Introduction: Cell Phone Tripod Mount for Less Than $10

By Thomas Neubauer
About: I have always been tech support for just about everyone. I am an Autodidact. There is nothing I can't teach myself. I was a Auto Tech for more than 20 years. I was ASE Master certified. I was in the top 10 div…

I came up with this because I wanted to be able to do time lapse video with my Samsung Galaxy Mega 6.3. I needed a solid mount that I could adjust and it would stay stable even in a brisk wind. Here it is. I hope you like it. It is very simple and easy to make. Took me about 15 minutes to make.

Step 1: Parts You Need

The cell phone holder itself started its humble life as a windshield cell phone holder. I ditched the arm and all the twist hardware, things like the mounting plate and the springs and ball bearing.

The 90 degree part was a piece of flat fab metal I had around. After drilling I stuck it in the vice and whacked it over to 90 degrees.

My tripod shoe, well we all know where that came from

and lastly misc hardware

Step 2: Time to Assemble

The bolt on the tripod is a 1/4" 20 so I got the right nut the bolt is just a bit short but it will still work for this application. I fastened the 90 degree adapter to the shoe with no other hardware than the nut.

I ground part of the backing on the cell holder so the mount would have a flat surface to mount to the would not interfere with the 90 degree part. I could have ground off the entire detent circle so that I could do portrait mode but I really had no use for that so I skipped it.

Then I found what I call a washer screw for the other end of the mount. There had to be a washer installed between the cell holder and the 90 degree mount to get it tight enough that it would not just spin over. I used a washer that was 1.87mm thick. This was just a generic washer.

Once I got it tightened down it was rock solid and a perfect fit for just about any cell. It can accommodate my Galaxy Mega 6.3 (biggest phone on the market) so it will have no problem mounting your phone.

If you already have a tripod then this project will cost you about $5-10 to make. I say $5-10 because if you don't have some aluminum for the 90 degree part you will have to buy a full stick = about 24" long. That is ok because you can use the left over for other projects.

At a later date I will show you how to make a perfect mount that will do panoramics with no need to correct the image. Hint - the lens must be center of the tripod mount to avoid errors.

Now you have a mount for your cell to do time lapse or just about anything else that the camera is capable of. The cell holder could also be adapted to a motorized panoramic movie mount. If you use one in a mobile environment make sure you attach a leash just in case.