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Para-cutie

Go Pro

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I reciently purchased a used go pro (non HD). I've got just shy of 300 jumps and am just looking to use it for the occasion fun jump, but mostly to debrief students after I take the coaches coarse this summer. Anyone have some good recommendation on attaching it as safely as possible to my Z1?
It didn't come with much for mounts so I will be purchasing what seems safest. No one at my DZ has one, currently.

I plan to start it and forget it (if that's truely possible), but am aware that adding any camera can create intanglements, as well as distrations and want to minimize as much as possible.

Thank you!!!
I'm a little teapot short and stout, here is my handle and here's a note from my shrink. He says I'm getting better. Last week I thought I was a toaster oven!
-Dot Warner

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I don't know how happy you'll be with the video from the SD go pro. I've see the photos from the SD gopro and I like them, they are great for what that camera is. But I'm not really impressed with the video I've see out of the SD go-pro camera.

That being said, http://www.chutingstargear.com/index.php?main_page=index&cPath=57_59

has a variety of mounts for the co-pro, be safe and have fun

Chuck Bryan

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There's a bunch of them at SDC. The slightly curved mount works well for the top, just make sure everything is very clean first. Believe it or not, the sticky tape is just as strong as the mount itself.
"If it wasn't easy stupid people couldn't do it", Duane.

My momma said I could be anything I wanted when I grew up, so I became an a$$hole.

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The sticky tape is stronger than the mount.
We used an archery scale to rip one off a helmet.
Nearly 200 lbs force at the snag point of tape/mount.
Less than 60lbs at the bottom of the camera.

As mentioned before...be sure the helmet is clean before sticking it.

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So isn't need that much pressure a "bad" thing. Im not worried about losing my camera, but worried about not losing it if there's a problem... if that makes sense.
I'm a little teapot short and stout, here is my handle and here's a note from my shrink. He says I'm getting better. Last week I thought I was a toaster oven!
-Dot Warner

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I haven't seen it happen yet, but it should as long as you don't add any extra straps to it. I fell on my team last year and broke one of their mounts with my body. They didn't have a camera on at the time, it was just the mount on top of their helmet, and I broke one of the ears off.
"If it wasn't easy stupid people couldn't do it", Duane.

My momma said I could be anything I wanted when I grew up, so I became an a$$hole.

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I have a GoPro HD camera mounted on my chest strap instead of my helmet. It's about as close to a start and forget it setup as you can get. The advantages are that easy to start/stop, better protection for the camera and a very low chance of catching a line during deployment. I have it pointed up at a 45 degree angle and the wide angle fish eye lens works pretty good. The disadvantages are that the wide angle fish eye lens does not catch everything. I have a couple of movies posted on YouTube at: http://www.youtube.com/user/1cyberone

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The Go Pro HD mount I adapted is a rigid mount that was made for an altimeter, such as an Altimaster II. A foam type altimeter mount would most likely flop around too much. I run the chest strap through the rigid mount and tilt the camera up at about a 45 degree angle. Any sturdy altimeter mount for your chest strap should work.

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That is a GREAT idea! I like that so much better than strapping it to my head. If you have a picture of what your's looks like I would love to see it.
I'm a little teapot short and stout, here is my handle and here's a note from my shrink. He says I'm getting better. Last week I thought I was a toaster oven!
-Dot Warner

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Here's http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VA2R8tib-yM my test with mounting the GoPro on the mud flap. I just used the provided bicycle helmet mount.

Two unexpected things happened during that jump.
I hit the camera with the wingsuit arm wing during opening.
I released the toggles and then tried to loosen the chest strap, almost getting the steering line caught in the camera on the mud flap.

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Thinking about purchasing my GoPro HD i have a doubt, what if the new model is just around the corner and i will regret about my purchase right before the new camera will be released. Probably production cicle of the current model is close the end. I'm just guessing.

What do you think?

Thanks!

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As I've said before, learn to get a cutaway helmet..

This is my setup:

http://i857.photobucket.com/albums/ab131/IcarusPilot/Randomshit013.jpg

You get the best of both worlds.. You won't lose your cam so easily and if it snags somewhere you can cutaway your helmet anytime..

Don't be cheap when it comes to your well being and your gear, invest in a decent helm.
"All limits are self imposed." Icarus

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I'd like to mount a go-pro on my chest strap or mud flap for a HALO jump
(not my helmet to mount anything on)
not keen on putting one on my hand.

any commercially avail. products that work w/ skydiving rigs?

