my car recorder.

[3002 tii]

I hear you, but so far the Contour's been ok. But to your point, I plan on switching between the Contour and GoPro so I never have to worry about memory/battery. I picked up the Contour on sale during BF for $100 so couldn't complain and it was supposed to purely my helmet cam...

[JasonH]

Do you have any video from your GoPro using the in-car mount? I'm going to mount my GoPro there soon but I'm thinking of mounting it a little lower. For some reason yours looks high to me, like it would get more of the rear view mirror than the view through the windshield.

[mgwatson48]

I'm hesistant to mount this way because the adhesive is pretty much industrial strength and I have no idea how i would remove it without damaging the panel... any ideas?

[3002 tii]

Originally Posted by mgwatson48

I'm hesistant to mount this way because the adhesive is pretty much industrial strength and I have no idea how i would remove it without damaging the panel... any ideas?

I didn't really worry about removing it since I saw no reason to. I just made sure to download the vid and make sure I was ok with the location before actually mounting it in that spot. But it can't be too bad, I've taken off the helmet mount from my camera 2x and it uses the same 3m adhesive.

Not to mention, once you unclip the arm, you barely notice any hardware on your trim.

[3002 tii]

Originally Posted by JasonH

Do you have any video from your GoPro using the in-car mount? I'm going to mount my GoPro there soon but I'm thinking of mounting it a little lower. For some reason yours looks high to me, like it would get more of the rear view mirror than the view through the windshield.

I guess you could say it's on the high side but lowering the arms helps a bit. Here's a screenshot of the vid I took with the Contour, doesn't look too bad imo.

[JasonH]

Does it have a less wide view you can select, like the GoPro does? The screenshot actually has a better view than I expected.

[3002 tii]

Originally Posted by JasonH

Does it have a less wide view you can select, like the GoPro does? The screenshot actually has a better view than I expected.

Don't think so but I'll check but I realized I could place the gopro in the same level / spot just by angling the arms downwards.

[sipman]

the male to male is unnecessary and causes the problem you've discovered. Try just buying a 1/4 screw, cut off the head, and threadlock it into the go pro mount. You can lock two nuts together on the other end of the headless bolt to tighten it in there.

Then get a knurled 1/4" knurled thumb nut (google to find these) and that will allow you to tighten the camera in any position you'd like. You might need to put a rubber washer between the knurled thumb nut and the base of the camera if it slides around, but considering the camera is so light you'd be ok.

Another option you have is to buy a gorillapod to cannibal-ize. The head of the Gorrillapod is attached to the legs via the same 1/4" screw. I think the gorillapod is $20, but if you attach the head to it, you'll get the ball adjuster with it's near infinite adjustment, and the quick release. Save your receipt thought because I use the gorillapod slr's head and that definitely works. I'm not positive about disassembling the original to steal it's head but I can only imagine it's the same.

[3002 tii]

My original plan was to just use a 1/4" screw and cut the head off but for some reason my local hardware store would not cut the head off for me. I do have a gorillapod but wasnt willing to destroy it, spending $6 on exactly what I needed seemed like the best alternative.