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Since joining the GPS world,
I needed a mounting for our laptop up front where both driver and
navigator can see it. This design swivels to either side and pulls
in and out about 8 inches. |
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This shows the computer turned
so the driver can see it. |
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Here it is turned
for the copilot. Now she can also do email on the fly! |
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The top swiveling
platform has industrial-strength Velcro attached to securely hold
the laptop in place. |
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This shows the
base piece with its track for the sliding computer platform. It's
a rather unusual shape, cuz I needed to incorporate two new cup-holders
while trying not to impede seat access too much. We'll see how our
knees fare. And no, those aren't shoulder pads - they're heavy-duty
furniture glides that prevent side-to-side wobbling. |
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Here is the bottom
of the base piece. Pretty simple - the two blocks wedge securely into
the LD beverage holders. A screw up through the bottom of each of
the LD cup-holders really makes it secure. |
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This shows the
track on the bottom of the swiveling platform that fits into the track
on the base piece. It's merely a length of center-bottom mount drawer
glide. A single bolt with double nuts lets the platform swivel as
needed. |
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Our first outing
revealed a design flaw - the laptop would roll front and back as the
LD accelerated or braked. I needed something to lock it in place when
traveling. The solution is a bolt with a wing-nut head coming up through
the bottom track. By turning it all the way up (on right), the upper
track hits it and can't roll out. By turning it down (on left) a couple
of turns when parked, the upper track is free to move back and forth. |
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I learned the
hard way that using the laptop off the Ford's dash 12V outlet can
run down the truck battery over several days of camping. I recently
installed a 12V outlet (bottom left) powered from the house batteries,
along with an illuminated on/off switch (right). |
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Special thanks
to Ohio Ron for sharing with me his secret of providing lateral stability.
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