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Post by teejay on Apr 2, 2022 8:51:35 GMT -6
Thanks for the feedback and insights, Eric. Per my previous post, the unit is already cut, glued & screwed, and stained...so no alternate design possibilities at this point. I went with the Audiorax 16U x 2 unit dimensions, which is keeping it shorter than some of my other options. As far as drawers go, I already have a separate rolling three-drawer unit that houses all of my cables. I want to keep this rack just for my outboard. Not worried about the depth at the top, as that is still 16". And the unit has 2" rubber wheels on the bottom both to move it closer when mixing and/or to access the back when needed. I can always add rear rails down the road, but I don't envision ever having a need for that based on what I do.
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Post by Ned Ward on Apr 2, 2022 11:52:08 GMT -6
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Post by teejay on Apr 2, 2022 13:08:31 GMT -6
Yikes. That Accu-Cut would have been the cat's meow. Even just the straight edge would have been nice. I guess I can just chalk it up to experience. If AudioScape can sell their products made to look like they've endured the worst of conditions, maybe I can talk myself into saying this represents the same.  |
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Post by Ned Ward on Apr 2, 2022 17:00:20 GMT -6
It's all learning. I am finishing up my storage unit, and will stain it tomorrow possibly. Is it perfect? No, but learned enough on 3/4" plywood to apply to better wood next time. Definitely would do things differently.
Track saws are pretty great. Pocket screws are also incredibly strong, but depending on where you use them leave visible openings. I filled some and chose to leave others open for aesthetics/laziness.
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Post by Ward on Apr 3, 2022 11:14:19 GMT -6
Thank you, Ned. There will be a 6" kickplate on the bottom and the rails will start from that point, so there will be gap at the bottom for the lowest racked gear. I've added that to the "drawing". Here is a slight change I would consider, instead of the simple kick plate try a 2 or 3 space drawer and some space above it if the angle of the main rack allows clearance. You will find a drawer in that space is a godsend. Any time you angle the gear you have to consider your not going to have as much side coverage near the top. The other thing and this is what keeps me in the realm of straight racks, rear rails. Yeah you can build them into angled racks but besides helping support heavy gear ( you have no idea how many pieces have gotten custom rear attachments here) cable management just becomes so much easier. Consider building a separate frame from the actual side panels, easy removable sides can make all kinds of housekeeping so easy. Whoa, that drawer thing is a great idea! |
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Post by drbill on Apr 3, 2022 14:04:23 GMT -6
Congrats Todd! Can't wait to see pics! Especially with it full.  . I like my racks looking like fine furniture, and my gear looking well used. LOL |
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Post by teejay on Apr 5, 2022 9:15:31 GMT -6
Anyone have any suggestions on how best to put the racks in so they align vertically, horizontally, and depth-wise? Just measuring seems to have its challenges, especially when it comes to side A and side B aligning horizontally.
Here's what I've considered:
- Mounting a rail on the left of side A, put two blank panels on both rails, use a level on the top of one of the blank panels to align the right rail vertically, clamp, then lay the unit down and level again on the face of a blank panel to achieve uniform depth. Will require some movement which may mean I'll mess up my vertical alignment. Side B would also have to be aligned visually with side A (line up blank panels from both sides).
- Mounting both rails in the center first. As there are larger holes in the mounting side of the rail, I could drill a hole (or two holes, top/bottom) all the way through the center wood and use a bolt/nut through the rail/wood/rail to align them vertically with each other. Then work outward on both sides using the same leveling technique mentioned above.
- Have also thought about making a template out of cardboard to mark holes, using painter's tape as a guide, 1x2's clamped as a guide, etc.
Spent about 1.5 hours trying to do it with just the level and marking 1/2" in from the front and it just isn't working well. Fortunately all of the small screw holes will be covered up by the rail. Right now this is seeming like the hardest part!
If anyone who has done this can chime in, I'm open.
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Post by Ned Ward on Apr 5, 2022 9:41:10 GMT -6
I used a wooden block below the rack ears to have the same spacing and screwed in a rack screw to have the depth so the screws were flush with the front. clamps are your friend, and with a wood spacer you can clamp the rail in place while drilling.
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Post by jeremygillespie on Apr 5, 2022 9:44:35 GMT -6
Measuring is the best way. If what your piece sits on isn’t perfectly level, then your rails and blank panel won’t be level, and you’ll wind up going in circles.
