Laptop Mount

Greg In Austin · 03-10-2008, 08:43 PM

So in looking at the cab of our future 2008 SMB we are trying to determine the best way to mount a laptop...mainly for the passenger's use...

What do people have? WHat do you like? or not like?

We noticed that we will get 5 cupholders and thought it would be really nice to have a mount that would insert firmly into one of those cupholders and thus not use up other real estate.

Thoughts? ideas?

Jeffrey · 03-10-2008, 09:47 PM

How much time will a passenger actually be using the thing? I use mine sitting on the rear couch or on the table or door galley. For short use, I just use my lap in any seat, as do my passengers. Hence "Laptop"!

cellularSTEVE · 03-10-2008, 09:55 PM

I made a "table" out of wood (and painted it gray to match) that sits on top of the doghouse. I cut out the space for the cupholders so that I can use all of them. Then I put my laptop on top of it. I placed industrial velcro on the table and the other part on the laptop. Plus I have a small strap that holds the laptop down for extra security. It works very well. I also place other things on it when the laptop isn't there. I can take a picture and post it if you are interested. Will have to be next week though.

steve

mmocken · 03-11-2008, 07:28 AM

ebay has some options. i use a tray that fits over the steering wheel. paid ten bucks at a truck stop

**BroncoHauler** · 03-11-2008, 07:54 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mmocken

ebay has some options. i use a tray that fits over the steering wheel. paid ten bucks at a truck stop

"..but officer, I wasn't using a cell phone while driving..."

Herb

Greg In Austin · 03-11-2008, 09:22 AM

Lets see if I can get some answers out there....

The passenger could be using this for any number of purposes. The passenger will be set up to be a navigator, and the laptop will be used to access maps for roads, routes, trails, topo, etc. The passenger might also be using the laptop for more mundane activities or activities less associated with the actually driving of the van... they may be doing some email, they may be checking Sportsmobileforum.com for the latest info, they might be putting the latest fuel economy data into a spreadsheet, they might be doing something related to their day job, they may be feeding an audio book into the sound system, at some future point they may be looking at data offered from the Ford van systems,... any number of things are possible.

Steve, we would be interested in photos of your setup.

We really do not want this to be set up for the driver, but it would be nice if it could be accessed by the driver when the van is STOPPED.

jage · 03-11-2008, 11:22 AM

You should mosey down to the local PD and check out how their systems are mounted. A little more dedicated, but it might give you some ideas.

We have friends that use a laptop for GPS, but the passenger just holds it on their lap.

Greg In Austin · 03-11-2008, 11:27 AM

Some of the laptops these days get pretty darn warm underneath, and often use the bottom to shed heat, so it can be a two-fold problem to hold it in your lap or on a form fitting surface.

We have heard that there may in fact be a person (who shall remain nameless) on this forum that might have access to some mounts that might normally be available to only law enforcement folks (or at least easily), so we will check on that offline...

Keep the suggestions coming....

LoneStarJR · 03-11-2008, 03:07 PM

I haven't done it yet, but I was leaning toward a Ram Mount like this one

kzemach · 03-11-2008, 04:06 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by LoneStarJR

I haven't done it yet, but I was leaning toward a Ram Mount

RAM Mounts are the bomb. The military uses them for a variety of things, such as laptop mounts in both HMMWVs and CH-47s, GPS mounts, and we used them for mounting a $20k thermal on the .50 cal mount on a HMMWV. Rock. Solid.

If you do rough 4WD stuff, the RAM Mount is the way to go, just upgrade to the larger attachment systems.

The other nice thing about them, if you have the right laptop type, is that you can get a mount that will do DC-DC power for you, add GPS or GPS power, cell phone holder, etc etc.