Hi everyone!

In this Instructable I'm gonna show you how to make a cheap, easy and innovative mount for your smartphone using just a wooden strawberry box, 12cm of wooden rod, 6m of fishing wire and a bolt.

A couple of months ago Nicolas Vuignier, a swiss guy, released a video on YouTube showing the "centriphone". A cool contraption on which you can mount your smartphone to make cool shots, specially with the slo-mo effect. (Also check out this other video if you want to see the process that brought him to the final product)

Follow this instructable to learn how to make it almost for free in less than 3 hours (including the boring time needed to let the glue to dry).

Step 1: Materials & Tools

MATERIALS:

- iPhone 6 case

- 1x wooden strawberry box

- 6m of fishing wire

- 12cm of wooden rod (2cm diameter)

- 1x bolt (with a smooth shank)

TOOLS:

- x-acto knife

- metal ruler

- drill

- sanding paper

- spray paint (optional)

Step 2: The Template and the Test

As soon as I saw the video I wanted to try it. So I grabbed a piece of cardboard, an old iPhone 6 case, the fishing wire, and I made a test version (photo#3).

It worked very well and the resulting video was awesome but it had 2 problems: the material of the contraption (the cardboard is not a strong material so it had to be replaced with something stronger yet light like the base of a wooden strawberry box) and the iPhone case (I used a plastic one which made almost impossible to remove the iPhone from the contraption without breaking it).

Nicolas, in the description of his video also added a link to a 3D printable file and to a simple template, but since I wanted to have 3 detachable pieces, I created my own version (photo#1).

Step 3: The Pieces

Print the template (or draw it), cut the 2 pieces, and mark a line all around the edges (one time for the bigger one, and two times for the triangle piece).

In order to cut the 3 pieces as neat as you can, I suggest you to use a x-acto knife and a metal ruler to score the material following all the lines.

Once you get the 3 pieces, use the sanding paper to smooth all the edges.

The material that I used is 3mm thick, but in order to make the pieces to fit together without glue, I cut the "dados" a little smaller (about 2.9mm).

Step 4: The Fishing Wire

Cut 3 pieces of fishing wire long 2m each.

NOTE: Be sure to use a strong fishing wire, or your iPhone will fly for real!!

Then drill 2 holes per anchor point (2nd picture), insert the wire through them, and tie a couple of knots on each wire to secure it well to the bigger piece of the centriphone.

Optional: As you can see I painted all the pieces with a black matte spray paint to make it look more professional.

Step 5: The Silicone IPhone Case

Now it's the time to attach the iPhone case.

Be sure to use a silicone case since it's flexible (not like the the plastic ones).

In order to make the joint as strong as I could, I used the x-acto knife to make little scores both on the back of the case and on the bigger piece of the centriphone (2nd & 3rd picture) before glueing the pieces with bicomponent epoxy.

NOTE: Check that the glue that you want to use is compatible with the materials that you are working with!

Step 6: The Handle

The handle is simply a wooden rod of 12 cm with a bolt screwed on it.

As you can see from the 2nd picture I drilled a hole on one side a little smaller than the bolt that I wanted to use.

To set the correct length of the fishing wires you have to keep all of them with a hand while with the other you have to adjust their lengths being sure that the camera hole of the iPhone case is pointing a little lower than your hand (photo#3).

Once you made a couple of knots at the right length, you can tie another knot creating a loop a little bigger than the diameter of the smooth shank of your bolt (photo#4). That loop will act as a bearing, letting the wire to spin freely around the smooth shank of the bolt.

Step 7: Store It Compactly

The coolest thing about my version is that it can be easily dismounted to be compactly stored in a small bag of 14x14x2cm when not in use.

This is a very important thing for me! Indeed I have lots of DIY mounts and accessories for my iPhone or my action camera, and since when I travel I bring all of them with me, I really need to occupy less space possible.

If you don't care about the space that this contraption "wastes", you can use the hot glue to attach permanently together the 3 pieces of the centriphone.

Step 8: Finish! Enjoy It and Have Fun

Finished! As I told you in the intro, this is a very easy project.

All you have to do now is to go outside to shoot awesome slo-mo videos while you are riding your bicycle, while you are running, skiing, snowboarding or while you are cruising on your longboard.

OH! AND DON'T FORGET TO TURN ON THE AIRPLANE MODE!! :P Ahaha

If you liked this project you should check my other Instructables.

Thank you for reading. ;)
Feel free to comment and ask if you need to know something!

manuelmasc