Get a small adjustable hand square, set it at 1/2”. Hold it on the edge of your panel and then hold a pencil tight to the end of the rule. Slide the hand square along the edge of the plywood and you’ll have a perfect 1/2” line drawn down the length of the board. Then but your rails up to the top of the rack, tape them in place if need be, drill pilot holes and then screw just the tops. Then screw in both bottoms to make sure everything is square and sitting correctly. Add additional screws for strength as needed.
You can also make up a small block of wood as a guide for how far inset the rack rails will go. Hold the rail in place against the wood and keep the wood block flush with the edge of your plywood box.
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Post by teejay on Apr 5, 2022 10:03:27 GMT -6
Thank you, Ned and Jeremy. Good advice, and I'll see if I can make those adjustments work.
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Post by Tbone81 on Apr 5, 2022 10:05:06 GMT -6
Anyone have any suggestions on how best to put the racks in so they align vertically, horizontally, and depth-wise? Just measuring seems to have its challenges, especially when it comes to side A and side B aligning horizontally. Here's what I've considered: - Mounting a rail on the left of side A, put two blank panels on both rails, use a level on the top of one of the blank panels to align the right rail vertically, clamp, then lay the unit down and level again on the face of a blank panel to achieve uniform depth. Will require some movement which may mean I'll mess up my vertical alignment. Side B would also have to be aligned visually with side A (line up blank panels from both sides). - Mounting both rails in the center first. As there are larger holes in the mounting side of the rail, I could drill a hole (or two holes, top/bottom) all the way through the center wood and use a bolt/nut through the rail/wood/rail to align them vertically with each other. Then work outward on both sides using the same leveling technique mentioned above. - Have also thought about making a template out of cardboard to mark holes, using painter's tape as a guide, 1x2's clamped as a guide, etc. Spent about 1.5 hours trying to do it with just the level and marking 1/2" in from the front and it just isn't working well. Fortunately all of the small screw holes will be covered up by the rail. Right now this is seeming like the hardest part! If anyone who has done this can chime in, I'm open. In the past I've used blank panels and/or a cheap alesis 1u compressor to hold the rails in place relative to each other. One blank panel on the top rung, one blank on the bottom. Screw a single screw into one of the rails and leave it just loose enough that it pivots, place a second screw at the bottom of the same rail, but again loose enough that you have a little play. Hand tighten them so they're in a good position and then line up the next rail, held in place with the blank panels and do the same. Then re-tghten and/or add more screws to each side. I've done this on probably 8 different home made racks and never had an issue. |
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Post by teejay on Apr 5, 2022 11:36:59 GMT -6
I know this seems very straightforward on the surface, because all three panels should be the same in the rack. The issue is I had some difficulties when cutting one of them, and chose to make it work as-is. It's now the center panel, and thus the use of the hand square does not work on that panel. Measuring back-to-front would be more accurate, but that's in large-part why it is more complex than it should be.
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Post by Ward on Apr 7, 2022 7:01:07 GMT -6
Progress pictures would really help (me) for making suggestions! I'm sure you're doing great work tho
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Post by teejay on Apr 7, 2022 9:08:46 GMT -6
Thanks, Ward. Many great suggestions and feedback here, and while I've been wanting to wait until I could give you guys the perfect pictures, the reality is that could be a while yet. I'm actually completely done. The rub is that here in Illinois the weather has been so cold and rainy, the oil-based poly (even though it's the fast drying kind) is taking a while to off-gas. Brought the unit into the house on Tuesday to mount the rails, and by the time I was done the fumes in the basement were too much so back into the garage it went. We'll see how it is doing come this weekend, but the garage is still smelling pretty bad so I don't have high hopes. That being the case, I'm attaching a pic here of how it sits in the garage at the moment (which is a total mess right now from the construction). With all of the help you guys have been I don't want to make you wait any longer to see the outcome. I'll share additional pics once I have it inside and the gear racked. Two things you'll see I decided to add/do: 1. I trimmed out the edges of the plywood with contrasting strips instead of the iron-on edging (stained with Espresso color instead of painting so I could poly everything and keep woodgrain visible...I didn't want jet black); 2. I used 2-1/2" dual-sided grommets in the cable pass-throughs. Really won't be visible once equipment is in there, but thought that approach is a nice way to finish off the holes on both sides and protect the edges of the wood. I'll also respond back here in the near future with my final cost for materials, and some comments on the build/process. I'll also do a comparison between my build and the Audiorax unit I used for my plans. They certainly have professionally crafted products, and their same config/add-on's as I built costs $880 + taxes and freight. Will be interesting to see what my final numbers add up to. Once again, thanks to everyone here for your time, advice, challenges, and encouragement. I definitely learned what I would do differently the next time, but overall I'm pleased with the outcome. Todd ibb.co/R3dT6jy(Sorry for the link only...I can never figure out how to embed the linked images here.) |
