How to make a PVC Overhead Camera Mount Slider Stabilizer Rig

How to make a PVC Overhead Camera Mount

Have you ever tried to make a video only to keep bumping into or having to constantly move the tripod? We have had to deal with this issue with many of our videos and I finally had enough. So I built an overhead camera mount for future use. In the process of making this project, I discovered that not only did the design work, but it had several other amazing capabilities.

It works great as a camera slider for forward, back, and side to side motions. You can angle the legs to have a sloped slider. You can change the overhead viewing by moving and/or twisting the support rods for several angles of filming. The movable legs allow me to reduce the size of the project and easily carry it around for mobile filming. Also I can store the stand under the bed or in other tight locations. This project is a must have for anyone trying to film a project close up.

Items needed:

Frame (All 1-inch PVC)
36 inch pipe (x2)
18 inch pipe (x4)
6 inch pipe (x2)
4.5 inch pipe (x4)
Elbow (x4)
T-connector (x4)

Sliding Box (All 1/2 inch PVC)
4 inch pipe (x8)
3 inch pipe(x8)
Corner Connector (x8)
T-connector (x8)

Camera Hook (All 1/2 inch PVC)
3 inch pipe (x2)
1.25 inch pipe (x2)
Elbow (x1)
PVC Camera Mount

Frame
Once you gather all of the need parts, let’s first start with the frame. First lay the side connectors and pipes out. The 6 inch pipe needs to be in the center with a 4.5 inch pipe on both sides connected with a T. The elbows are added for the legs. Each of the pieces need to be pressed in tight to create a solid frame.

Next add the 36 inch center sliding pipes and the 18 inch legs. Each of these lengths can be adjusted to suit your build. I then loosely attached the last side and legs to make sure it would fit, but I still have to add the sliding box before securing everything.

Sliding Box
To set up the sliding box, I first laid the pieces out to one side only to reduce mixing then up. Make sure the 4 inch pipes are paired up and on opposite sides with the T connectors in between. And do the same for the 3 inch pipes.

I then used corner connectors to complete the square and repeated this step for the second side.

The two sides are then connected using some 1.25 inch pipes.
Make sure all of the pieces are pressed together tight or they can and will come apart when filming.

Once completed, the widest side of the sliding bow should slide over the long center pipes on the frame. The second side of the frame can now be pressed on tight to prevent it from uncoupling.

Camera Hook
With the frame and box complete, I needed a way to angle the camera into the upright position, so I created this simple hook using some pipe and elbows.

To attach the camera, I used my PVC Camera Mount that I created in a previous project.

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I have found that some of the T-connectors can be a little stiff to turn by hand, so having an extra pipe can be handy at times.
And not gluing any of the joints keep this project flexible and easy to store away.

Lighting
After completing the frame, box, and hook, I realized extra lighting was needed. Fortunately I had some clamp on lamps that I used for other projects. So I purchased some 9-watt CFL bulbs. These work well, but I plan to upgrade to some LEDs in the future.

I am very happy with how this project turned out. And this would be a great addition to any YouTube filming studio.

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Have fun building.

Matthew 7:24-27