Ive got a GoPro HD Hero. I see all of your awesome videos and Im wondering....
What are the best ways to attach the ol GoPro to the plane. I watched the video by M6RV6 of the green hornet Wilga and wondered how he got the camera on the wing? I know what attachments they make, for instance the suction cup mount, but is it trustworthy to stick to the leading edge of the wing or any other spot? How bout the sticky mounts? I use the GoPro on my helmet for extreme downhill mtn biking, but it always goes on the same spot top 'o the helmet with a sticky helmet mount. Since I dont own a plane, how can I take videos in a rental without stickin stickys to it?

So, how do you all do it?

Word

Word, I used the pitot tube on the Wilga with the handlebar mount.
I'm also trying to figure out another way?
GT

M6RV6 wrote:Word, I used the pitot tube on the Wilga with the handlebar mount.
I'm also trying to figure out another way?
GT

Nice call. Pitot=handlebar, close enough for govt work.

GoPro do these little waterproof cases which have a clip designed to accept a flat mounting plate. Those plates can be attached more or less anywhere on a spam can, I know with Cessna for example you can just screw them to an inspection port cover. A friend has 3 or 4 spread around his plane. And if you want them gone, the cover is easy to change / replace in just a few moments.

I made a .125 thick inspection cover. Works fine. Replace it with a regular one for annual.

ohadI wrote:Since I dont own a plane, how can I take videos in a rental without stickin stickys to it?

Or Screwing things to it.

I think you're SOL on attaching a camera to the wing any further outboard than the strut attachment if you can only use temporary means (rental.)

Long ago before GoPro I just used these Voile brand rubber straps to secure a mini tripod to the strut. Worked great.

A good friend and EAA chapter member is making truly first class mounts for Go-Pro and other small cameras. He has gone so far as to make up a custom aluminum extrusion, with custom inlaid rubber bumpers, to achieve the safest and most damage-resistant mount available... specifically for aircraft struts, landing gears and other parts.

I urge anyone interested in small camera mounts to check with this guy first, he's a first class individual and wants to build a Bearhawk with the money he makes on these little gems. Contact Marc Webster [email protected]

Similar to Zane's reply, I use a ram mount, pipe clamps and gaffers tape to *very* securely mount to a strut. Gaffers tape, in case you aren't familiar, is like duct tape in appearance. It protects the strut from the pipe clamps. It's designed for use in film and theater and has the property that it doesn't leave a residue behind, so is perfect for this application.

On a clean surface the adhesive mounts work good. Use the flat gopro mount, I have one I'm not sure I'm going to be able to get off after 9 months. Just make sure there's no grease and let the mount set up for a hour or so. It's all I use anymore, my plane is bare metal, if you're sticking to old flaky paint that obviously won't work too well. I have lost a suction cup and camera off a glider with rougher paint, they're useless to me.

Ps don't turn the wilgas pitot heat on!!!

http://youtu.be/EyQToy1gwUU

Just a sample go pro sticky with the outdoor 3m double stick tape.

18043A wrote:On a clean surface the adhesive mounts work good. Use the flat gopro mount, I have one I'm not sure I'm going to be able to get off after 9 months. Just make sure there's no grease and let the mount set up for a hour or so. It's all I use anymore, my plane is bare metal, if you're sticking to old flaky paint that obviously won't work too well. I have lost a suction cup and camera off a glider with rougher paint, they're useless to me.

Ps don't turn the wilgas pitot heat on!!!

He specifically asked about solutions on a rental plane, but if one has their own plane it bears repeating 18043A's comment above. The stickies are the way to go.

I haven't ever lost a camera using the suction cup (same advice, make sure the cup and the surface are spotless), but I still find them useless except for mounting *inside* the plane. The amount of wind combined with the lack of stability from the suction cup makes for massive jello effect if mounted outside the plane. So, even if you have good luck like me and don't lose the camera, you still won't have useful video.

rw2 wrote:

18043A wrote:On a clean surface the adhesive mounts work good. Use the flat gopro mount, I have one I'm not sure I'm going to be able to get off after 9 months. Just make sure there's no grease and let the mount set up for a hour or so. It's all I use anymore, my plane is bare metal, if you're sticking to old flaky paint that obviously won't work too well. I have lost a suction cup and camera off a glider with rougher paint, they're useless to me.

Ps don't turn the wilgas pitot heat on!!!

He specifically asked about solutions on a rental plane, but if one has their own plane it bears repeating 18043A's comment above. The stickies are the way to go.

I haven't ever lost a camera using the suction cup (same advice, make sure the cup and the surface are spotless), but I still find them useless except for mounting *inside* the plane. The amount of wind combined with the lack of stability from the suction cup makes for massive jello effect if mounted outside the plane. So, even if you have good luck like me and don't lose the camera, you still won't have useful video.

I heard the suction cups hold up to 150 MPH or so. Even with good luck that sounds like a risky endeavor. Stickys seem good as well.
Heres my thought, along with the rubber strap idea. (Design as I go here, bear with me) Get a piece of moldable aluminium about 2"x4", glue a piece of rubber on the bottom (similar to an intertube or those sticky mats for car dashboards for phones and such), stick a flat sticky mount to it, strap it on where ever you can wrap around like the wheel strut or wing strut. With the moldable alum you could mold it to fit a certain part of the strut, and the rubber sticky pad on bottom would hold it from sliding, and the straps would hold it in place.
Secondarily, new thought, same principle. The GoPro came mounted on its box in a clear case. The top of the box is roughly 4" x 4" with a clip in mount on it. Tear it off the box, glue some sticky rubber to the bottom and trim it to whatever size you want. The only downfall here is that it would have to be a fairly flat surface as it is hard plastic and cant be bent very easily. Therefore making it tough to strap it to a strut I would assume.

