Liquidfyre style through-wall camera mount

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I do intend on shipping products... I am just in the midst of a job change, and trying to get my BALLS project finished up... I have to be honest, I don't really like the angle the camera is at right now, and I don't want to ship out something I am not happy with. For those who have sent me money, I don't think I have accepted it, but if I have I will certainly return it if you'd like... I hadn't planned on going to BALLS, but I'm kind of committed at this point, and I'll be honest, this project has gotten neglected as a result. Sorry I haven't been real communitive, I really do feel bad about that.
 
@dan__olson no worries at all. I'd rather you take the time to get it right. As I said, I'm not in any real rush as this is for a build I haven't even started yet and likely won't till the fall.

If it's at all helpful from a funds perspective to have my order in hand to cover dev/manufacturing costs on your end I'm happy to pre-order. Just let me know.
 
I’m fine with waiting as long as needed, just wanted to be sure that a shipment wasn’t lost or stolen. Enjoy the BALLS project and your new job, hang on to the $ I sent, and get back to me at your convenience.
 
I do intend on shipping products... I am just in the midst of a job change, and trying to get my BALLS project finished up... I have to be honest, I don't really like the angle the camera is at right now, and I don't want to ship out something I am not happy with. For those who have sent me money, I don't think I have accepted it, but if I have I will certainly return it if you'd like... I hadn't planned on going to BALLS, but I'm kind of committed at this point, and I'll be honest, this project has gotten neglected as a result. Sorry I haven't been real communitive, I really do feel bad about that.
Would love to see a pic for this through the wall camera mount. Very interested in getting 2 of them.
 
Forgive my poor dremeling but here it is in my balls rocket... as you can see, the camera needs to be placed higher up compared to the body tube and the angle flattened out. As it is now, the bottom 10% or so of the frame is just a blurry body tube and you can't see the fins at all... I can do better
 

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That's a 2" wide switch band and a 5" airframe... I'm trying my best to get things ready for BALLS and then I can try it out and see what changes I need to make... that is if the whole thing doesn't just blow up. Assuming I'm able to get video, I'll share here, so you guys can decide if I need to back to work on it. Never been to BALLS, and most certainly not like a month before... 6 days and counting now before we leave, and I still have to clear and do a couple things on the airframe, and settle on my best guess for an M hybrid and get machining... I should just back out for this year, but my pride won't let me. It's either gonna go or blow I guess... I know I won't be the only one :) Thanks for the continued support all of you... no doubt it's been very frustrating.
 
Unfortunately, no... between my hybrid development work and now buying an ambulance that I want to convert over for rocket transport/workspace and working on a what I think is a fairly revolutionary hybrid launch system, I just haven't had the time to work on the camera... unfortunately, because of this whole homebuilt hybrid thing, I haven't been able to get a camera in the air... but, I do have hopes that one way or another I can get it in the air and see if I am happy with it so I feel good about someoneone else buying it.
 
[QUOTE="dan__olson, post: 2202143, member: 9823" I do have hopes that one way or another I can get it in the air and see if I am happy with it so I feel good about someoneone else buying it.
[/QUOTE]
Really appreciate your wanting to make sure what you’re offering works well first. At the same time, I’d certainly be willing to purchase what you showed in photos awhile back, and if it doesn’t work for some reason, no problem, I’ll give you feedback and definitely not ask for the money back. I’m not sure how soon I could get it in the air, but maybe it would be before you have the chance to. You are potentially offering something that is not otherwise commercially available, and what you made so far looks way better than the one I tried to make.
 
I'd love to get a 3" version of your production part.
$50.00 is a steal.... Pretty sure, I'd be plussing that up some on my order.

Just let me know when they are done, and I'll shoot you "beaucoup dollores". :)
 
@dan__olson - are you able to share an image or video from the cam as it is currently mounted (just on a table or whatever)? Also curious as to the length of your booster.

I'm gearing up to start my L2 build which I'm planning to use this for so I'm eager to get my hands on a mount.
 
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New Year bump!
I also hope these come to fruition but I understand that they may not. As you noted in your initial post, LiquidFyre made an excellent product, had good customer service, and still completely stopped making the product. Dan appears to have a viable product as well, but he proactively returned the money I sent him without my even asking him to. Which is in itself excellent customer service. So two good guys with the skills to do this apparently decided for one reason or another that it wasn’t worth it, which I understand. Dan, if I’m off the mark here, and/or you have additional comments, please chime in.
 
