I found this camera that might work great mounted on a flat bed car for the “in train view.” It is for r/c helicopters and airplanes. And it is priced very reasonable and the video quality looks good from the youtube videos I saw. http://www.xheli.com/86p-988-dice-minicam.html
That looks cool! The guy can fly a lot better than I can [:D]
That’s a recording camera, if you look closely. It eliminates the RF transmission problem which makes the video from most of these look poor, but you don’t get to see the output in real-time. Instead, you have to stop the train, remove the memory card from the camera and put it into your computer to see what you’ve got.
Of course, retrieving the memory card from a train on your layout is a lot easier than getting it down from the top of a tree…[:-^]
Looks good, thanks for the link.
Wayne
If it’s got a memory card, that’s good enough for me. I’ve got an on-board camera I got from Micromark, and it works just fine as long as you’ve got a TV monitor to watch while you’re using it. Otherwise, in order to record from the camera, I have to use a DVD burner attached to the monitor and then try and download the DVD onto the computer.
I’d much rather use a memory card, and the price looks just right.
I think I’ll bite on this one, LOL!
Tom
Right. LION prefers the card kind, and is not interested in the TV kind. Him has no TV anyway. Him wants pics to post here, he can see his trains from the tower. Him was looking at one from B+H with a somewhat similar price, perhaps a bit smaller in size. LION would probably build a special car to push it around the layout rather than to build it into a locomotive of subway car.
QUESTION: Focus. On a helicopter infinity focus is good, on a model train less so. And it will not look ahead on the line when the line goes around a corner. Oh well… It will do.
ROAR
That’s pretty cool. I was searching for these cameras last week. I found one on ebay that can attach to helmets for motorcycles, etc. But it was like $80 and from China.
I like this one, I wonder how good the video is.
I like that it has night vision for going through dark tunnels.
Like Tom, I prefer to just record it and then transfer to my PC.
I think the focal length is not too far out. This vidoe http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j7cp0CtZQV0&noredirect=1 keeps the front wheel in focus and it appears fairly close. I just ordered on and when I get I will post a video or two showing how good or bad it works.
I just ordered one too!
I have one mounted on my rc chopper and it works like a dream. Amazing what you can buy for less than $50 these days as long as it’s “electronics”.
Choo Choo
Wow !
Great video!
Why couldn’t affordable technology like this exist when I was still racing?!?!?!?
type this in for a search, “keychain mini spy camera”
looks like a normal car remote. ive been using one of these for awhile on the trains and r/c planes and cars. these things are all over flea bay. mine cost 5.00 for the camera, 9.00 for shipping, and 15.00 for the mini sd card. some places iv seen this same exact ones for 99.00. takes 740x460 video and i think 800x600 pics.
later
g
A subway car is an ideal place to mount a camera, though.
This one is from SJT Enterprises. It’s one of the RF ones that transmits the signal so you can watch it on a TV or record it. The power supply is squeezed into the other end of the car. This supply is designed to take DCC power to run the camera, so I never need to change batteries. The camera just fits in the front of the car.
Since these are run in dark tunnels, I drilled holes in the front and added bright LEDs. Only the holes are there in this picture.
This camera has an adjustable focal length. I set it for about a foot in front of the train, which seems to work best.
Just spent my monthly “Train Cash” on this Camera! Cant wait to Play! By the way, every reply Ive read from Lion has either taught me something or saved me time and money. Thank You! Mark.
You young whipper snappers always have to have the latest and greatest. Always trying to pry more moths I mean money out of my wallet. I tell ya if it’s not trying to convince me that there is something different than DC or “L girder” construction, then it’s saying I need to run out and by another Video Camera. Well no thanks I’ll stick to the old tried and true , thank you very much!
Brent[:-^]
Holy Low Clearance, Batman! Watch out for that tunnel!
I got my onboard camera from MicroMark back in 2004. The camera’s mounted on a retired flatcar. The receiver is mounted on a wall above the layout with the video cable going through the hole in the floor to the VCR upstairs in the living room. I could also take the receiver and plug a video cable into the DVD burner I have that I usually use to record to DVD off my VCR, DVD, or DVR. So far, I haven’t made any videos with the camera, but it’s been fun seeing things from an HO perspective.
Two modifications that I’ve done since these pictures were taken was to mount the camera a little higher on the flatcar. I’ve also bent the antenna so that it will clear my highway overpass, which was knocked over when the camera first went under it.
Another thing I’d like to do is find out some way of mounting it in an old dummy locomotive or something to give the look of looking out from the cab.
Kevin
I totally agree, I paid approx what you quoted about a year ago. I have a couple of videos on Youtube with the cam mounted on my 1940 RC Chris Craft runabout and on a flatcar touring a section of my completely unfinished, messy layout. Its alot of fun for $35.00.
A hem…
THAT thing will not fit through my subway tunnels. There IS a reason why subway cars are 12’1" tall and not 12’2" tall!
I have even had to remove some track spikes from an upper level because they were in the way of train on a lower level.
ROAR