Sugru Dash Mount for Electronics

Intro: Sugru Dash Mount for Electronics

On long trips, and even just driving around town, I like to have my mp3 player on hand.  I can't go far without my favorite podcasts like the Skeptic's Guide, StarShipSofa, and the Drabblecast to keep me busy!

In the past, the player has ended up dropped in the passenger seat, shoved in the glove box, or even on a lanyard around my neck, all to make sure it's nearby if I need to skip a track or pause it or something.  But no more!  With just a few minutes work with some sugru, I've got a mount on my dash that exactly conforms to the shape of my mp3 player. 

This project should work just as well for a phone, iPod, media player, or whatever electronics you'd like to have within easy reach while driving! 

Here's a little demonstration video with making instructions:

STEP 1: Testing the Area

This should be done a day or two before starting this project. 

It's a good idea to test if the sugru will bond to your dash, as it doesn't form a permanent bond with all materials.  I had plenty of othersugrurelatedprojects going on, so during one of them I pinched off a piece and stuck it to an inconspicuous part of my car's dashboard. I checked it in a couple of days, and it was pretty hard to remove!  I'm glad I did it in an out of sight area, as it left a minor scar in the vinyl after being removed.

You may want to consider that, as if you ever remove this mount it may leave some minor scuff marks on your dashboard!  I'm not overly concerned, as my car's 13 years old and not worth that much anyway, but for those of you highfalutin folks with yer fancy new horseless carriages, this may be an issue.

STEP 2: Materials and Tools

Materials:

• 1 packet of sugru
• Your mp3 player (or other electronic device)

Tools:

• Hot glue gun
• Knife or sharp awl
• Scissors

Make sure when you get started that you've got the hot glue gun plugged in and within easy reach, as you'll need it right away!  Also, clean and dry the area before sticking any sugru to it.

STEP 3: Building the Mount

***UPDATE 10/15:  User projectsugru points out that if you wrap the player in plastic wrap first, removing the sugru later is much easier.***

Find a position on the dash you like and open your sugru packet.  Split it in half, set one half aside and then split the other into four roughly equal balls.  Each ball should go on one corner of the mp3 player, avoiding any ports, buttons, lanyards, etc.  Wrap the sugru just over the edge of the player.

Place the mp3 player into position.  Taking the rest of the sugru, build up each corner until it rests firmly on the dash.  Smooth the edges and press them against the dashboard (see the pictures below).

At this point, once you've smoothed the sugru into a shape you like, you're pretty much done, but there's a problem.  The sugru is soft and won't hold in this position with the weight of your mp3 player on it.  Remember that hot glue gun?  Place a dab of hot glue on each side of the player.  Hot glue is usually pretty nice for this sort of thing, it won't adhere too strongly to the dash, but it will last long enough to let the sugru cure.  I forgot about this part, but luckily a friend showed up just as I was trying to figure a way to balance a cardboard box under the player long enough to get my glue gun.

STEP 4: Remove the Mp3 Player

Let the sugru cure over a few hours or overnight.  Using your thumbnail, a small flathead screwdriver, and/or a sharp awl, carefully peel the sugru off the mp3 player.  The goal is to get it off the mp3 player without accidentally peeling it off the dashboard.

Once I was done, I had to clean up the player a bit where the sugru had stuck to it, but it wasn't so bad.  The final result looks a little weird when you don't have the device in place, but it looks fine otherwise!

STEP 5: Final Thoughts

Alright, all done!  This is another great little hack that shows the versatility of sugru as a product.  I've used it in several of my recent projects, as well as for a number of small repairs around the house that didn't deserve their own instructables.  The only time I was disappointed was when I found that it doesn't bond well to fimo.

Thank you as always for stopping by to check out my instructable.  Please take a moment to leave me a comment and/or a rating, and of course subscribe as I have plenty more in the works!  As with all of my instructables, if you make your own version of this, please post some pictures in the comments and I'll send you a digital patch!

