Starlink Mini interior mount

[khoop9]

So I would give the parts list. But there's a minor issue. It doesn't work. It does but it doesn't. It works as in if I'm sitting still but doesn't work if. I'm moving or it works but intermittently. I removed my hot head headliner to see if that helped and it's negligible. I think it's too thick in that area and perhaps the seal with metal in it messes up. I'm not sure. Regardless I need to figure out another solution unfortunately because this is by far the cleanest install I've seen on the forum. Sorry for the slow response been moving homes lol

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[tylercranston]

Thanks for your response.

I found a different solution, I already had a pole mounted in the back of my Gladiator for hanging a closet organizer. I found a mount on amazon to attach the Starlink Mini to this pole and it works great. I haven't had any connectivity issues, but I also don't have a headliner.

 

[Utahdirt]

Read this and it's the perfect solution to mount mini in my convertible, then I realized being a 24 with curtain airbags it's a no go. Maybe I'll just wear a football helmet with custom mount

 

[Silverator]

The parts:

Tripod adapter for Starlink

RAM ball attached to tripod adapter (1/4"-20 x .50" threade stud)

RAM ball mounted to sport bar This ball is a female. It is mounted with a 1/4-20 bolt. I don't remember the length...maybe 3.5". I picked up several different lengths at the hardware store. There's plenty of room above the sport bar to insert the bolt from above. Yes, there are washers between the ball and sport bar for spacers, probably more than I needed. The washers total 5/16" in thickness. I'd recommend a 1/4" spacer rather than a stack of washers. I had to really crank that ball down to keep it from rotating.

Spacing the ball below the sport bar allows the arm to be tilted farther up. If I want the dish to be flat against the roof rather than tilted, I can angle the arm more toward the roof, which would raise the dish a few inches above where it now sits. But all the "headroom" I needed was enough to open the fridge.

I already had a bunch of RAM arms and assorted parts laying around. The arm I used is the long C arm.

Since I have the Bestop Sunrider on most of the year, I did not want to mount the dish over the front seats where it would block the view of our spectacular cliffs.

Thanks for the great writeup @Moabite ! Much appreciated. One question on the mounting of the female ball to the sport bar - did you have to pull the top completely off the Gladiator to access the thru-hole in the sport bar from above?

I'm not seeing a way to get to things without removing the complete top - which of course is do-able, but kind of a pita. BTW - I have a good idea of where you're at, as we just got back from Moab a couple of weeks ago. Spectacular area! Again, thanks for the tips. I've got to get our Starlink permanently mounted. Especially now that it's getting beat up after being dropped from temporary mounting. LOL. Cheers, Bill

 

[jav_eee]

Thanks for the great writeup @Moabite ! Much appreciated. One question on the mounting of the female ball to the sport bar - did you have to pull the top completely off the Gladiator to access the thru-hole in the sport bar from above?

I'm not seeing a way to get to things without removing the complete top - which of course is do-able, but kind of a pita. BTW - I have a good idea of where you're at, as we just got back from Moab a couple of weeks ago. Spectacular area! Again, thanks for the tips. I've got to get our Starlink permanently mounted. Especially now that it's getting beat up after being dropped from temporary mounting. LOL. Cheers, Bill

I mounted mine like he did and did not pull my top. The holes are big enough to get the bolts in at an angle so you don’t have to remove the top. I used a fender washer because of this, btw.

 

[Silverator]

I mounted mine like he did and did not pull my top. The holes are big enough to get the bolts in at an angle so you don’t have to remove the top. I used a fender washer because of this, btw.

Thanks!! How did you get a screwdriver or ratchet in to hold the bolt head while tightening? Or did you use some type of carriage bolt or ??

 

[jav_eee]

Thanks!! How did you get a screwdriver or ratchet in to hold the bolt head while tightening? Or did you use some type of carriage bolt or ??

Regular bolt with a 10 (or was it 12mm) bolt head that I used a ratcheting wrench on. Like this one but longer:

 

[Silverator]

Regular bolt with a 10 (or was it 12mm) bolt head that I used a ratcheting wrench on. Like this one but longer:

Ahhh...I see. So your bolt head stayed ABOVE the sport bar - not down inside. Right? After getting my fingers stuck down inside that thing and barely being able to extricate my hand that makes much more sense. LOL

 

[jav_eee]

Ahhh...I see. So your bolt head stayed ABOVE the sport bar - not down inside. Right? After getting my fingers stuck down inside that thing and barely being able to extricate my hand that makes much more sense. LOL

Yup. Bolt head and washer on top of the roll bar, not down inside.

 

[Silverator]

Gotcha! THX!!!

 

[Silverator]

For anyone with a NEWER style Starlink Mini - the above mentioned Tripod Adapter will not fit with the newer mount. The below options should work. I ordered both and will return one....

 

[Moabite]

I mounted mine like he did and did not pull my top. The holes are big enough to get the bolts in at an angle so you don’t have to remove the top. I used a fender washer because of this, btw.

Yes...plenty of room to insert the bolt without removing the top. It's been so long since I mounted my dish that I don't remember the exact length of bolt I used...but I remember buying several lengths since I live 26 miles outside of town. And yes, fender washers are necesssary due to the diameter of the hole. Sorry, I didn't even think of pointing out that the bolt extended all the way through the sport bar with the head staying on top and easily accessible with a socket or wrench.

 

[Silverator]

Yes...plenty of room to insert the bolt without removing the top. It's been so long since I mounted my dish that I don't remember the exact length of bolt I used...but I remember buying several lengths since I live 26 miles outside of town. And yes, fender washers are necesssary due to the diameter of the hole. Sorry, I didn't even think of pointing out that the bolt extended all the way through the sport bar with the head staying on top and easily accessible with a socket or wrench.

No worries at all. I think I'm going to end up with a 3" bolt, and a 1/4" sleeve on the bottom. I don't have the RAM hardware yet. And yeah, for some dumb reason, I kept thinking it was a short bolt that you needed to get a screwdriver or some type of wrench down the hole. LOL. Brain fade I guess. Thanks for the update. Looking forward to not having the Starlink fall anymore. Haha!

 

[Texas Jammer]

The Mini is mounted to a conveniently empty hole in the sport bar with a C-size RAM Mount ball and arm. I initially mounted it with the smaller B-size RAM Mount gear. However, it would not stay in place on rough roads. The B-size mounts are only rated to hold 1 pound under heavy-duty use while the C-size mounts are rated at 3 pounds for heavy duty use. The C-size mount is extremely sturdy and has not moved at all since installed. I've also mounted a ball on the DV8 chase rack so the dish can easily be moved out of the cab if necessary.

Very nice setup!

I was trying to copy it but couldn’t figure out why it looked different. Then I realized the sport bar is different from JTs to JLUs.

I think I might have to get creative because I don’t see any open holes available for me to mount the RAM arm.

 

[OneTraveler]

Anyone that has attempted this (or any Mini install inside the cab)- I don't have hot head liners, but I do have the factory installed liner....anyone know if they have the same (or similar) foil backing the HotHeads have?

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