Introduction: GoPro Gravity Slider

By supamoto
About: I like to make things for the internets. I also sell a pretty cool calendar at supamoto.co. You'll like it.


The GoPro Gravity Slider is a custom mount for a GoPro that allows it to shoot footage of an object as it is falling. If you drop the object and the GoPro at the same time, you'll see the whole fall down to the bottom. Then the object will splash or splat or break in some other way.

Or just watch the video below and you'll see what I mean.

Step 1: Stuff!

Parts!
  1. plank of wood. This one is 6'
  2. 2 metal rods
  3. Afinia H-Series 3D Printer
  4. GoPro HERO3 camera
  5. wood screws
  6. rubber spacers

Step 2: Printed Parts

There are three pieces for the slider. The two blue pieces were printed on an Afinia 3D Printer and hold the rods in place. The middle piece was printed on an Objet printer, but could've been printed on an Afinia as well.

If you don't have a 3D printer, you can easily make these pieces with some scrap wood and a drill press. Instead of the custom GoPro mount that's automatically included, you can attach a regular GoPro mount onto the wood with the included adhesive.

STL files are included below.

Step 3: Attach First End Cap

The caps are easily attached. Here's the process:
  1. drill pilot holes
  2. place rubber spacers over holes
  3. attach cap with wood screws

Step 4: Attach Second End Cap

Attaching the second end cap is just as easy. For alignment, insert the rods before you attach them.

Step 5: Attach Slider

Now that the rods and caps are in place, put the slider mount on the rods. Once it's on you can insert the rods into the bottom mount.

Step 6: Attach the GoPro

Now it's time to put the GoPro on. Just slide the case with the GoPro in it onto the printed mount and insert the screw for it.

Once that's on, put some padding behind the case and secure the GoPro to the slider with some tape. Here I'm using two small strips of Gorilla tape. This last step helps to keep the camera from rotating on the mount on impact.

Step 7: Pad the Bottom

To soften the landing, I wrapped some tissues around the bottom of the rods. This helps to reduce the camera bouncing back up after it lands. It's an OK solution, but there's still a little bit of a wiggle when the camera hits the bottom. This is where I'm going to keep working on it for future versions, but for now the footage is coming out well enough for most shots. The slight wiggle at landing helps to accentuate the impact, but it's not the best.