Hague Car Mounts...

[David Draper]

Looking to get an inexpensive, but ultra reliable car mount (here in the UK), for use with DSLRs and the upcoming Scarlet / Epic line. I've had my eye on the "SM3 Hague Pro Suction Mount" for some time now, but have not heard much about Hague as a company, let alone anything about the quality of their products. Anyone care to shed any light on the matter?

Cheers,

DD.

[Andy Wilkinson]

Hi David and welcome to DVinfo!

Don't have that but we've bought lots of gear (Dollies, K12 Crane etc.) from B. Hague and have visited them at their showroom/factory in Nottingham to assess gear in the past. Typically it's all well designed, no nonsense and over-engineered type products (just the way I like them to be!)

Like I said, don't have the car suction mounts but I'm sure others that do can comment more specifically.

[David Draper]

Thanks for the warm welcome, Andy.

I was initially put off by their infomercials, which seemed to scream "CHEESE!" at me every time I watched one, but their car mounts always looked very intriguing.

Am I right by thinking that most of their kits are Manfrotto based, with custom parts?

I'm a fan of no nonsense / over-engineered type products, too. So long as it does what I need it to, is user-friendly to set up and operate, and I can rely on it, that's all I ask for.

Look forward to hearing what other people have to say.

DD.

[Andy Wilkinson]

I certainly agree about the cheesy web videos they do! I wonder how many people they put off with them...

[David Draper]

I wouldn't be surprised if they had put off quite a few potential customers with those cheesy infomercials. Someone should offer to make them some better ones!

On a different note... It's awfully quiet in here.

DD.

[Chris Soucy]

Missed this till David resurected it today, no idea how.

I've actually got the SM3.

Only used it once to date and was probably asking way too much of it and had also picked a particularly problematical place to mount it, which didn't help.

It's well designed, beautifully engineered but not overly so as to give that "What the F&^%" situation.

The problems I had are these:

1. I made the mistake of mounting two of the cups to the passenger side window of my Holden Commodore Wagon, which, due to it's design, could not hold rigid with the mount and a Canon XH A1 on top attached to it. Result: Looked like I shot from a rocket sled at 450 MPH.

2. There is no safety harness attach points built in, so I had to have one specially made to fit (and keep the buckle/ cinch mechanisms from tearing the crap out of the paintwork), which complicated things dramatically. Getting the SM3 attached was one thing, getting the safety harness functional was a nightmare. There was no way I was hanging that lot off the side of a moving car without a harness.

3. Most modern cars are suprisingly contoured. Trying to find a completely flat surface, certainly on my Holden, was the equivalent of finding frogs on Mars, hence the side window, tho' I bet there are cars out there where even they're curved.

4. A good part of the problem with the camera came down to sheer inertia. The camera, being quite heavy, really didn't want to move due to the vibration of the car/window, so was wobbling back and forth on the pathetic 1/4" screw and rubber camera buffer pads like a nodding donkey, except sideways.

So, take a window that can wobble with that weight attached, a camera than can wobble due to pathetic mounting and you have the video clip from Hades.

Add that I was on an exceedingly rutted gravel road in the middle of back country nowhere and you have the video "perfect storm".

Not the SM3's fault in the slightest, tho' fixed safety harness points would be nice.

Find a vehicle with some flat spots, contrive a safety harness somehow, use a low weight, low COG camera and tie the thing down so it can't wobble on that poxy 1/4" screw and rubber buffers (not Hague's fault, that's down to the other manufacturers) and you're good to go.

As for most of B. Hague's gear, yep, it's primarily Manfrotto based with their own engineering on top.

Forget about the infomercials, they're a complete distraction. Heck, they're engineers, not videographers.

Like I keep telling one engineering company after the other: -

Never, ever, ever let the MD have any say in the web site design, or it will be a complete disaster.

Check out any engineering web site on the planet and make the call - yep, the MD will have had "significant input" (er, read,: totally stuffed it up, so it says practically nothing) on the site design.

Something about MD's (Managing Directors for those who are thinking Quacks) and Web sites.

Back to the chase:

Good company, good service, great products, decent prices.

Just ensure (don't assume) that what you think will work, actually will.

Volkswagen Beatle owners, DO NOT buy this product, unless you have the old flat windscreen, the only flat surface on the entire car.


CS

[Ian Dart]

here is a mount i put together

[Andy Wilkinson]

Got a shoot coming up where there will be a lot of in-car (and perhaps some car to car) shots of the driver. Main cam will be my C100 which will be hand-held (possibly with additional bracing from my monopod) whilst I sit in the passenger seat. Shooting will be on a private airfield and maybe public roads.

Decided to buy a B. Hague SM1 Car Suction Mount as I will also take my tiny little Panasonic TM900 to get some cut-aways (and if I feel brave/weather is good, some outside looking in type shots too). Would not risk the weight of the C100, even stripped down, on this mount....its rated at 1.5Kg max. Stripped down C100 with either of the 2 lenses I will use will exceed that.

Hague SM1 Camera Suction Mount For Cars - Cameragrip

Had a search around the web but could not find much about this mount other than what is on the Hague Cameragrip website....which still sports those cheesy videos ;-)

I did find a motorsports forum where someone mentioned that one needs to be careful with these kinds of mounts in hot sunny weather as they can cause a crack in the windscreen - an unlikely risk here in England in mid-February!

Then I stumbled upon this old, long forgotten thread. So, once I have had a chance to try it out I will let you know my thoughts. In the meantime, if anyone has the SM1 and has any comments please share them.

Shoot is schedule for Monday. Thanks!