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iSight Mount for 17" Apple Studio Display Since we're not in production at the moment there hasn't been much gear in need of building. When our iSights came in, we were a little disappointed with the glue mount for our Studio Displays so I thought I'd visit Home Depot (my second home) in search of a solution. I found a simple combination of parts from which you can build a solid, easily detachable iSight mount for under $2. It also doesn't require changing any of Apple's parts so if you were to suddenly want to use the mount as Apple intended it to be used, that will be no problem. Read the instructions entirely before beginning. These instructions are not intended to do any harm and I think they are fairly straightforward. If you choose to follow them, however, you bear all responsibility for all outcomes to your person or property. The parts I picked up at Home Depot are listed below. They didn't always have exactly what I wanted, so in some cases I had to take what they had and modify it later. I've noted in [square brackets] the part I really wanted. If you find that part is available to you, it may be better to use it instead. (ID = Inner Diameter, OD = Outer Diameter) 
Before you can assemble the mount, there are two jobs you need to do. First you must cut the Nylon Machine Screw (part# 1) down to 1 5/8" with a hack saw, or the like. It may be a good idea to assemble the whole thing to make sure you are cutting it to the right size for your particular display, washer thicknesses, etc. For me, it was 1 5/8". The second job is to trim the 1 1/4" Rubber Washer (part #3) down to a 1" Rubber washer with a pair of scissors. The first step in assembling the mount is to put the head of the Nylon Screw and the 3/8" Spacer washer inside the vent on the back of the Studio Display. Next, push the 1 1/4" Rubber Washer (now 1") along the screw and fold it inside the display vent as well. The metal washer should not be able to come into contact with the shell of the Studio Display. 
Slide the screw and washer along the vent towards the center of the Studio Display until they are well seated at the end of the slot. The screw and washers should be secure enough at this point to allow you to let go of them and have the screw continue to stick straight out. Now add the large 2" Rubber Washer to the screw post. This goes between the outer shell of the Studio Display and the mount provided by Apple. Add everything else to the screw in this order: Apple's Studio Display iSight mount, the remaining Rubber Washer, Metal Washer, and finally the Nylon Acorn Nut. Do not peal the paper off Apple's iSight mount. I'm sure this will all work fine if you already did, but the point here is not to have to deal with glue and the mess it tends to leave behind. Tighten the Acorn Nut by hand just enough so that the mount doesn't easily twist side to side when you are repositioning the Camera. You could conceivably crack the plastic of your monitor or the mount if you go crazy with the pliers, though the rubber washers should make this very hard to do. I tightened mine by hand and could have tightened it more by hand, but it was mounted securely so there was no need to tighten any further. 
I think the Acorn Nut adds a nice finished look to the mount, but if you don't want to have to be so exacting with your measurements when cutting the screw, then you can also substitute a 1/4" Nylon Wing Nut (shown in photo of parts). If you use the Wing Nut, you wouldn't need to cut the screw at all, but there would then be a very long screw pointing out the back of your monitor.
I hope you found this helpful.
Update: July 9, 2003 |
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