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jimsiff
05-06-2005, 01:27 PM
I'm just finishing my DIY TV stand. I was inspired by the work people were showing off in the BYO TV Stand thread on AVS. I took the Salamander Designs Triple 20 idea and built one to my specs. I made it wider to accomodate the Ascend 340C. :D I made it deeper to accomodate my receiver, and shorter so the viewing height was correct.

I used maple plywood and solid maple trim instead of veneered MDF. I have a 1 year old, so I didn't want sharp corners and fluted edges like Salamander uses. I found quarter round t-slot tubing for the corner posts and rounded the corners and bullnosed the edges of the top and bottom pieces.

The center channel shelf sits on L brackets from tslots.com. I routed a recess for each bracket so the shelf fits snugly over the brackets. The front is flush with the front edge of the stand so the 340C can be as far forward as possible.

The other shelves are maple ply with iron on edge banding. I used Salamander shelf pegs for these shelves. I still need to make doors for the outside compartments. I finished it using natural Danish Oil.

It was a fun project and I saved a bundle doing it.

curtis
05-06-2005, 01:58 PM
I really like it!!

I want one!

bikeman
05-06-2005, 02:01 PM
I am SO jealous. Nice job, Jim. For my home theatre, we (i.e. my wife) have a beautiful home entertainment center that sucks as anything but funiture. No practicality and difficult to get to the electronics. It weighs 300 lbs so moving it is not much of an option. I see some nice similarities between your set-up and Curtis's.

David

curtis
05-06-2005, 02:07 PM
David,

I have a friend that has furniture sliders under her entertainment center. They seem to work very well.


I see some nice similarities between your set-up and Curtis's.
In hindsight, I would like to have doors on mine. Cleaner look and helps keep the dust out.

Nicholas Mosher
05-06-2005, 02:43 PM
Jim that looks incredible!

Beautiful work! :eek:

jojo
05-06-2005, 02:54 PM
that tv stand looks amazing. It looks professional. I wonder if you did any step by step pictures.

jimsiff
05-06-2005, 03:37 PM
that tv stand looks amazing. It looks professional. I wonder if you did any step by step pictures.

No step by step procedures, but I remember it all. I just put my own twist on the Salamander concept. I had a few sketches and rough dimensions before I started, but I didn't document it well. That's not of my strong points as my boss will attest. :D

I could write up basic instructions pretty quickly. If anyone's interested I will post some instructions and a bill of materials. You can make the stand easier or harder to build depending on what kind of tools you have available and what options you'd want to include in the stand.

chas
05-07-2005, 08:44 PM
If anyone's interested I will post some instructions and a bill of materials.

That would be appreciated. Nice looking stand!

BradJudy
05-08-2005, 08:14 AM
That looks great. As I said in the other thread, this is exactly the type of thing I am planning on building this spring. What size t-slots did you use?

jimsiff
05-08-2005, 04:25 PM
That looks great. As I said in the other thread, this is exactly the type of thing I am planning on building this spring. What size t-slots did you use?

I used the 1515 Light series from tslots.com which is 1.5"x1.5", and is slightly thinner aluminum than the standard 1515 series. For the corners, I used 1515 Quarter Round which is also a Light series extrusion. The center hole in the extrusion is exactly the right size for a 5/16x18 tap. That is also the thread size on the Salamander hardware.

The 1515-L is $0.42 per inch, and the 1515-QR is $0.36 per inch. They charge extra for cut to length and tapping services. I tapped them myself because I wasn't sure what thread pattern Salamander used ahead of time. Here's the part #'s and what I paid for my tubing:

650006 15-15L 16" x4 $ 6.72 $26.88
660003 cut to length x4 $ 1.85 $ 7.20
650041 15-15QR 16" x4 $ 5.76 $23.04
660003 cut to length x4 $ 1.85 $ 7.20
TOTAL $64.32

BradJudy
05-08-2005, 10:00 PM
Thanks Jim. I sent them a note asking about pricing and minimum order sizes. It sounds like I won't have to worry about minimum order size. I also asked if they do black anodizing since that would be my preferred color.

It looks like Salamander sells a sliding shelf. Too bad it's too narrow for a 340 (the width of the center is one of the reasons for building my own).

jimsiff
05-09-2005, 12:47 AM
Thanks Jim. I sent them a note asking about pricing and minimum order sizes. It sounds like I won't have to worry about minimum order size. I also asked if they do black anodizing since that would be my preferred color.

It looks like Salamander sells a sliding shelf. Too bad it's too narrow for a 340 (the width of the center is one of the reasons for building my own).

I never talked to tslots directly. I ordered through a local distributor. I'm pretty sure they'd do anodizing. Some of the other vendors will, but I would expect an upcharge. I know 8020.net has one.

Take a look at the installation instructions for the Salamander sliding shelf. It looks like they took a standard low dollar side mount drawer slide and drilled holes in the edges so they could use standard flat nuts and button head bolts to attach it to the posts. You could take a look at the drawer slides available at Home Depot. If there's enough clearance for the bolt head between the two slide pieces, you might be able to drill holes in the stand mounted piece and use flat nuts and bolts available from tslots to attach it. There's no reason you couldn't create your own solution.

Alternately, you could call Salamander and ask them if their drawer slides are available for purchase without purchasing the shelf to go with it. If you go this route, be aware that you'll need to make your stand the same depth as the Salamander stand or the mounting holes won't line up. You could modify the slides to accomodate greater depth by bolting on a piece of steel or aluminum stock the same length as your required depth.

sygyzy
08-02-2005, 11:56 AM
Jim,

Have you ever thought about selling "kits" of your stands? I am sure you could make some profit and still cost less than Salamander.

Also, how do the Salamander flat panel mounts work? Are they simily steel bars that you attach a panel wall mount to? In other words, would I still need to purchase a wall mount for my plasma or would the plasma connect directly to the Salamander part?