So to Ohio Flyer and anyone else still following the thread, I am considering trying a GoPro in cast acrylic tubing as a way to accomplish the objective of getting a pointed-down shot without hanging anything outside of the airframe. There are sizes of cast acrylic that match the OD of 75mm and 98mm coupler tubing, so the idea would be to use a length of it between two pieces of airframe, and put the camera in there with the lens pointing down as much as possible. I have no idea if it would work, or if the cast acrylic would melt or fog at high speeds or temperatures. Any thoughts welcome.
 
@jkovac I'm open to all potential solutions. Criteria for me is minimal exterior exposure and a downward facing image. Also would prefer a camera system/module to be sub $150 USD (closer to $100 if possible) and a minimum resolution of 1080p 60fps.

The runcam2 4K is ideal for me as it allows for the lens module to be placed in an ideal location via the use of a longer camera module ribbon cable. It also captures audio which is nice. If this doesn't pan out, I may look into the split cam setups which are even more flexible and would allow for downlink if desired (or just for video stream verification at the pad via a VTX module)

Additionally, I'm looking to integrate the camera protrusion into my vent band so smaller is better. I have a 3" tall 4" dia vent band for my L2 rocket so any design I pursue would be based around that size restriction.
 
My understanding is that you need a cable and a coupling board. Its my understanding the cable is a standard 26pin 0.5 pitch A-Type like this;

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07RVD375Y/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1
The coupling board is one I don't have a source for. I think Dan used one from a mobius cam but not sure of the specs. I think its the circuit board on this item but not totally sure.

https://www.buddyrc.com/products/20...0p-hd-mobius-actioncam?variant=30735577546838

I don't have a runcam2 4k in hand though so on both fronts its a buy at your own risk type of deal.
 
Hmm...thanks for the info!

I don't have a camera yet either. Wanted to make sure I can get all the parts first.


Yeah, I've held off on buying a cam as well. May go the split cam route if this doesn't pan out as it offers the most flexibility at the loss of audio recording.
 
What about the mobius. There are extension cables for the camera element readily available.
Norm

For me, the issue with the mobius is that there are so many knock offs and versions and its just more of a pain than grabbing something from Runcam or Caddx camera. They also seem to be much more expensive than they used to be so no real cost advantage there.
 
Reviving this thread again. I've unfortunately not had any luck getting ahold of Dan but I did receive a Runcam2 4K for my birthday so I'm eager to find/develop a solution one way or another.

I was thinking about this the other day and what if the runcam was mounted vertically, lens pointed up, inside the bodytube (inside the av bay in my case) and a series of mirrors (think periscope) was used to capture the desired image? It could be a very simple laser cut design that punches through a square hole in the tube and uses first surface mirrors to get the best image. Thoughts?
 
Viewing angle of lens and distance between mirrors......... Mirrors would need to be front surfaced.
A periscope has a narrow viewing angle without optics. Binoculars. Which use the same principle, have optics at both ends. Could be made to work. If you just used 1 mirror and it was close to lens it would be the same as the old astrocam.
Worth having a play with camera and a lump of plasticine with a mirror stuck in it to see where your limits are and if you can get it to work distance wise go for it. Dental mirrors are front surfaced and readily available on eBay. If you've got a junk SLR camera the viewfinder mirror is a good size and is front surfaced.
Norm
 
Viewing angle of lens and distance between mirrors......... Mirrors would need to be front surfaced.
A periscope has a narrow viewing angle without optics. Binoculars. Which use the same principle, have optics at both ends. Could be made to work. If you just used 1 mirror and it was close to lens it would be the same as the old astrocam.
Worth having a play with camera and a lump of plasticine with a mirror stuck in it to see where your limits are and if you can get it to work distance wise go for it. Dental mirrors are front surfaced and readily available on eBay. If you've got a junk SLR camera the viewfinder mirror is a good size and is front surfaced.
Norm


Norm - thanks for the insights. Yes, first surface mirrors would be a must. Quick search on Amazon led me to this 6x8" sheet which I might grab to experiment with.

https://smile.amazon.com/dp/B07Y5LY...t_i_WG1YVBYYQPHQ8B3F4N3T?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1
 
You can use a "normal" (second-surface) mirror and a bit of paint remover, and *make* a first surface mirror. I'd like to say I thought of this, but K'Tesh told me.
 
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