Ram iPad Yoke Mount

[Robdog]

Hi All,

I have an iPad 2,and am planning a trip in a few weeks. Due to this I have been looking around for a portable way to mount the iPad in the cockpit (I only hire aircraft so needs to be portable and flexiable). The best I have come across so far is the Ram mount... although for the aircraft I fly (Cessna 172SP, 182P and 210 - mainly for the latter two though) I am concerned it will seriously block some of the instruments.

I was wondering whether anyone here had used this mount, or similar (I am open to suggestions) before in a light aircraft and how it went.

Many Thanks,
Rob.

[Jabawocky]

RAM make a ipad mount, just buy the other RAM bits you want to suit your needs.

Johnny Appleseed or similar outlets are the go.

[Old Akro]

I'm unsure about whether a yoke mount puts the ipad closer to your eyes than it optimal. This is partly because its width means that it needs to be forward of the yoke a bit.

For Cessna, RAM also do a glareshield mount which might be useful (the Piper glareshield is too thick). And of course the RAM suction mounts for the windshield are very good.

Personally, I prefer the ipad to be on my lap / knee. But I tend to use it as a chart reader, using the panel mount GPS and Jeppview on a Motion tablet for navigation.

The US Aviation consumer magazine recently did a review of a number of iPad mounts and concluded that they weren't overwhelmed by any of them. There is one (which is rather similar to the Ozrunways holder) called MyClip which they liked for its simplicity. Sporty's has a tilting mechanism and some other one has a removable clipboard as well. The ease of availability if nothing else would suggest the Ozrunways unit is worth a look.

[Roj approved]

If you're doing a trip in a 172/182/210 wouldn't the idea be that you want to enjoy the scenery? :confused:

Back in the day, we used the iBall mark 1, they came in a convenient holder supplied from day one. It proved very handy in all situations, even in Low Visibilty they were worth their weight in gold as they had an in built swivel mechanism that allowed for scanning of all instrument required to keep the blue side up, and had a depth adjustment for longer vision requirements like looking out the window for runway lights or other visual clues, the auto function was also able to adjust to changing light conditions. (although the sun protection application was a useful addition):8

This depth adjustment was an automatic function enabling the user to adjust the field of view without any need to remove a hand from the control column or the throttle lever. It also had a handy in built scanning function that was very good for interfacing ground to map for navigation purposes and for other visual clues.

Sure, the time expiry of the iBall mark 1 was unknown, and varied amongst uses, and the warranty was non existent as the original manufacturer had probably also experienced the same performance degradation and was not able to help.

Many users were unable, or too pig headed, to install the mark 2 upgrade required as the original model got affected by years of ogling at young barmaids in bad light and burn out by forgetting the sun protecting module that could be downloaded from atop the forehead. No upgrade was installed unless forced to by their DAME, and even then the upgrade was very easy to misplace and prone to damage from being sat on or left at home.

The upgrade 2.1 was a more permanent upgrade, with the application of "laser" technology, the iBall was broken back to the original mark 1 model, but reportedly, with much better performance.

the iBall has always been required as part of a "Twin" operation, due to the significant performance penalties of a single operation, mainly with depth perception and scanning ability. :ouch:

They have all been fitted with a self cleaning function, which while proving to be generally well suited to the job of cleaning, had some small software glitches that allowed for spontaneous waterworks if kicked in the goollies by an angry bull/horse/girlfriend.:{

Another great function of the iBall, regardless of the model chosen, was the security aspect. no need to be constantly vigilant of their whereabouts or live in fear of them being stolen, as they were always mounted in a convenient and prominent position.

During times that the iBall wasn't required for navigating, ogling or leering, they came with a handy dust cover to allow them to be shielded from the elements and allow the hard drive to go into sleep mode, mainly in the darker hours.

This had been known to activate at times of intense boredom, or at anytime during night freight or Back of the clock operations. Some owners have also complained of a software glitch appearing after the downloading of too many Rum and Coke applications. The manufacturer has been contacted, and at this point no fix has been made available, but the users have been contacted and warned of the "glitch":E

Ohh, and they also come in a range of colours!!

