I recently purchased a LED Tube at Ikea on sale for $35 AUD as I thought it would make a good, budget friendly practical to use in the back of shots. I made a video about using practicals in your film making you can check out here, in which I also explained how I needed a good way for the tube to stand up straight. Ikea did include 2 mounting brackets so that the tube could be mounted to a wall, however I set out to designing and building a small timber stand for the tube to stand in.

What You’ll Need.

There are only a few materials that you will need to complete this project:

• Timber x 2 (300mm x 60mm x 30mm)

• Screws x 6 (m4 x 40mm)

• Wood Glue

• Sandpaper

• Spray Paint (Optional)

• 40mm Holesaw Drillbit

You will also need a few tools to complete this project. A SAW, either hand or circular depending on what you have available to cut the timber if it isn’t already. A DRILL to put in the screws and to use the holesaw to cut the main hole and A CLAMP or two to secure the timber together while waiting for the woodglue to dry. Some NEWSPAPER to protect your work area when spray painting and you are good to go!

1. Measure & Cut

I measured two 300mm lengths of my timber, felt like this was a good length to be able to support the leverage of the longest tube while not taking up an excessive amount of floor space. Then I cut them with my saw. I also cut two smaller peices of timber, roughly 30mm in length.

2. Drill

Find the center of  both 300mm peices of timber and using the Holesaw drill a 40mm hole all the way through both peices of timber. This hole will be for the tube to fit through.

3. Glue & Screw

Apply a generous amount of wood glue to the surface of both peices of timber and secure them using the clamps. Let the Woodglue set so both peices of timber are secured together. Make sure both holes are lined up so that the tube will be able to passthrough both peices of timber.
Also firmly attach the two smaller peices to both ends of the top piece of timber so that the cross has 4 points of contact with the floor.

The screws can be used here to apply an extra secure hold for each peice of timber. Placing screws into the timber where you have also glued, after the glue is dry will help to keep the timber secure for longer.

4. Sand

Using an electric sander or sandpaper, smooth all the rough edges of the timber. This is an optiona step but will be important if you are planning on painting the stand and improves erganomics when picking up the stand.

5. Paint

I chose to paint my stand black to avoid it reflecting unnecessary light when in use, but you can do whatever you’d like at this point.