Custom Component Rack

Demiurge

Have any of you made one? Is it worth doing it yourself if you have all the tools and skills? Or would it still be "cheaper" buying one of those $400 racks?

I've come up with an interesting design and I'm thinking about giving it a shot. My Grandfather has been a carpenter since he was 18 and built all of the homes he lived in as an adult with him, my old man, and my uncle.

I wan't to do something to best minimize cable tangle problems. I also thought of adding a Surge Protector\Outlet to the back of it instead of it going on the floor. That way everything except the TV is condensed into one spot.

I'm not sure what wood I'd use on it, but I'd want to match my Cherry colored polk's that I'm still waiting on.

What are some things you'd add to a component rack if you could do so? Sliding shelf spots...So you could push a component backward to work on wiring in back? Wheels? Lighting FX?

Dave

Post pics of any you guys have made. I'm interested in whats out there.

Demiurge

Interesting

pjdami

My brother Anthony made a custom Flexy rack. It came out really nice. I ribbed him a bit about the bright cherry color but besides that its really nice. He built in some cable management stuff into it as well.

If you have some carpentry / staining skills you could turn out something really nice.

Here's the thread:

http://clubpolk.polkaudio.com/forum/showthread.php?s=&threadid=9748

Paul

goingganzo

flexi is a idea and so is bulding a cabinet. it is not that hard but you need a table say and a dato blade to do a good job and maybe a bisket joiner too. also a jug to drill evenley spaced holes for ajustable shelves. flexi is a very easy you cut how many shelves you need drill 4 wholes in them and put a threaded rod in all 4 wholes and use washers and nuts to adjust. can be made out of alot of materals and finished any way you want.

Demiurge

Yeah, I'm not going the rod way. I'm actually intending on making it a TV stand as well, or maybe just a stand alone piece thats low and has room on top for decorative stuff.

I wish I could show you guys a drawing of the design I have so far. I just know that the wood is really expensive these days and it's why i've been debating if it would just be worth buying one instead.

Ceruleance

I got a nice quality 3/4" wood, enough for 3 shelves, for 14 bucks. Beats $400. flexy is the way to go cheap, but I can understand its not for everyone. Your project sounds pretty ambitious, Id start smaller and if you like it you can add to it, or move that to system 2 and build another. by your second one you will have everything down and be really happy with your result

phoneisbusy

Originally posted by Demiurge
Yeah, I'm not going the rod way. I'm actually intending on making it a TV stand as well, or maybe just a stand alone piece thats low and has room on top for decorative stuff.

I wish I could show you guys a drawing of the design I have so far. I just know that the wood is really expensive these days and it's why i've been debating if it would just be worth buying one instead.

If you think wood is expensive, you may be in for a shock when you look at hardware for the rack! Two pair of extruded brass hinges cost more then half of what I paid for the wood. I ended up going with the cheaper stamped versions.

I think it'll all depend on a few factors.

a) Time. If you got a timeline for all this and it's rapidly approaching. You may want to consider buying one.

b) Style. If there's a rack that fits your taste and decor, it may
be worth buying it over building it. If you can't then building it
is an option.

c) Skill level. Ceruleance has a good point about being too ambitious. Of course if your grandfather is helping you out, that'll probably offset it.

I'm building my own because I need something that matches the magazine rack and shelf I've already built. The time issue has bitten me in the butt a few times also. But I also enjoy woodworking as it's an excuse to putter around the shop.

There was a recent issue of Fine Woodworking about designing entertainment centres. You may find that an interesting read. I've incorporated a few ideas from that article into mine.

As for interesting ideas or features. A friend showed me a server rack with slides out like a pantry shelf. There's a big lazy susan on it also so you can rotate the shelf out and get at all the wiring in the back. Couple of words. Cool. Expensive.

You might get some ideas about cable management from the server racks also. They usually have metal channels and straps to manage the cables.

Good luck

Dave

Demiurge

Thanks for the response.

I guess I should clarify. I'm not really a stooge when it comes to working with wood either, and we own a huge factory with all the industrial tools you could want.

I agree with the hardware, but I'm thinking that doing it myself will make it more for me, and have the features I want as opposed to spending a lot of money and settling on something with good quality, but sub par features.



Time isn't an issue. My roomate, with whom I've signed another year lease with has a $200 component rack already. It's ok, but I know i'll need one since all the equipment is mine and I need a place to put it when I do move out.