simonr Posted May 7, 2006 Share Posted May 7, 2006 I've always had fairly poor rearward visibility in the 90 - resulting in it being fairly stoved in from reversing in to trees etc! So with a liitle help from eBay - I did this: The cameras are very wide angle - which makes my back garden look HUGE! I bought a fairly rubbish, but cheap sun visor screen and re-boxed it in a polycarb box such that it is water-tight. I put new switches on the outside of the box and just conected them to the original switch pads on the circuit board. Can you spot the reversing camera? I found something useful to do with the sticker from the old forum! And here's the winch-cam: The cameras each cost £35 and are 420 line (reasonable resolution), waterproof and have their own IR LED's for night-vision. Before the LEDs switch on (when it gets really dark), the sensitivity of the camera is amazing - the picture looks like daylight. I found the winch cam very useful on the weekend. When we were winching up very steep slopes and all I could see out of the windscreen was sky, I could see the cable on the drum, my co-pilot looking concerned and the hill in front. For a total cost of under £100 plus a bit of effort - I feel quite pleased with the results. Si Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
istruggle2gate11 Posted May 7, 2006 Share Posted May 7, 2006 Excellent Idea Simon, Like it a lot. My last "car" had a reversing camera, and although I thought of it as a gimmick at first, I did come to rely on it (I know different situations, but all the same). Planning on selling a package? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mo Murphy Posted May 7, 2006 Share Posted May 7, 2006 That's a really good idea !!!! Nice one Si Mo Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
landrover598 Posted May 7, 2006 Share Posted May 7, 2006 Have you got a link to the Ebay items please ? Any decent pics of the screen ? I've been after a rear view and winch cam for a while now Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
simonr Posted May 7, 2006 Author Share Posted May 7, 2006 Have you got a link to the Ebay items please ? Any decent pics of the screen ?I've been after a rear view and winch cam for a while now No good photos of the screen I'm afraid. It was just a 6.5" TFT monitor built in to a nasty plastic sun visor. It was used and in poor condition - but worked and I didn't care what state the casing was in. These come up fairly often and rarely seem to sell for more than £50. The ones designed to be fitted in head rests would be the easiest to modify / re-box. This kind of thing: Nasty plastic TV/monitor. One of the shops (Halfords?) was offering a set of two monitors & a DVD player for £150. You could probably flog one monitor and the player for not much less than that. The cameras are like these: Ebay There are lots of people selling reversing/winch cameras etc (Inc David Bowyer) - I just wanted to do it on the cheap! It would be very difficult to compete with these commercially. I quite fancy a pair under the vehicle looking along the line of the front & rear prop shafts so I can see if that clanking noise is about to kill me! Also thought about a little stick on (magnetic?) mirror which gives the rear camera a view of the tow hitch. That would be good for hitching my trailer. Si Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Les Henson Posted May 7, 2006 Share Posted May 7, 2006 You could make your own in-car horror flicks Si, just reposition the cameras........................................................................ Les. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Turbocharger Posted May 7, 2006 Share Posted May 7, 2006 I looked at doing this myself but there seem to be so many standards for video cameras - I had horrible visions of being left with two cameras which didn't plug into my screen, and ebay receipts for £100 or more. Once I get a laptop in the LR permanently I'd like to do the same with USB webcams, but that's a very neat solution Si! "LRE - we're watching you" Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheRecklessEngineer Posted May 7, 2006 Share Posted May 7, 2006 How about a wireless one, on a tripod, that you can set up somewhere externally so you can get a view of how close/where obstacles are in tricky terrain? Might be easier than the waving hands of a winch bitch.... 2.4Ghz senders/receivers arent that pricy. Probably run the lot from a PP3. Just need a tripod... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
simonr Posted May 7, 2006 Author Share Posted May 7, 2006 Good idea - might be useful if someone is spotting for you - they can show you the mine shaft your wheel has just dropped in to. Si Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark90 Posted May 7, 2006 Share Posted May 7, 2006 Helmet mounted camera so you can see what they see - Bitch cam Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
