Building Removable Epoxy Mounting Brackets

[Jykazu] wanted to use an external lens with his Kodak Zi8 but he didn’t want to alter the camera or glue something onto it. His solution was to build a bracket out of epoxy dough. He first covers the camera in scotch tape to protect the finish, then he kneads the dough to mix the two parts together, using it to form the bracket that you can see above. After curing, the bracket barely sticks to the smooth tape and can be gently removed. A lens cap with a hole drilled in it is glued to this bracket and works like a charm for connecting the lens. Check out his manufacturing method in the videos after the break.

This is a great method for many applications. Last year we saw a product called Sugru which seems to be made for this type of thing but [Jykazu’s] epoxy method is just as impressive.

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mx1F8X_z4l0]

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vXzbHgLLyTw]

[Thanks Chee]

16 thoughts on “Building Removable Epoxy Mounting Brackets

  1. another person doing something stupidly simple that anyone could have thought of yet no one did(or atleast posted, im sure many of us have used putty epoxy in construction of things before)
    plumbing epoxy is generally the best value for the money as the tube is twice as big for the same $4-5
    hm…
    think gluing a old tv camera lens to my broken nikon camera would do anything? it lost the ability to prefocus after a fall(ironically, the lens is fine, its the damN button)

    btw, i woulda made the epoxy bracket a little thicker, probably so it’d slip over and around the top of the camera, its fairly strong stuff but thin pieces will snap like a twig(of comparable thickness)

  2. Polymorph AKA Shapelock AKA Polycaprolactone would probably work as well. I like working with it because heating it above 60 degrees C makes it malleable again. However, it’s difficult to get anything to stick to it, which could either be good or bad depending on what you’re doing with it.

  3. OMG Sugru is awsome stuff!
    I bought a pack from the second lot that went on sale and then got aother pack sent to me a few weeks ago as a replacement cos there were a few problems with it but I use it for all sorts of stuff!

  4. I vote shapelock all the way! I got the free sample and used it so much that I bought two big bags of it. From motor mounts, to toggle holders, to fan brackets. I actually have made lavalier mic headsets for the cast of a show I’m working on. The stuff is incredible.

  5. I vote for shapelock/polymorph too. The best thing is that it’s reusable, so a decent sized bag of the stuff will last you a long time. I get mine from a UK based ebay seller (search for ‘polymorph’, as ‘shapelock’ is mostly used in the states). Just yesterday I needed a couple of flexible hinges for a foam RC plane, and the first thing I reached for was polymorph.

    Seriously guys, just go get a small bag of the stuff right now, it’s like discovering ducktape for the first time. Do eeeeeet!

  6. Note: Wax works better. Plus you get a cleaner “mould” that would create tiny clips to clip into the little recesses on the item.

    Dont use tape, use wax a good carnauba wax. Do what the guys that have been doing fiberglass for centuries have been doing.

    Again, someone discovers something that has been used forever. if only a internet search engine existed that would catalogue all information out there in a easy to search place.

  7. I’ve molded epoxy to things just like that, however I used plumbing teflon tape wrapped around the unit to keep the epoxy from sticking. Works really nicely, especially when you’re casting a threaded item (in my case, a pipe) into the mold.

  8. “It’s silicone! not epoxy! jesus christopher!
    Posted at 7:02 pm on May 6th, 2010 by Asuraku”

    …you didnt watch the video did you, some guy on youtube used epoxy and thats the whole point of the hack, NOT to advertise (x) product, now i want some polylock or shapemorph or whatever it is

  9. Go get yourself some Shapelock! It’s incredibly handy and it’s decently opaque. For instance, an RGB LED looks very sweet though it. I even tried to attempt a glassblowing type thing with it. Couldn’t cool it rapidly enough, my circular breathing isn’t as good as it should be.

    Seriously folks, all you need to pay is shipping, they (like dealers) give you the sample for free. Checks its outs…

    http://shapelock.com/page3.html

    Sorry to be such a product whore, but I’ll be damned if I didn’t find a different use for it everyday. It takes rubber coating very well too!

  10. Anyone think it’s possible to turn a Kodak Zi8 into a Pocket DVR with video input? Essentially, remove the camera and have a video input jack?

    I have a little ultra low lux b/w board camera (as seen on Kipkay), for the purpose of picking up the light from infrared LEDs. This is a covert type project, where the camera is hidden and so is the light that helps it see, and it needs to be portable. I would like to use this camera as the input to my Kodak Zi8 instead of the default one. The Kodak already has an audio input jack. Would it be possible to remove the built in camera/sensor, and wire in an input jack for video? Then, I could connect my external camera, via a nice long cord, or anything really with a video feed.

    Pocket DVRs are crazy expensive. I can’t find anything below $300 usd.

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