Sorry i couldn't help with your iPad mount:O

[Lancair70]

I used my iPad knee holder I got from the OzRunways mob, for the first time in flight today. Very easy to use and see, didnt foul the controls at all. This was in a C182 and Im a tall guy. However I did have issues with the gps reception, at times was several knots slower than a/c gps gs, at times had no reception at all.
This test was on two brief flights today, iPad along for fun really, not needed dropping meatbombs.

[Robdog]

Lancair: I have looked at these.. and am seriously considering them as I just rest my iPad on my lap at the moment, although somthing a little more permanent would be great... am just a little worried about any 'head down' time. As another note... as I have an iPhone 4 I went down the path of only getting a WiFi iPad... and just got the external GPS receiver which I can sit on the dash so it always has a good view of the sky and just connects via bluetooth to the iPad.

Old Akro: Although I use mine for charts, and I still navigate purely by compass and watch... I have been flying a C172 with a G1000 a bit lately and really miss the nice moving map when it comes to the older aircraft just as a back up (and confirmation of my standard navigation techniques). With a couple of big trips coming up (both around the 20 hour mark) and one through a fair bit of airspace, the iPad and Ozrunways will be unbeatable.

Thanks for the thoughts everyone.

[compressor stall]

Roj,

Very good. :ok: :D

[beechie]

Anyone used the windscreen mount? Leave a mark?

[SPL-101]

Once you buy these apps for the ipad, are there usuage fees you have to pay the service provider?

[Safe Skies for All]

Roj "Gold"!

I have an iPhone and an iPad, so I bought my missus an iRon for her birthday. She threw it at me!

[Robdog]

SPL-101: i use the OzRunways app which is free to download and the first month of use. After that it is (correct me if I am wrong) $110 for commercial (charts, ERSA, AIP and DAPS) and about $80 for private (everything except DAPS) that is per year. Just google 'OzRunways' and go to their site. It explains it all.

[Lancair70]

Im wishing Id saved a few bucks on only buying the WiFi version too now it seems Im going to need the external GPS receiver to get reliable signal.
I have an iPhone too, so could of just used it for the data connection. Oh well, I didnt actually pay for mine so . . .(my non-aviation job bought it for me)

[Robdog]

Lancair: I bought this receiver and couldn't be happier. All the data from it matches both the data from a G1000 and a Garmin 480. I am aware there are others out there, just that this one was easy to get in Australia.
GNS 5870 GPS Bluetooth receiver for iPad (http://www.ozpilot.com.au/product.asp?strParents=&CAT_ID=&P_ID=954)

[Aussie Bob]

Beachie: i use the RAM with a suction pad mount. No marks left and I am a fusspot cause its my plane. What I find is really neat is that I can quickly rotate the pad out of the way so it lies flat on the dash. This gives full window for landing and takeoff then I block a small portion of the screen once airborn and replace it with the Ipad. I find this setup way better than a knee mount but it depends on the plane I guess, mine is a tandem seater Scout.

Should also work well in a 172.q

[beechie]

Looks good. Might give one a go.

[pplcazz]

Have been using the RAM yoke mount for a while now. It's pretty flexible so you can angle it however you want (closer / further from you) it takes a bit of fiddling so you would want to have a spare 15 minutes to mess around with positioning. The standard kit comes with adapters to mount it to the glare shield as well (flat adapters so it does not damage the surface).

You can also get them on eBay (http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/200661033173?ssPageName=STRK:MESELX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1555.l2649#ht_1963wt_1396) from time to time although there's only two at the moment it would seem (1 (http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/200661033173?ssPageName=STRK:MESELX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1555.l2649#ht_1963wt_1396) 2 (http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/200661033563?ssPageName=STRK:MESELX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1555.l2649#ht_1963wt_1396)).

So far no major issues with sunlight etc. Have been running it at full brightness and using it as a backup to maps, etc. So far I've been using Air Nav Pro but as soon as Oz runways has multipoint routes then I'll be making the switch. Air Nav seems to crash a lot and it does not seem to have anywhere close the the information available in Oz Runways (waypoints, etc.)