Introduction: A Replacement Mini-tripod for the DSC 7 Sony Camera

By plus.google.com/1168938608083982

My Sony DSC 7 camera is really thin. The point is that it is so thin you cannot screw a regular tripod in it. You have to use an adapter that looks like a big socket for the camera, and accepts a regular tripod screw.
So I decided to build my own accessory. I call it the "L"-pod, because this is its shape when in use, as you can see in the last pictures.

Step 1: The Parts

I used whatever I could find in my drawers. The base of the L-pod is an aluminium tube (1cm inner diameter). The very difficult phase was finding part A (see picture), because camera screw threads are quite different from regular threads (at least in France). Luckily, my father-in-law used to keep every single screw or bolt whenever he dismounted a home equipment. I checked in his miracle tin box and found THE small bolt that fit in my camera! Part B is a support for plastic bands, used in electricity works.

Step 2: Let's Start...

I had the tube sawed in a bevel shape on one end. This is were I drilled the hole for the camera bolt.

Step 3: -

The bolt was too long. Instead of sawing it, I chose to put a plastic ring on it inside the tube, in order to add some flexibility. So I took a wall plug...

Step 4: -

...and cut a small part out of it.

Step 5: -

I mounted the camera bolt.

Step 6: Half-way...

Then I sawed the tube in 2, about 4cm from the other end.

Step 7: -

About 2cm from the new end, I drilled a second hole...

Step 8: -

...and put the plastic support. Before doing this you have to be sure its inner dimension fits the camera itself. If not, use your knife and adjust.

Step 9: Cut Again...

Then I cut my other wall plugs. The grey one is 1cm in outer diameter. When screwing the bolt (in the "wrong" extremity!) in it, the plug enlarges so that it will be solidly stuck in the tube.

Step 10: -

I put a slice of the green plug in the grey one because I wanted the bolt to stay aligned.

Step 11: -

Then I pushed the whole thing in the tube up to the bolt of the plastic support. Notice a part of the grey plug stays out of the tube.

Step 12: -

Last work: drill a hole through the small tube.

Step 13: There It Is!

And voila... the elements of the L-pod!

Step 14: -

Put the small tube on the grey plug when you want to put the L-pod in your pocket.

Step 15: -

Or screw the small tube perpendicularly when you want to have a steady support for the camera.

Step 16: James Bond -like

The DSC 7 and its L-pod. Same surface aspect: pretty classy, no?

Step 17: It Works

How to use the L-pod. Notice that you can set the angle of the camera, and that you can screw the small tube to the front or to the rear, depending on that angle.