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How to Make a Helmet Camera Boom

Attaching a camera boom to your helmet allows you to create hands-free videos of things that are difficult to accomplish while holding a camera in one hand. This is applicable mainly to extreme sports -- such as skiing or ATV riding -- in which holding a camera is extremely difficult. As wearing a safety helmet for such activities is strongly advised anyway, it makes sense to marry the two pieces in one convenient unit. The whole set up is relatively inexpensive to make, and provides some extremely impressive shots of your outdoor activities.

Things You'll Need

  • 36-by-0.75-inch square tube aluminium
  • 36-by-0.75-inch flat stock aluminium
  • Rivet gun with rivets
  • 2-inch-wide adhesive Velcro
  • 2-lb. weight
  • Heavy duty pliers
  • Vice
  • Cable ties
  • Hack saw
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Instructions

    • 1

      Measure from a spot on your helmet around your left ear to a spot around your right ear. Use a hacksaw to cut a piece of flat aluminium to this length. Measure from the back of your head to just above the visor at the front of the helmet. Cut another piece of flat aluminium to this length. These two pieces of aluminium attach the boom onto the helmet. Use a vice and heavy duty pliers to bend the aluminium into the shape of the top of the helmet, then rivet the two pieces together in a cross shape.

    • 2

      Measure the length of the 2-lb. weight and double this measurement. Cut a piece of flat aluminium to this length, then use a vice and pliers to bend the aluminium three-quarters around the weight so the weight fits within the metal frame lengthwise. Attach the weight to the frame with three cable ties, and rivet one end of the aluminium to the back part of the cross shape.

    • 3

      Cut another piece of aluminium to 5 inches and bend it around the thickness of the square tube aluminium. This is the bracket that holds the boom in place. Use pliers to bend the ends of the bracket into position so they can attach onto the aluminium cross, while leaving a gap for the square tube to fit through. Rivet this bracket onto the cross.

    • 4

      Slide the square tube of aluminium through the gap in the bracket and push it through until it hits the top of the frame, holding the weight at the back of the helmet. Connect these two pieces with the rivet gun, then secure it by riveting it to the bracket at the top of the helmet. Attach Velcro pads to the underside of the cross piece and attach the other sides of the pads to top of the helmet, lining up the two sides of the Velcro. This allows you to remove the boom and reattach when it is required. The connection between the boom and helmet is now complete.

    • 5

      Bend the other end of the tube with the vice and pliers into a position that gives a good camera angle when the camera is mounted. Rivet a piece of flat aluminium onto the end of the square tube. This is where the camera clips on. Use trial and error to deduce which angle gives the best camera shot. The helmet boom is now complete.


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