I work for a small hi fi shop, and we sell Paradigm speaker stands. They are nicely put together, and you can (as noted in the ad) fill the legs with sand or a combo of sand and lead shot, but you must first plug the hole at the bottom of one of the legs (they are designed so you can feed your speaker wire through a hole in the back of one leg, and down to the bottom, to keep it neat and tidy). Also, the stands do retail for $150 for the pair, so if you can buy them for significantly less, go for it! They come with spikes (for the bases) that you can leave off if you are using the stands on a wood floor. They also come with small triangular pads that fit in the corners of the top plates. These too you can leave off (they are self adhesive, but you can scrape them off if they have already been attached) and use blu tack if you wish to help anchor your speaker to the top plate. The 26" height is one of 3 versions... they also have a 22" height, and had (but just discontinued) a 30" height version. The taller the version, the smaller the top plate. If the manufacturer of your speakers recommends a 26" height stand, the Paradigms will work great without costing an arm and a leg.
Neil