I think it's time to 'cam' up - advice please!

SimonAH

This morning an Escort (no, not that kind) very nearly gave me a free proctology session on the way into work :shock: so I figure it’s time to fit a camera system to the bike….

1) Equipment suggestions? Reviews are all very well but I’ve always preferred forum advice. Don’t want to spend a fortune, but at the same time don’t want something made in Uzbekistan from goat hoof trimmings.
2) I’m thinking of a bar mount front and an under saddle mount rear. Wise or dumb? I’m very bad at wearing a helmet unfortunately – especially when just shooting out around town.
3) What’s the routine with a cam? How much footage do they hold between downloading? What’s the power life like? Will they roll and just hold, say, the last four hours of footage wiping (fnurk) from the rear?

Any and all advice most gratefully received.

dilemna

Search is your friend. An abslolute shed load has been written on this topic and not only on this site.

shouldbeinbed

2 threads on 1st page in general commuting. Ive looked and searched & am awaiting an MD80 >£14 from amazon free delivery & 12 month guarantee all it needs is a micro sd card. Its the same thing as 100th idiot's you tube footage which is clear and has decent sound.

SimonAH

D'Oh, I hate to admit it but I had actually forgotten that commuting general still existed! Consider my questions answered in full.

[slinks off shamefacedly]

Maxticate

How do you feel a camera will protect you from a car failing to stop and colliding with the back of you?

I imagine the outcome unfortunately to be the same.

A bike brake light may be of more use?

SimonAH

Maxticate wrote:

How do you feel a camera will protect you from a car failing to stop and colliding with the back of you?

I imagine the outcome unfortunately to be the same.

A bike brake light may be of more use?

I wouldn't - but I'd stand more of a chance of getting the twonk prosecuted after the event. A brake light wouldn't have helped unfortunately as I was not braking, he pulled out and accelerated to overtake without realising that there was a central island just ahead and so had to slam on the anchors and swerve-skid-slither back into my lane very narrowly missing my back end.

Interesting point actually in that I think most of the near misses I've had over the last year and a half of commuting by bike have been because I'm going faster than people expect. I suspect that the driver actually saw the island but didn't comprehend how much distance he'd need to overtake me spinning along at around 23mph.

As far as rear lights are concerned BTW I was sporting two half watt lights, one on steady and one on flash.

iPete

So the incident happened behind you? I'd strongly suggest a set up like this, except with MD80s and not film cameras, obviously.



Best of luck

EKE_38BPM

FWIW, my MD80 clone using a 4gig card records for about 70 minutes and the overall battery life is about 90 minutes. When the card is full, the MD80 turns itself off.

There is a camera that instead of recording and then turning off when the card is full, it constantly overwrites the early footage. It is designed for in-car use so it can also record whilst charging (most of these little cameras can't). It is housed in a torch shaped body and is a bit bigger than the MD80 and a little more expensive.

Maxticate

Apologies, I'd made some big assumptions about how the incident might have taken place.

It's also a good point about how drivers perceive cyclists to be slow when if fact the majority of regular commuters clip along at a good pace. I can see how this would be a major factor in drivers miscalculating overtakes.

The knee jerk reaction to cameras makes me feel uneasy, it shouldn't be the answer surely. It's tantamount to saying that people these days are all only willing to look out for themselves and therefore I need a camera to prove my case because everyone will lie.

It ma be the case but I don;t want to believe that.

Butterd2

SimonAH wrote:

Interesting point actually in that I think most of the near misses I've had over the last year and a half of commuting by bike have been because I'm going faster than people expect.

+1 to that, personally I blame the nodders for reducing the car drivers expectations of a cyclists speed.

cee

Butterd2 wrote:

SimonAH wrote:

Interesting point actually in that I think most of the near misses I've had over the last year and a half of commuting by bike have been because I'm going faster than people expect.

+1

I agree with this too. Another thing i noticed is that people tend to assume that bike brakes are as poor as they have always been.

I was mountain biking at the weekend in the pentland hills...on the final descent back to the road, a chap and his child were in front of me on the shared use trail.

He saw me barelling round the corner, and grabbed the child and jumped clear of the trail....I was almost stationary by the time he looked up with a big red angry face changed as soon as he saw my now speed and distance from him...he then said....
"you know...i didn't think you would be able to stop or have as much control as that...i was about to shout at you as you barrelled past, but now i guess i should say thanks for giving us the respect of stopping. Looking at your bike and the way you ride it, i guess you could have flown past without incident, but thanks for slowing down for our comfort."

I replied that i saw the child and thought....i have no idea what that little person is going to do here....better slow down! We had a bit of a nice chat for few minutes about what a lovely day it was and everyone went on their way happy.

paulus69

Your in my neck of the woods aren't you SimonAH, theres a real mixture of drivers round here, most are resonable considerate, however I've ordered an Ebay special to use anyway. Less than a tenner (although it hasen't arrived yet)

BSRU

I have had ContourHD 1080p for almost a year now, it is a great little camera and I would highly recommend it. Water resistant, so I do not use my waterproof case unless it is raining so heavy I am almost drowning. Excellent full 1080p picture quality, nice 110 degree view angle and sits fairly inconspicuously on top of my helmet, a very steady handle mount is available. Since the new ContourHD GPS was released it had become alot cheaper, £150 from the US of EBay.
I also have a rear facing camera, Sony HQ5 CCD bullet camera, not as good quality image as the Contour but it works very well in changing/low light conditions. The LCD DVR viewer it came with is mounted on my handlebar as at night it gives me a clear as day view of what is behind me, even when on unlit roads. It is the version 2 h720 from DogCamSport, also now selling for about £150 since the version 3 was released.
I have had the cheaper MD80's/Muvi's and they are great for the money but the image quality is not as good, especially for recording registration plates.

SimonAH

Hi Paul,

Yup, not far from you. Apart from the odd idiot (and where do they not roam) generally the drivers around here are indeed fairly considerate.

TBH I think that (at least within the town) the problem is that the cycle paths are so good that drivers very rarely come across bikes on the road.