I think Ill try one of these out. Now to find good rubber straps.
Found some I think will work here: http://www.houseofscuba.com/brand-promate/acc124.html

Hello All,

My name is Marc and as EZ Flaphandle mentioned above I am in the process of releasing a mount for action cameras specially designed to attach to a wing strut. This is my first post and I would have rather it be more of an introduction than an explanation of the mount I designed so I will offer a little bit of both.

I have been fascinated with aviation since as long as I can remember. My first love was Soaring and I flew RC sailplanes competitively for many years until I could afford to take lessons. I joined a Sailplane club in California City and flew sailplanes in the early 90's until I got married and as with many had to give it up. Well 15 years later I got a divorce and hello aviation again.. I decided to take up Hangliding since it was a more affordable for a divorce'e over sailplanes, it was more accessible to Los Angeles, and in many ways I found I enjoyed it more. Wanting to have videos of my flight I developed the mount to attach to my hanglider to work with a Canon digital camera and then eventually bought a Gopro. After a bit of time I realized that I kept putting power flying off my whole life so I decided to shelve Hangliding for a bit and started taking lessons in a C172N. That was about 2 years ago and I am still a student just in need of my XC flights to finish... My busy work schedule and lack of funds got in the way. I joined my local EAA chapter a little over a year ago and have been helping in the build of a donated project that required more work then anyone would have guessed. The progress has been slow due to fixing many of the previous builders mistakes, but we are steadily moving forward now. The builder passed away before completion and we hope to fly it to a flyin for her to see and name it in his honor when its done. I figured i am learning the new skills I need that I can then put toward my own plane that I hope to start this summer. I bought a set of Bearhawk LSA plans #37 as I wanted a plane that was simple like a champ, but has a metal wing with gas in the wings. Also the Bearhawk LSA works well for my dad and I to both fly since we both are tall and I am 230lbs and he is 240lbs. Plus it falls under LSA and I can push him to take lessons as well. I want a plane I can use in the Backcountry for camping and rock climbing trips. I have my eyes on a few alpine climbing destinations that require a multi-day hike into but are situated in front of a large meadow where a bush plane could land; That would be my dream. Realizing I may never be able to afford to buy a plane outright I decided to build and figured the mount I designed might help me get there or at least offset the costs a bit so I decided to release it to the public.

I have tested the mount to 150 knots without so much as a budge or vibration in the video; I am sure it will be fine at higher speeds as well. I only get vibration on the takeoff roll if the nose wheel shimmy's and as the flaps come down. I suppose the action of the flaps lowering vibrates the strut a bit; or at least on the rental 172 I fly. Other than that the video is solid.

The mount can be used on just about any item that has a tubular shape on the mounting surface. I originally designed it for my hanglider but when I started flying power, I modified the design to also work with a wing strut. The mount can be reconfigured into 2 configurations. One for fully round tubes from 1" to 3" in diameter and the other configuration is for the wing strut which adds a clamping tail piece to the rear portion of the strut. The configuration can be changed from one to another in 2 minutes. By having two configurations it can be used on many other things. I have tested it on a sailboat mast, ATV roll Bar, Race Car roll Bar, Wakeboarding boat cage, Hanglider, Handrail on stairs for skateboarders, strapped it to a ski lift chair, headtube on my mountainbike, front fork on street bike in the canyons as well as the front fork on a motocross bike. As for airplanes it has been tested in flight on a C172 & C182 since that is what I had access to. It is quick on and quick off as I designed it that way since I rent and wanted something that I can attach quickly to any plane I fly. Also if it is semi permanent I don't need an STC since it does not rely on fixed attachments on the plane to be used. It is pretty much designed with Cessnas in mind, but any plane with a wing strut that falls between a range of sizes should work. So far only wing struts I found that are tough was a Taylorcraft as the wing strut is very small and much more streamlined than the Cessna. It worked for a test, but I may make a dedicated version that works for those type of thin V struts as well.

The mount is made from 2 custom made 6061-T6 extrusions that then get additional features machined with a CNC machine. The parts that touch the strut are shielded with silicone rubber which help protect the strut but also the rubber bights into the strut for stabilization.

Right now, I cant say too much as I actually took the time to patent this thing as it was a life goal of mine to do one day. I submitted the provisional 3 weeks ago and I should know in the next week or 2 if it has been approved. Once approved, I can launch the product with full specs and descriptions. My target price is $150 for a mount that does both configs, but I am having 20 made in the first run and plan to sell the first 20 for $125. For people who don't fly, a single config minus the strut parts is fine and I will offer it that way as well for less.

As I said, sorry my first post should be a plug for my invention but I figured I should at least reply to Bills response here for others to see. I was not really ready to discuss it to the public yet as I wanted to be fully ready but I received a few replies already from Bills posting. I am a few weeks away from being able to offer the mount but if anyone is interested feel free to email or PM me. Hopefully my next few posts will be more backcountry flying related as its the type of flying I want to do which is why I chose the Bearhawk LSA to build. I also have my eye on Saline Valley Hot springs as it looks like it would be a fun camping trip with an airplane.

Best regards,

Marc