Comments

[mrsgrunst]

Love it! Now it's available at Target too

https://sugru.com/blog/sugru-is-now-available-at-target-across-usa

[Adapaty]

Hi i like it, i just bougth my first pack of sugru, im still deciding what to do with it, its a good idea for my GPS, thnks

[depotdevoid]

Cool, post some pictures if you do!

[nobs81]

velcro is not a good thing to use when trying to do this in an area where it is constantly hot. I've been an audio installer for over ten years and everytime i used velcro it would almost always come off. There was one brand of double sided sticky tape i used to use with applying alcohol first that always did the trick.

this stuff sugru i have never used. I would be concerned if it gets hard, after a couple years of being on the dash it will really ruin it. the pic where u tested it on the underside dash makes me think this stuff wouldn't be my first choice, especially if i had a lexus or similar expensive car. to replace a piece of dash in one of these vehicles can run u hundreds of dollars. I once broke a shift knob in a merc s55 amg which set me back $900 bucks.

the best way is to fabricate a piece of small gauge metal and mount it behind a panel on the dash where u can hold it in with a screw. then use some sort of adhesive to hold it on to the bracket. I used this method hundreds of times and worked everytime.

[depotdevoid]

Good to know--fortunately for me I don't exactly drive luxury or even vaguely new automobiles!

[nobs81]

same here.
was just throwing it out there before someone goes and and tries it.

[eydryan]

why not just use velcro? the mp3 player is light enough and it makes for easier mounting as well as usage.

[depotdevoid]

Well, I disagree that velcro would be easier for usage, but more importantly, sugru is at least 90% more awesome than velcro.

[zieak]

Velcro is to 1980 what Sugru is to 2010?

[eydryan]

useless and overpriced?

[eydryan]

it would be easier because you wouldn't have to hunt for the center point each time you clip it on. plus, I'm pretty sure this kind of usage makes sugru loose in time. also velcro would look a bit nicer when there would be nothing clipped to it, this way you get four thingies sticking out, not so nice.

not sure why sugru is so popular, it's nothing more than the silicone we've had for years. plus there are some adhesives out there that leave a much smoother finish.

but hey, to each his own, right?

PS: why didn't you make any cable clips like this http://sugru.com/blog/phone_charger_cable_tidy/ for those two cables, so you just plug them in easier

[depotdevoid]

Yeah it does look kinda cheesy without the player in place. It's actually really easy to pop it in place though, I've had no problems with that.

Sugru's big right now because it's a new form of silicone and the marketing ploy is to target folks like us. The makers of sugru teamed up with instructables.com, hence the sugru contest.

Re: cable tidy: I may do that, if I win in the sugru contest!

[Creamaster]

FYI:
https://www.instructables.com/id/How-To-Make-Your-Own-Sugru-Substitute/

[depotdevoid]

Yeah, I saw that! I'm thinking I may have to make some.

[jamwaffles]

My old MP3 player :D RockBox :'D nice instructable! Sansas really do rock - I've just bought a Fuze off eBay for another stint of RockBox.

[jamwaffles]

Another note I'd like to add is this: Thank god you aren't using an iPod :) for that alone you deserve an Instructables medal or something :P

[depotdevoid]

Thanks again, I'm all about stickin' it to the iPod man. Still, I've stopped recommending non-iPod mp3 players to the computer illiterate, as it always ends up with them coming back and grumping to me about how they don't understand it!

[jamwaffles]

Shame about that :( And as for RockBox... they've ported it, but on the Fuze V2 hardware (no outward appearance change) it's still a bit buggy, although progress is being made quite quickly. Take a look here: http://www.rockbox.org/wiki/SansaAMS for more info. The main page at RockBox shows that the version 1 Fuze is supported nicely.

Thanks,

James

P.s. have you heard of anythingbutipod.com? You might like it ;P

[depotdevoid]

Nice, thanks! I can't spend too much time on that anythingbutipod, it'll make me WANT NEW STUFF that I can't afford!

[jamwaffles]

Ha ha lol true yes :P still, it's an excellent site eh? :)