GoPro Tube mount

[ketelhut]

Looking for best, most secure mount for my GoPro. I have a mount inside on dash but want to be able to mount it on the bumper Bull Bar also. Bar has 1.75" diameter. Bar also has to welded on brackets with 1/2" holes if there's a bolt on mount. I've used search & looked at this bolt on one & this one. Looking for more actual experience with either type of mount.

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[BDinTX]

No experience with either but I really like these magnetic snap mounts. I've hung my GoPro underneath and drove on the highway using them. I think it would be a ton more versatile and would stay put on top of the bumper. I also use them on my windshield suction mount and my b-roll camera because they make pulling the camera off to change batteries/cards/etc extremly easy.

https://snapmounts.com/

"Our rare earth, N52 magnets (the strongest commercially available) lets you mount to any steel surface on your vehicle up to 100mph."

 

[ketelhut]

Thanks Brad, I'll look at that.

Another question. Off roading with the camera mounted outside & low, on front of Jeep, does the lens get dirty quickly. Not wheeling in mud but just the usual trail dust when behind a couple other Jeeps.

 

[BDinTX]

Honestly I don't normally run it outside. I prefer having the camera inside so it can pick up our conversation and you also have the hood in the foreground as context for the trail. It could be an interesting angle for some obstacles though, I need to try it...

I think if you used an antistatic spray on the lens it might prevent dust from clinging to it too much if you left it out there for a while.

Something I have had problems with is the camera overheating in the windshield. Often enough that I've considered cobbling together some kind of shade. When it's really warm I use the defroster to blow cold air up the windshield, which on higher fan settings will also trash the audio.

 

[ketelhut]

No experience with either but I really like these magnetic snap mounts. I've hung my GoPro underneath and drove on the highway using them. I think it would be a ton more versatile and would stay put on top of the bumper. I also use them on my windshield suction mount and my b-roll camera because they make pulling the camera off to change batteries/cards/etc extremly easy.

https://snapmounts.com/

"Our rare earth, N52 magnets (the strongest commercially available) lets you mount to any steel surface on your vehicle up to 100mph."

This looks interesting. I have a SOT & thinking I might be able to mount this on that. I have some N52 magnets & tried one on the underside & one on top of the SOT & it was very solid. That would get the camera up higher which might be a better angle. I know, watch for low hanging trees ?

 

[ketelhut]

Brad, thanks for the antistatic spry suggestion. I know sun coming thru windshield can get things hot on the dash. Surprised I haven't seen this mentioned before.

 

[BDinTX]

No worries, I'm not sure it will work but it seems like it would be worth a shot.
The magnet through the SOT is not a bad idea but I also wouldn't discount the suction mount.
It holds onto the windshield extremely well and you could put it on the outside of the windshield.

I run the gopro from the inside as a dash cam now, so it's been hanging on there for months. Periodically I'll re-purge the cup but it's never come off.

 

[skiddymo]

No worries, I'm not sure it will work but it seems like it would be worth a shot.
The magnet through the SOT is not a bad idea but I also wouldn't discount the suction mount.
It holds onto the windshield extremely well and you could put it on the outside of the windshield.

I run the gopro from the inside as a dash cam now, so it's been hanging on there for months. Periodically I'll re-purge the cup but it's never come off.

I had a dash cam in my truck and looking for a different option for my Jeep. I was thinking about using a GoPro. Have you found it to be a good option? Any recommendations you have? I have never owned a GoPro before so I am open to any suggestions or recommendations. This is also my first Jeep and first brand new vehicle. Last thing I want is to be involved in an accident that isn’t my fault but not have any proof. It happened to me last summer and I swear it won’t happen again.

 

[BDinTX]

@skiddymo I got pulled over one night after a Camaro flew past me and the officer said I was going 20mph faster than I was. Thankfully I only got a warning but that's when I suddenly became more interested in dash cams.

I have never owned an actual dashcam so I can't directly compare but I watched a video where a guy was comparing dash cams and actually took them all apart. He showed that almost all of them use the same camera sensor and understandably all have similar video quality. They all suffered from poor video quality at night. Another problem, license plates are reflective and cameras tend to overexpose them which makes them unreadable. He suggested for better night performance, use a GoPro. I don't know that a license plate is readable on a GoPro under all conditions though.

Functionally, a GoPro is not the best dash cam but I already had two of them so I went with it.
Considerations:

• It only records the direction you have it pointed (dashcams are often front and rear facing).
• You have to turn it on each time you want to use it.
• If you want speed/location data, you have to wait for it to get a GPS lock before you start recording.
• It doesn't automatically overwrite old files (depends on frequency of use and MicroSD card size).

I also don't know that a GoPro is the best action camera either. There are a lot of folks that prefer other cameras. There are things that are really frustrating about GoPros. They tend to overheat for example, more often at higher video resolution. There are a LOT of accessories for GoPros out there though and I've managed to work through the quirks.

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