landrover598 Posted May 7, 2006 Share Posted May 7, 2006 they can show you the mine shaft your wheel has just dropped in to. you too ? It's not that funny is it Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Turbocharger Posted May 7, 2006 Share Posted May 7, 2006 Helmet bitch cam .. lol You could stream three or four cameras, car or bitch mounted, and record them in 4 quadrants of the screen as an MP4. Then, replay the whole event on your laptop afterwards - it's all gone 'Challenge Anneka' :D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hybrid_From_Hell Posted May 7, 2006 Share Posted May 7, 2006 Nice, Have often thought of this as a project - it would be useful to actaully see what it is that I have driven into Another item for X-Eng ? Nige Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RocKeR Posted May 7, 2006 Share Posted May 7, 2006 Very impressed Si. How did you manage to reverse the picture in the rear cam? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
simonr Posted May 7, 2006 Author Share Posted May 7, 2006 Very impressed Si. How did you manage to reverse the picture in the rear cam? The monitor does it itself! It's supposed to be selectable, but the switch does nothing & it's stuck on reverse - which is best. The winch being reversed isn't too much of a problem. Si Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
edwardatherton Posted May 8, 2006 Share Posted May 8, 2006 I have recently put such a system in my S1. Brilliant for reversing! The camera is 270,000 pixels, water/shock proof and has IR and a microphone on it! It is mounted on a mag-mount. The idea is that it can be taken off the LR and put onto the Sankey or any other trailer if needs be with an extension cable. All linked up to a 6" TFT/LCD monitor in the cab. This has connections for two cameras, AV in/out and the usual image normal/reverse functions. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
freeagent Posted May 8, 2006 Share Posted May 8, 2006 thats pretty cool, on the series one.. i like that..... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
02GF74 Posted May 8, 2006 Share Posted May 8, 2006 Maurice Wilks will be turning in his grave!!! If you need a camera to reverse, then maybe you should not be driving. Just do it by feel .... but stop before the crash/smash/bang bit. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Daan Posted May 8, 2006 Share Posted May 8, 2006 Usefull, however, I hate to say this but I dont think its any good in the mud. what about bonnet deep water?What about putting the rear one behind the glass? I saw the winch camara once on the bertelsen truck (danish team). I was mounted above the winch, behind the grill, pointing downwards. This was for reasons of it getting clogged in mud. The idea is certainly worth persuing. My biggest nightmare is always reversing int a child who is to small to be seen behind a landy. So i suggest post some more ideas from people which actually made the system work Daan Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
simonr Posted May 8, 2006 Author Share Posted May 8, 2006 The idea is certainly worth persuing. My biggest nightmare is always reversing int a child who is to small to be seen behind a landy. So i suggest post some more ideas from people which actually made the system work What do you mean " from people which actually made the system work" Is that not what most of the people who have them above, have? My winch camera, strangely enough,is mounted high up, behind the grille - and has not suffered too badly from mud & water. The cameras are submersible, so unaffected by the odd splash and have a glass front already. If the mud becomes a problem, I'll just extend the screen wash jets to squirt on the camera. The reversing is important as you are more used to looking at a mirror image when reversing. Si Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Daan Posted May 8, 2006 Share Posted May 8, 2006 Is that not what most of the people who have them above, have?Si I am saying that I can see problems when using it offroad. I do like the idea, have considered it myself. I think more people have done similar things, especially in the truck world. So lets see what the possibilitys are and what is available for how much. Daan Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SteveG Posted May 8, 2006 Share Posted May 8, 2006 What do you mean " from people which actually made the system work"Is that not what most of the people who have them above, have? What he means Si is from someone that technically knows what they are talking about rather than from someone who simply bolts on 'off-the-shelf' items!! btw- I think both are an excellent ideas, especially the front cam for self winching and nice big drops When you can buy these at such a low relative cost why wouldn't you put them on. There are certainly beneficial in certain situations. As for the "if you need one of these you can't drive" etc etc - well yawn yawn!! Cheers Steve Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Top90 Posted May 9, 2006 Share Posted May 9, 2006 My winch camera, strangely enough,is mounted high up, behind the grille - and has not suffered too badly from mud & water. The cameras are submersible, so unaffected by the odd splash and have a glass front already.Si Cool idea. B) I have lost count of how many times while playing I have got to the top of a steep hill to find someone charging up the other way. The camera would give you a much better idea of whats in your bonnet-blind spot. Richard Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
s2hotdog Posted May 10, 2006 Share Posted May 10, 2006 Simon Another great idear Is the screen visable in bright sunlight? just a thought Steve Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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