I'm starting to come up with some mirror mount designs / ideas but before I go ahead and start down this road, I wanted to check if anyone has put together any designs that work well?

 

Blendmount makes a nice mirror mount, I've been really happy with mine.

 

If this were China, I'd say copy the Blendmount.

 

^^^Seems like it might be cheaper to buy a Blendmount...

 

Last I checked, the blendmount was going for 130$. I can print a similar piece for 5 cents.

Good for blendmount that they can charge that kind of money for a small piece of aluminum. Yes, I know... The engineering, tooling etc.... I'll 3D print mine.

 

^^^I applaud your engineering/design effort and would likely do the same thing (if I had a 3D printer and the time).

 

I simply meant with my reply, that if you're going to copy one, or get ideas from a mount, the blendmount works well.

 

Understood....

 

I did not make a radar mirror mount but I did make a mirror iPhone mount for my daughter's 2017 Subaru. I made it out of PLA and we mounted it in the car, fit perfect and very tight. It was very hot the next day (NC) and the PLA expanded and became loose on the mirror shaft.

I ordered some carbon/nylon filament and made another one that has worked very well, even the very high temperatures we have had this past week (high 90's F).

Select a good high temperature filament.

John

 

Thanks!

 

I have considered this as well, but not for the reason that most folks would. I use my R7 in the Corvette, but also in my truck. Mainly because the GPS + memory-based features native to the R7. Yes, I could just purchase another R7 specifically for the truck, but I am evidently much too hard-headed for that.

My experience with the BlendMount is that repeated removal and reinstallation of the detector, causes the clamping screws to loosen. Additionally, my experience is that adding a foam block between the extended part of the mount and the inside of the windscreen, significantly reduces the amount of resonance / vibration along the center of mass of the detector + mount assembly. Yes, tightening the clamp screws, adding thread-locking compound, or simply not transferring the detector between vehicles would also overcome this, but again, I'm stubborn.

If I were doing this, based on my experience with the Blendmount and 3D printing, I would do the following- (Substitute your radar detector for R7 as applicable)

1. Maximize the width / grip range of the features which clamp onto the mirror mounting arm.
2. Feature the clamp area such that it accepts M4 nuts into the hidden side of the clamp
3. Feature the articulated side of the clamp such that a narrow strip of metal with 4.5mm diameter holes in it could be applied
4. Develop the features which extend downward, enabling detector mounting, such that they accept the part in the original OEM R7 mount that directly interfaces with the R7
5. Include feature that enables disengagement of the clip holding the detector onto the mounting system from the side, rather than the top of the detector + mount assembly. This will require some simple articulation, however, the kinematics of this are very straightforward; a simple rocker mechanism will likely suffice.
6. Include some cable management features. Specifically, a feature that provides some sort of strain relief to the cable, minimizing the likelihood of the cable being subjected to forces that would dislodge the pins from the OEM mirror power socket (using the Mirror Tap kit for powering the detector)
7. Include features enabling the addition of a dashcam type device if I were so inclined. This is likely simpler than it sounds as that could be something as simple as a pair of thru-holes for screws with counterbores on both sides. Any add-on device would have a mount specifically designed for it, thereby further increasing the cost, complexity, and ridiculous but cool nature of this concept.

Given the location of the detector mount, I would print this from PEEK / Ultem or other high temp materials unless you are willing to live with the risk of the plastic deforming due to cabin temp on warm days. Printing in ABS may work for a time in applications where the cabin temp does not get above 70C (158F). In a perfect world, ideal conditions, ABS should be good to around 80C, but from somewhat significant experience with ABS printed parts which we sometimes have to use in a pinch for accelerated life testing of prototype parts, the results are often disappointing. Print with a little more expensive material and enjoy the benefit of printing it once, rather than a couple (or more) times.

When it is all said and done, considering the cost of the materials + ancillary costs, it may be better to find someone to CNC the parts out of cheap aluminum or (this will be blaspheme in terms of weight for those who are gram-conscious) 70-30 brass. I am hopeful that typing this out has convinced me not to proceed as I feel that I will end up spending hundreds of bucks in materials to solve a problem that exists only due to my delicate sensibilities related to moving a radar detector between two vehicles. Talk about a first-world problem.

 

Has the location of the radar detector with the mount under the rear view mirror affected the view on the PDR?
Thanks

 

Not in my case and there is enough clearance between the top of the detector and the bottom of the field of view of the PDR that I tend to believe the chances of this being a serious problem are somewhat limited. If there were clearance / field of view issues, I believe they could be largely corrected by adjusting the mirror assembly. The caveat here is that my experience is limited to a Uniden R7 - other detectors may include design features that encroach on the PDR field of view.

 

I wish the Communistwealth state of VA would allow detectors lol.

 

Blendmount makes an extended mount for C7 I have one and works perfectly with my 360c and no interference with PDR whatsoever

 

Try $239 as of today Dec 28. Just got of the phone with them