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Post by svart on Apr 7, 2022 9:50:45 GMT -6
Thanks, Ward. Many great suggestions and feedback here, and while I've been wanting to wait until I could give you guys the perfect pictures, the reality is that could be a while yet. I'm actually completely done. The rub is that here in Illinois the weather has been so cold and rainy, the oil-based poly (even though it's the fast drying kind) is taking a while to off-gas. Brought the unit into the house on Tuesday to mount the rails, and by the time I was done the fumes in the basement were too much so back into the garage it went. We'll see how it is doing come this weekend, but the garage is still smelling pretty bad so I don't have high hopes. That being the case, I'm attaching a pic here of how it sits in the garage at the moment (which is a total mess right now from the construction). With all of the help you guys have been I don't want to make you wait any longer to see the outcome. I'll share additional pics once I have it inside and the gear racked. Two things you'll see I decided to add/do: 1. I trimmed out the edges of the plywood with contrasting strips instead of the iron-on edging (stained with Espresso color instead of painting so I could poly everything and keep woodgrain visible...I didn't want jet black); 2. I used 2-1/2" dual-sided grommets in the cable pass-throughs. Really won't be visible once equipment is in there, but thought that approach is a nice way to finish off the holes on both sides and protect the edges of the wood. I'll also respond back here in the near future with my final cost for materials, and some comments on the build/process. I'll also do a comparison between my build and the Audiorax unit I used for my plans. They certainly have professionally crafted products. However, with the same config/add-on's as I built their unit costs $880 + taxes and freight. Will be interesting to see what my final numbers add up to. Once again, thanks to everyone here for your time, advice, challenges, and encouragement. I definitely learned what I would do differently the next time, but overall I'm pleased with the outcome. Todd ibb.co/R3dT6jy(Sorry for the link only...I can never figure out how to embed the linked images here.) You talked about it a little critically, but it looks great! Congrats. There is nothing quite like building something yourself that suits your needs and scratches the itch to create. As I mentioned earlier, a straight piece of 1x4 and some clamps can become your cutting guide for straight cuts. There is also these: www.amazon.com/Bora-Woodworking-Contractors-Carpenters-545050/dp/B084PY6Y5W/ref=asc_df_B084PY6Y5W?tag=bingshoppinga-20&linkCode=df0&hvadid=80745477063859&hvnetw=o&hvqmt=e&hvbmt=be&hvdev=c&hvlocint=&hvlocphy=&hvtargid=pla-4584345025466582&psc=1Which I have one of the Harbor Freight cheapo knockoffs that I picked up for maybe 20$. It works fine but has some gremlins you have to look out for when using it, so sometimes the 1x4 and clamps just work better and easier. A table saw is great for straight cuts down the axis of the board, but once you try cutting at a diagonal they become somewhat difficult if not dangerous to use and this is where a circular saw and guide are better. |
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Post by teejay on Apr 7, 2022 11:02:58 GMT -6
Thanks for the kind words, svart . The first angle cut was the bad one. I errantly used a 1x2 flat with a clamp at each end for the guide on that one and it bowed at one point (used the other 3/4" plywood panels after that). That and the plywood 150-tooth saw blade seemed too thin and was prone to bending/warping at points in time. I chose to make the bad angle cut the center and glue/clamp/nail the trim piece to conform. In hindsight with the time and dollars invested that was a bad decision. I should have either made a trip and bought another panel, or I could have simply recut the angle leaving the back of the center piece sitting in a few inches from the back. That approach would have had no impact on the construction, and wouldn't have been noticeable once the gear is in place and the unit pushed against the wall. What is noticeable, and what will bug me from here on out is the fact that the center piece is not cut evenly, and at this point cannot be made right. (When my wife questions why I didn't just spend another $40 for a new panel, I know I was not thinking.) Part of that mistake lies in my doing projects like this only occasionally, and part of it lies in me letting my desire to get it done quickly take the place of stopping right then and there and really thinking it through. So to continue the learning (confession), other things include: - Buying pine trim pieces because that's all they had at