Cellphone camera mount - mod

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Sauerkraut
Posts: 211
Joined: Tue Apr 16, 2019 2:07 am
Location: Oregon, USA

Cellphone camera mount - mod

#1 Post by Sauerkraut » Tue Jul 02, 2019 12:08 am

Oliver made a nice video on camera mounting options for microscopes but the particular light weight eyepiece mounting kit he discussed is not available in the US afaik and the ones available here are clunkier. So I purchased one with the idea of modding it and it came out better than expected from a functional standpoint. The original kit has a very bulky screw-on piece for the eye piece, so I bought a dedicated 10x eye piece and incorporated it into a new, more secure and permanent holder.

Perhaps this might be useful to someone, or at least provide some amusement. I do not have a 3D printer so used pine wood and forstner drill bits. It's easy to pull out an existing eyepiece and put this unit in. Minimal fussing with the phone and it's ready to go.

Original kit:
Original.JPG
Original.JPG (65.84 KiB) Viewed 3668 times
Modded:
Mod_2.JPG
Mod_2.JPG (90.42 KiB) Viewed 3668 times
Mod_1.JPG
Mod_1.JPG (57.24 KiB) Viewed 3668 times

Hobbyst46
Posts: 4277
Joined: Mon Aug 21, 2017 9:02 pm

Re: Cellphone camera mount - mod

#2 Post by Hobbyst46 » Tue Jul 02, 2019 5:34 am

Nice idea !

Sauerkraut
Posts: 211
Joined: Tue Apr 16, 2019 2:07 am
Location: Oregon, USA

Re: Cellphone camera mount - mod

#3 Post by Sauerkraut » Tue Jul 02, 2019 3:28 pm

Thanks. The original kit weighed 365grams (0.8 lb) and had too much slop, making it difficult to use. The mod is solid. Much lighter. No play. I wasn't going for looks but it could be beautified.

It's not bad for someone who doesn't have a trinocular port or like me, hasn't found the right used camera yet.

Scarodactyl
Posts: 2775
Joined: Sat Mar 03, 2018 9:09 pm

Re: Cellphone camera mount - mod

#4 Post by Scarodactyl » Tue Jul 02, 2019 6:13 pm

Very nice! I have the same base adapter, I'll have to try making something similar.

Sauerkraut
Posts: 211
Joined: Tue Apr 16, 2019 2:07 am
Location: Oregon, USA

Re: Cellphone camera mount - mod

#5 Post by Sauerkraut » Tue Jul 02, 2019 8:07 pm

Scarodactyl wrote:Very nice! I have the same base adapter, I'll have to try making something similar.
Helpful tip. The original unit has a recessed round collar that holds the eyepiece holder sections together (see red arrow for location). It looks more like a press fit and I nearly took a hammer and punch to it before deciding the try using a cold chisel and hammer to unscrew that collar. This allows you to reuse it and screw the new pieces together without any need for JB Weld or etc.
Original.JPG
Original.JPG (66.76 KiB) Viewed 3587 times

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