Securing My 510

[WhereAmI]

Hello group,

I have not posted here before, though I have been lurking a while. I have a 510. I don't like the mount. I live in California, where I am told, the windshield mounting is illegal. I went to some trouble and made a sort of universal clamp mount to which the TomTom suction mount can attach. However, I don't much trust the suction cup or the mechanism by which the TomTom body attaches to the mount either. It seems to me I would be wise to attach a short lanyard to the body of the thing and attach the other end to something solid, so if either of the other weak links lets go, my TomTom doesn't bounce off the floor. Looking at it, I see no easy place or way to attach a lanyard. I am hesitant to open the case so I can drill it since I presume this will void the warranty and I can find no description of opening it on the net. The best idea I have been able to come up with is attaching a cord externally to the rear of the body with a glob of epoxy. Does anybody have any suggestions? I also have been having no luck getting the search tool on this site to work, since I would have searched out "battery replacement" and presumably the issue of opening the thing would have been addressed there.

Vic

 

[lec510]

How about this ?

http://www.tomtom.com/plus/gallery/view.php?ID=3699&CID=2&Language=1

 

[Pedro2NR]

Hello and welcome!!
Im also from California and Im trying to come up with a better solution to mount my 910.
I have a dashboard disk mount on my older car (Nissan Sentra)
I have a new car and Im trying to come up with a setup involving www.procipusa.com and www.ram-mount.com parts.

I would like to see a picture of your clamp mount you made.

 

[WhereAmI]

Ok, Pedro, I will take a picture of it when I can. It is basically a spring clamp about 6 inches on a side, and steel which I found at the hardware store for $5. It is sort of like a huge clothes pin like your mother may have used on the laundry. I then cut a rectangular plate out of 1/8" steel and welded it on one of the hand grips, offset, so it only hangs over on one side. The plate is a rectangle about 2 3/4" X 3 3/4" and the clamp handle is about one inch wide. I also went ahead and cut two squares of plexiglass and bonded them to each side of the plate to give it real nice smooth surfaces for the suction cup. I can mount it either so the plate is on the upper or lower handle of the clamp so I can attach it in different places in multiple vehicles and have the TomTom sit at different heights. Well, this may sound like jubberish without a photo, so I will try and get to that soon. I also went ahead and bonded a piece of leather to the body of the TomTom with contact cement so I have a piece to attach a lanyard to. I plan on putting a clip, like on a dog leash on the other end of the short lanyard and clipping it onto the clamp body. Then if either joint lets go, I have this last line to cath the falling GPS. I have four different vehicles I need to adapt to.

Vic

 

[ghoticov]

Ok, Pedro, I will take a picture of it when I can. It is basically a spring clamp about 6 inches on a side, and steel which I found at the hardware store for $5. It is sort of like a huge clothes pin like your mother may have used on the laundry. I then cut a rectangular plate out of 1/8" steel and welded it on one of the hand grips, offset, so it only hangs over on one side. The plate is a rectangle about 2 3/4" X 3 3/4" and the clamp handle is about one inch wide. I also went ahead and cut two squares of plexiglass and bonded them to each side of the plate to give it real nice smooth surfaces for the suction cup. I can mount it either so the plate is on the upper or lower handle of the clamp so I can attach it in different places in multiple vehicles and have the TomTom sit at different heights. Well, this may sound like jubberish without a photo, so I will try and get to that soon. I also went ahead and bonded a piece of leather to the body of the TomTom with contact cement so I have a piece to attach a lanyard to. I plan on putting a clip, like on a dog leash on the other end of the short lanyard and clipping it onto the clamp body. Then if either joint lets go, I have this last line to cath the falling GPS. I have four different vehicles I need to adapt to.

Vic

I am very interested in seeing pics of this, please post when you can!

 

[WhereAmI]

Pedro,

This board will not permit me to post a URL or an e-mail address unless I have posted 5 times, which I have not, so I am at a loss to know how to convey photos currently.

Vic

 

[digital-flex]

Pedro,

This board will not permit me to post a URL or an e-mail address unless I have posted 5 times, which I have not, so I am at a loss to know how to convey photos currently.

Vic

Don't worry, it's only two more posts

How about offically introducing yourself in the Introduction forum

 

[Pedro2NR]

This is a protection from spammers.
I can PM you my email.