Phone Mounts

[neilr]

Originally Posted by BirdTRD

Initially it was "stable" but after bumping into it once or twice, that was no longer the case. I ended up pulling the knee pad and finding a spot to hook a zip tie, then daisy chaining another zip tie to that to go around the arm as seen below. This setup has worked well over the last 2 years, no vibration or movement whatsoever.

Got it. Your zip tie solution looks pretty unobtrusive - I like it. Would you mind posting a closer photo of where the mount's end goes through the plastic trim? Seems like a Dremel task - guess it's time for me to get one. :-)

Another question that I couldn't find a clear answer to on Arkon's site: can the mount be removed from the arm and swapped for a different one? I rather like their Mobile Grip 2.

[neilr]

Originally Posted by churchx

Nice & clean .. except if one drives on track with passenger. I think that this way of mount may interfere if knee is pushed against pad & this mount over it when passenger secures his position to be more stable for side-Gs.
Also if using this mount .. imho it's worth to attach charging cable with zip-ties or alike to mount arm, for less clutter/neater looks. (and connect charging wire to cig-plug adapter in glove-box).

Since I rarely have passengers and never track my car, that won't be an issue for me. Good tip on affixing the cable to the arm - not sure if I've got one of the appropriate length, but that's easily remedied.

[Brink]

I'm using the iOttie Easy One Touch 3 (https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01BZC262Q/).

The way I have it mounted, it gets in the way of the passenger seat being able to move all the way forward to access the rear "seat," but it's not like the rear seat is actually used for anything so I don't really care. I used the included dash pad to mount it and haven't had any issues in 6 months or so of use. Also gives me a nice place to hang my usb cord when I'm not using that.

It also just barely gets in the way of the shifter going in and out of park, but isn't otherwise in the way of the shifter and is easy to work around once you adjust your grip to it being there. I don't know how this would work out with a manual though, might end up being in the way for some shifts.

I like it because it doesn't require any modification to the interior of the car to install and it doesn't use a magnet on the phone case, which I've always been a bit hesitant to use.

[neilr]

Originally Posted by Brink

I used the included dash pad to mount it and haven't had any issues in 6 months or so of use. Also gives me a nice place to hang my usb cord when I'm not using that.

Is that the sticky pad? I've had poor luck with sticky suction cups and textured surfaces (they always fall off within 15 minutes), though I haven't tried the side of the tunnel. Thanks for another idea to try.

[Brink]

Originally Posted by neilr

Is that the sticky pad? I've had poor luck with sticky suction cups and textured surfaces (they always fall off within 15 minutes), though I haven't tried the side of the tunnel. Thanks for another idea to try.

Yeah that's the sticky pad. The whole thing is at the limit of its adjustment range to get it positioned properly but it works. Hasn't fallen off yet, and just last week I did a ~120 mile round trip drive with my phone (iPhone 6s in an otterbox defender case) in it for the whole trip, parts of the drive on rough highway.

[neilr]

I installed the iOttie earlier today. Seems to hold on much better than similar sticky mounts that I have around. Here's hoping it lasts. :-)

[BirdTRD]

Originally Posted by neilr

Got it. Your zip tie solution looks pretty unobtrusive - I like it. Would you mind posting a closer photo of where the mount's end goes through the plastic trim? Seems like a Dremel task - guess it's time for me to get one. :-)

Here you go.

[seekerof86]

Here is what happened to my Scosche Magic Mount after a week. Doesn't seem to like the 90 + degree weather on the east coast... looking to make a mount similar to Beat sonic qbf13 or one similar to what extrashaky made, thanks for the idea

[Lim]

This is my solution for older FRS/BRZ with split front pannel.
I wanted to use magnet mount but without any glue.
I used Beat-Sonic QBF13 idea. It was simple to make.
I bought magnet mount $21 CAN: https://www.amazon.ca/Magnetic-Phone...017KXRLSS?th=1
I have removed 3M sticking pad from it and it exposed screw so you can disconnect metal ball and plastic base.
I also bough Staples® Stainless Steel/Cork Base Rulers 15 cm for $1.35CAN

https://www.staples.ca/en/Staples-St...6_1-CA_1_20001


I also got 2 metal bars (8mm) from homedepot to do my bent which I have returned after.
Steps to do:
1) bent around 8mm steel bar to create proper shape.
2) Use dremel to round short side to much magnet base
3) Drill hole for to screw in magnet. Carefull make sure that mounting hole small enough for screw to hold. Second hole I made bigger to pass screwdriver trough.
4) First I spray painted it, but it did not look good. (have not waited enough). So I used blackout tape. looked much better.
5) Screw base with ball to bent ruler.

