Which bullet cam/mic to go for?

[tonyhetherington]

Hi all

I'm going to be doing the MegaHoon in my Elise in September, and in preparation for it I am going to buy myself a bullet cam.

I have a new Sony video camera with AV in/out connector, so it will accept a bullet cam no probs.

What cameras have you guys gone for? I remember Nubbin saying he bought a 'pack' with case, mic, camera, mountings etc. etc....?

Speaking of mountings...I'm after something which I can sucker-on to any part of my car and then mount the camera from that - any suggestions?

Adam has kindly suggested to me http://www.rfconcepts.co.uk/sony_colour_ccd.htm there, but before I went ahead I thought I would ask the PH massive their opinions?!

All advice gratefully received!

Thanks
Tony

[nubbin]

Hi Tony - RF concepts is the place, but i haven't had time to surf their new site to find the camera+mounts+mike pack yet. I'll have a look when I get home.

[nubbin]

Tony - go to this page and the PAL package is the same as the one I bought. It has everything you need except a second power lead rather than using the battery pack, so order an extra one, plus a pack of spare lens glasses.

[Jolley]

We use one of these for mountainbiking. Picture quality is fantastic, and it is very robust.

Not sure how it compares to what has been suggested above though.

[GetCarter]

I use the sony (the one you mentioned) and I generally use a bit of foam and some duck tape to attach - this means I can get it anywhere on the car (or indeed helmet).

If you use it on track - I suggest it's a good idea to get a few spare glass fronts (they are dead cheap) these sit in front of the lens to protect it, but tend to get chipped.

Also... if it's a cold day and you put the bullet near the engine, you may find it 'fogs up' if you stop the car - that's a drag.

The most problematic bit is always the mic - the one that RF concepts supply was too sensitive for my loud cars, so I had to wrap it in lots of foam (not an ideal solution). You'll find there is almost certainly a 'soft' button in the sony recorder to knock down the recording volume by 3dB - that helps.

Have fun

Steve

[tonyhetherington]

Thanks very much everyone for the replies. Looks like I'll go for that kit that RFConcepts do.

Is the one for me to get the package 3 option, which has the HD 480line camera?

And, one final question for a complete newbie at this, which is the best lens? I seem to remember Adam telling me the 4.3mm lens is the best approach, is that correct?

If someone says yes, I'll be ordering it today

Re: the mic, I think I'll just have to have a play really - the 'soft' button the the camera sounds like it could be useful! Same with the mountings, some duck tape and some foam sound like they're going to be my friends

Thanks again all
Tony

[nubbin]

Yes - get the 4.3mm lens - it has quite a wide angle.

Steve is quite right - I had problems with the lens fogging up last year on Eurohoon, but only in the damp conditions in Belgium. The rest of the time, flies were the main problem!

[tonyhetherington]

All done

Just bought myself package 3, with the 4.3mm lens, a couple of extra lens glasses (including the additional one that comes with the pack), and the car lead for the bullet cam (rather than use batteries).

All in, inc. vat and delivery, £184.50. Expensive, but worth it! Just got to buy myself some tapes now...!

Should be arriving with me tomorrow, hurrah!

Thanks all for your help - here's to some great filming days to come

Tony