I have some work lights I'd like to make some softboxes for them any ideas? They get really hot....

i have sanded the windows of such light and it is better than nothing.
forget about wrapping these light in anything it will melt ot becomes so hot , that it could be dangerous.

I have some work lights I'd like to make some softboxes for them any ideas? They get really hot....

The problem is DIY softboxes are typically made with foamcore, which will smoke and catch on fire possibly with your lights. The real softboxes like Chimeras cost some money because the interiors of them are that silver heatproof/fireproof cloth and they will not smoke and catch on fire.

You could probably safely use diffuser frames with them but the light is then much harder to control. Worklights aren't made for video, they are made to light job sites, etc. You can use them successfully but generally you need a lot of grip equipment to make them workable.

Dan

What you really need for those is not a soft box but a diffuser. The good thing about diffusion is that it can be pretty easily accomplished. The bad thing is that you have little, if any, light control... so the usage may be limited ... say as compared to a softbox with a grid in it.

In my still photography days, I built a diffuser screen using 3/4 inch pvc pipe and a paper roll of some paper... seems to me it was architectural drawing paper in a roll. It was an idea from a photographer running a company called Finelight. The frame was easily assembled and the paper clipped on with light duty 3/4 inch pipe segments that had been split longitudinally. My biggest diffuser was like 4x8 feet as I recall. I was using electronic flash, not continuous light though..... but it matters not. Light is light.... and you won't be using it close enough to the tungsten light to ignite it.

I can try and ferret out the pieces if you are interested and post some pix. But to end where I started, I think you want diffusion, not softbox. But it has some big drawbacks that may or may not apply in your particular situation.