Ruller has cork inside, so it protects panel finish.
Attach as Beat-Sonic QBF13https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TDiRa--o_5o

This is final result and few steps in between. Took about 45 minutes if you remove failed painting steps and time to plan it.



Works very well, holds my Note 4. Phone rotates a bit, so bottom of the phone touching panel, but it is in perfect position.

[ozafar]

Originally Posted by extrashaky

No, but that's why there's a tiny turn in it to get around the edge of the head unit. You have to make absolutely sure that the metal sits flush against the side of the head unit before the bezel goes back on, or it won't fit. It's tight.

If you're planning to try this yourself, here are a few more notes:

As long as you're at Harbor Freight, pick up a set of plastic trim tools. They will keep you from marring your dash, and you can slip the corner of one of them under the bezel on the driver's side to get the trim to come up.

The aluminum sheet came from Home Depot. I think it was 18 ga, but it may have been 22 ga. To be honest I can't remember and don't know the gauges by sight. HD also had a three-pack of right, left and center tin snips for $11 that worked fine to cut it.

I cut a long strip first in the width (height) I wanted, bent the end 90 degrees and drilled a hole so that I could mount it in place to mark the tiny bend with a Sharpie. Getting that tiny bend right was the most critical and most difficult part of the project.

Once I had the bend, I test fit it again and used a level to mark a vertical line on the metal as a reference point for the front bend (because the slope of the dash makes it difficult to estimate). Once I had the vertical line for reference, I made another line at a backward angle, because you want your last bend to make the mount tilt back a little bit so that the phone is facing your head and not your chest. Once I had that last bend, I cut it to the right size for the cradle and dressed the edges with a grinding stone on a Dremel.

You will notice that the bracket has a big hole in it. That's because, once it's bent in the way, you can't reach the bolt! Imagine my irritation when I realized I couldn't actually mount it. I cut that hole so I could fit a socket on an extension through there.

As you can see from the pic of the bracket, paint does not want to stick to aluminum. I used self-etching primer and flat black Rustoleum. At some point I might pull it off there and try again.

I used "industrial-strength" velcro to attach the iOttie cradle. I would prefer to mount it a little more securely, but I had to be able to remove the cradle to get to my socket hole if I ever want to remove it. If you come up with a good alternative, please post!

Here are links to the less-common tools I used:

Harbor Freight seamer

HF trim tools

Tin snips (were $11 when I bought them)

[ame="http://www.amazon.com/iOttie-Windshield-Dashboard-One-Retail-Packaging-Black/dp/B007FHX9OK/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1426687749&sr=8-2"]iOttie One Touch[/ame] - the cradle I used. The unused suction mount is sitting on my desk, waiting for me to repurpose it for something else.

By the time it was all over, I had more money in the project than I would have spent on a commercial mount. But no commercial mounts put the phone where I wanted it, so it was 100% worth it. Plus I now have a few more tools in my tool box that I needed anyway.

I also wanted to share that is doable and worth it. You get to add some new tools to your collection while making a nice mount. Some notes from my experience:

1. My primary goal was to make something that can hold the phone during any track day, when oil temps and coolant temps are most necessary to view. Any suction or vent clip holder will not work, the iPhone XR + case is too heavy.

2. I also used the seamer from HF (Thank you!!) but a found a vice grip and a hammer helped too. If you have a drill attachment that lets you tighten the bolt from an angle (i forgot the name of it) then you don't need to drill an extra hole on the phone holder surface.

3. For this to work, the phone holder has to have a flat back. I found the MPow brand makes a perfectly flat back, minus the middle piece. i used a dremel and file to sand that flat. then i used 3M double sided tape.

4. The store I went to only has 22 gauge metal. After completing it, I would've liked to use 18 gauge. It's slightly bendy n hard bumps, but not a problem.

5. I used a truck bed paint to give it one coat for a texted finish. I found flat black showed too much of my sanding and dremel work.

6. I would recommend using the edge of a hard surface, and a hammer to enunciate any metal bends you make.

[extrashaky]

Originally Posted by ozafar

I also wanted to share that is doable and worth it.

Looks good. Nice job!

[N_Raged]

Scosche adhesive mount with the flexible foot. It doesn't make perfect contact here as you can see the back lifting up. But it's been holding for almost a year.

[NeverTrustAMonkey]

Berrolia Vent Dock with a 3D printed clip mount

[N_Raged]

Originally Posted by N_Raged

Scosche adhesive mount with the flexible foot. It doesn't make perfect contact here as you can see the back lifting up. But it's been holding for almost a year.

Sooo... magnetic mounts suck lol. Any bit of spirited driving and my phone flies off its mount.
I've resorted to a vent mount off amazon until I can DIY something like ozafar did.