How to make a DIY tripod mount for your smartphone

I made this simple mount using scrap pieces of plywood, a spring, a threaded rod, bolts and nuts.

I removed the plastic piece that connects my camera with the tripod. 

Using a caliper I took some measurements and transferred them on a piece of plywood. I cut the piece to it’s basic size, using my table saw and the cross cut sled.

I cut the grooves underneath the piece using my table saw. This time I completed the cuts with several passes, while moving the fence back between each pass.

I then mounted my rotary tool on it’s routing base. Using a straight bit I routed out the necessary slots. Because the rotary tool does not have enough power for routing, I had to complete the process with several light passes.

I then used a sharp chisel to clean up the piece.

I hollowed the bottom of the piece using a chisel and a mallet.

I then drilled a hole for the threaded rod on my drill press.

I gave the top of the piece a nice chamfer on my disc sander.

I painted the piece black. Black is suitable for photographic equipment because it makes it easier to keep it unseen in the shots.

I then used the bandsaw, to cut the jaws of my mount. I cleaned them up on the disc sander. I used a pen as a sanding block, to sand the inner curved parts of the jaws.

I drilled the holes on the drill press and painted them black as well.

I then assembled all the parts together. I saw that spring mechanism from homesteadonomics channel. So thanks Joe for that! :)

I also added a crew on the back of one jaw. This locks the jaws from moving around.

The mount was now complete and works great. The spring forces the jaws to grab on the phone while with a light pressure they can also release it!