one Menard's vs. looking at the other Menard's for oak...which I found yesterday they do have. And the pine trim being about a 16th of an inch wider than the plywood, so having to let it hang over the outsides a bit rather than cramping the rack area...the oak trim being exactly 3/4". - Could have used the iron-on roll on the back of the unit...maybe not worth the expense. - Should have turned the bottom pieces 90 degrees so the woodgrain aligned all the way around on the inside (I know, no one will ever see that). - Should have just hand-tightened the T-Nuts for the wheels. I gently tightened with a socket wrench and pulled them a bit too much into the face of the plywood...probably should have used a solid piece of oak on the inside to give them something more stable to embed into. Right now I've got five 1/2" wood screws holding each rail. Hoping that will be adequate. I wanted black truss headed ones and had to special order (shipping was more than twice the cost of the screws!). So I'm spilling some of my construction errors and frustrations. These are the things that bug me and I wish I had more experience to figure out before I started. That being said, I still enjoyed doing it, it still came out good overall, will be extremely functional, and didn't cost me what the retail versions go for. And other than pics here, I'm the only one who will ever see it! |
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Post by Ward on Apr 8, 2022 5:26:27 GMT -6
Thanks, Ward. Many great suggestions and feedback here . . . SNIP Looks great, Todd! 1. Is it a double 24 space? 2. Did you use oak veneered plywood? 3. What did you use for finish, stain and sealer all-in-one? 4. Did you brush, roll or spray it on? 5. Any other advice you can give to the congregation? Thanks! |
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Post by teejay on Apr 8, 2022 7:46:24 GMT -6
Thanks, Ward. Many great suggestions and feedback here . . . SNIP Looks great, Todd! 1. Is it a double 24 space? 2. Did you use oak veneered plywood? 3. What did you use for finish, stain and sealer all-in-one? 4. Did you brush, roll or spray it on? 5. Any other advice you can give to the congregation? Thanks! Planning to give more construction details if there is interest, but to answer your questions: 1. It is 16Ux2, so a total of 32 spaces. Based on this2. Yes, 3/4” 2’x4’ oak veneered plywood. Plywood3. Varathane oil-based stain, Minwax fast-drying satin polyurethane. Stain Poly4. Actually did two coats of stain because I didn’t like the look of the first one. Started with light cherry that I brushed on, but it looked too reddish-orange. Put on a second coat of traditional cherry that I wiped on with a rag. Poly was brushed on. 5. I’ll include more details later, but one of the best pieces of advice I followed was using a piece of 1" styrofoam insulation under the plywood to support the entire piece as I cut. That and setting the blade depth about 1/8” through, as well as using blue painters tape over the cut line on the top surface to help stop splintering of the veneer. And don't buy cheap saw blades. |
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Post by teejay on Apr 8, 2022 14:11:00 GMT -6
I'm using an M20 roller rack for some (mostly) tube gear I've acquired over the last year. It's serviceable. It could use a sturdier set of casters, though. Still, no issues thus far. Missed this post before, srb . I did see the M20, and gave serious consideration to buying it or building it. Really like the look of that, and even went through the process of mocking it up in Visio to see if I could increase the rack space. Ultimately I ended up wanting a bit more space than the M20 provides without taking up more floor space. The model I built was easier for me to plan, cut, and assemble with the tools I have. The M20 is a very cool and functional unit, however. |
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Post by srb on Apr 8, 2022 17:04:36 GMT -6
I'm using an M20 roller rack for some (mostly) tube gear I've acquired over the last year. It's serviceable. It could use a sturdier set of casters, though. Still, no issues thus far. Missed this post before, srb . I did see the M20, and gave serious consideration to buying it or building it. Really like the look of that, and even went through the process of mocking it up in Visio to see if I could increase the rack space. Ultimately I ended up wanting a bit more space than the M20 provides without taking up more floor space. The model I built was easier for me to plan, cut, and assemble with the tools I have. The M20 is a very cool and functional unit, however. @teejay, I admire your getting after a build like this. I'm looking forward to seeing some pics here soon! |
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Post by teejay on Apr 10, 2022 14:20:07 GMT -6
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Post by srb on Apr 10, 2022 19:09:12 GMT -6
Looks really nice! Bound to be satisfying. Congratulations!
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Post by mike on Apr 10, 2022 20:41:29 GMT -6
Nice Job Todd,....really looks great!
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Post by gwlee7 on Apr 11, 2022 16:34:33 GMT -6
Well done sir!
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Post by Bat Lanyard on Apr 12, 2022 22:41:45 GMT -6
teejay looks great, man! Well done.
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