COTS would be best so I can get some reg. jumps with this set up before going to 30k.

if there is a better way to do this with a ContourHD, I'd be down for that instead.

I want to capture the exit and freefall, maybe with a slight lookdown while belly.
DS#727, DB Cooper #41, POPS #11065, SCR #13183, FA #2125, SCS #8306, HALO #309 SRA #5930

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>I'd like to mount a go-pro on my chest strap or mud flap for a HALO jump

Chest strap - bad idea. Poor place to try to keep something still.

Mudflap - not great. It's more stable but it will a) be a few inches from your face and it will look bizarre, b) it will cause your harness to shift (which isn't necessarily dangerous but is disconcerting) and c) potentially interfere with handles and/or vision.

If you want to do this I'd recommend a belly mount. Get a square of aluminum, round the corners, put two type-8 straps on with friction adapters, and mount the camera to that with the standard adhesive mount. Square 1 has a mount that reduces snag hazards for the Gopro line.

If you go this route be sure to put several jumps on it BEFORE doing the HALO jump. You'll have enough new stuff to deal with without adding a completely new piece of equipment.

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Mudflap - not great. It's more stable but it will a) be a few inches from your face and it will look bizarre, b) it will cause your harness to shift (which isn't necessarily dangerous but is disconcerting) and c) potentially interfere with handles and/or vision.



Aside from the slightly closer and offset video angle, how so Bill? I would say that the GoPro is not significantly heavier or bigger than altimeters that are mountd similiarly?
Skydiving Fatalities - Cease not to learn 'til thou cease to live

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>Aside from the slightly closer and offset video angle, how so Bill?

Which aspect?

Vision? The Gopro sticks out a lot further than an altimeter. Also most altimeter mounts extend out the bottom of the mudflap to get the altimeter as far away from the jumper's face as possible, since many people's mudflaps end up near their chin after opening (due to rigs that don't fit perfectly, body fat, loose legstraps etc.) You could do something similar with a Gopro but since it's thicker you can't go too far with that, or you start interfering with handle access.

Harness shift? I first noticed this when I was mounting a camera on my chest strap. At first it would just slide to one side or the other, so I anchored it with rubber bands. That worked better, but with a catch. The rig would start out centered and then eventually the camera would shift a little, the wind would catch it and rotate the entire rig a little to one side or the other. It didn't affect the openings but I could definitely feel it, and you could see it in the video (the horizon would tilt.)

This got me curious about the phenomenon, so I took it on a jump where another jumper had a mudflap altimeter on. Sure enough, his harness was shifting too; the rig was rotating so that side of the rig was a little higher.

That problem was solved for me by going to a belly mount.

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A foam type altimeter mount would most likely flop around too much. I run the chest strap through the rigid mount and tilt the camera up at about a 45 degree angle. Any sturdy altimeter mount for your chest strap should work.



Actually one of those big ass long old school pillow (soft foam) chest mounts would probably work really well.

I have used one that was like 7 inches long and they don't move or flop around at all. You could probably get one made or make one fairly cheap.

Rigid hard mount sounds like it would would hurt on a bad landing.

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hmmm, what to do, what to do....


guess I best get a camera first, and go from there.

I'm getting a gopro basically to put on my motorcycle (but lends itself more versatile for the halo jump, I think), my "more serious" skydiving camera will be a contour.
DS#727, DB Cooper #41, POPS #11065, SCR #13183, FA #2125, SCS #8306, HALO #309 SRA #5930

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Mudflap - not great. It's more stable but it will a) be a few inches from your face and it will look bizarre, b) it will cause your harness to shift (which isn't necessarily dangerous but is disconcerting) and c) potentially interfere with handles and/or vision.

If you want to do this I'd recommend a belly mount. Get a square of aluminum, round the corners, put two type-8 straps on with friction adapters, and mount the camera to that with the standard adhesive mount. Square 1 has a mount that reduces snag hazards for the Gopro line.

If you go this route be sure to put several jumps on it BEFORE doing the HALO jump. You'll have enough new stuff to deal with without adding a completely new piece of equipment.



Here are a couple of videos I did with a mud flap altimeter mount.Its an older bonehead mount that is right at 90 degrees. I put hook velcro on the mount and fuzzy velcro on the back of the camera. Run some shock cord through the bottom of the camera case/ mounting holes for insurance. Didn't notice any harness shift.I keep the bizarre out of it by using a full face :)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tDeJ7sj8osw

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vQQsclfyIDI
Replying to: Re: Stall On Jump Run Emergency Procedure? by billvon

If the plane is unrecoverable then exiting is a very very good idea.

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