DIY racks Oct 21, 2017 11:20:27 GMT 12
- Edited Oct 21, 2017 11:20:43 GMT 12 by Owen Y
Post by Owen Y on Oct 21, 2017 11:20:27 GMT 12
This is a thread for DIY equipment racks of any sort..... This well-known rack design was mentioned recently, sometimes called a Flexi-rack. Sometimes it's built with stainless steel rods - there are many variations. I've never tried one myself.   
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Post by Owen Y on Oct 21, 2017 11:29:36 GMT 12
I've never seen one in marble before.... 
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DIY racks Oct 21, 2017 11:34:35 GMT 12
- Edited Oct 21, 2017 11:35:22 GMT 12 by Owen Y
Post by Owen Y on Oct 21, 2017 11:34:35 GMT 12
If you don't care much for the raw threaded rod look.... you could always sleeve the rods, with tube or use tapped round bar: 
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Post by deano1974 on Oct 22, 2017 9:37:29 GMT 12
Great system and sooo many options for materials and configurations  
Manager & Product specialist at Rapallo AV & HI-FI
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Post by michaelw on Oct 22, 2017 11:22:56 GMT 12
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Post by Owen Y on Oct 22, 2017 12:37:43 GMT 12
Ivor would approve 
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Post by Owen Y on Oct 22, 2017 12:41:40 GMT 12
Wood racks... This should probably post under Listening Rooms, but I've always liked this tidy setup... 
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Member
Post by simon on Oct 24, 2017 15:01:43 GMT 12
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Post by Owen Y on Oct 24, 2017 15:12:05 GMT 12
Plenty of isolation there, simon 
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Post by Deleted on Oct 24, 2017 19:27:31 GMT 12
Good thread. I'm contemplating a build myself. Have been gathering up off cuts of laminated/finger jointed 4x4 at work... M20 threaded rod? Maybe but I'd like to try something a little more... Keep the pics coming boys...
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Post by cooksferry on Oct 24, 2017 20:50:19 GMT 12
I built a three legged flexi rack many years ago. Worked well and easy to make for the most ham fisted. I think the TNT Audio site may have been the catalyst for many efforts. www.tnt-audio.com/clinica/flexye.html
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Post by foveaux on Oct 25, 2017 10:10:24 GMT 12
My 'home-baked' 3 leg TNT Flexi-rack:  Does a good job.
"I see music as a lifetime affair." [Rory Gallagher]
"Free - I miss that band, but when I look back, we were very young" [Paul Rodgers]
863 posts
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Post by cooksferry on Oct 25, 2017 11:40:21 GMT 12
My 'home-baked' 3 leg TNT Flexi-rack: Does a good job. Your Q/town setup? Do the power amps give off much heat?
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Post by cooksferry on Oct 25, 2017 11:43:29 GMT 12
Wood racks... This should probably post under Listening Rooms, but I've always liked this tidy setup... looks very nice but I always wonder about any negative effects with big tubes in a fairly enclosed space. Never really been game to put my amp on a rack, like to have open space above it.
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DIY racks Oct 25, 2017 12:28:08 GMT 12
- Edited Oct 25, 2017 14:51:11 GMT 12 by Owen Y
Post by Owen Y on Oct 25, 2017 12:28:08 GMT 12
Yes, heat ventilation is definitely a prime consideration for tubes & rack design. We want to promote the 'chimney effect' - vertical hot-air movement. But I would start first by checking the design of the amplifier, eg. whether the tubes are generously spaced & ventilated, esp high wattage power tubes & rectifiers. The enclosed tubes in the Shindo preamp above look questionable in this regard, but one would need to look at the watts heat dissipation of the tubes used - there are top chassis holes of course & I presume also bottom air entry. With open shelves like the above, there's quite a bit of fresh air around & I'd be more concerned about the effect of heat on finished woodwork - eg. the underside of those shelves.
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Post by Graham on Oct 25, 2017 14:13:05 GMT 12
Yes, agreed heat from valves can be an issue.
When I installed my valve amp into my rudimentary rack I found the heat on the underside of the top shelf was excessive.
You can see my simple fix was to elevate the top to provide more clearance and greater air flow. 
 where can i upload photos
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Pundit
DIY racks Oct 25, 2017 19:07:29 GMT 12
- Edited Oct 25, 2017 19:08:25 GMT 12 by neilsan
Post by neilsan on Oct 25, 2017 19:07:29 GMT 12
I've fastened sheets of metal loosely on long screws above my amp in my cabinet so that there's about a 10mm gap between the sheet and the wood.Also have a sheet beside the amp protecting the closest timber.
Found without the metal in place that the timber got too hot to touch, but with the metal in place no worries.
Also removed the cabinet door.
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Post by Owen Y on Oct 25, 2017 20:12:06 GMT 12
I've fastened sheets of metal loosely on long screws above my amp in my cabinet so that there's about a 10mm gap between the sheet and the wood.Also have a sheet beside the amp protecting the closest timber. Found without the metal in place that the timber got too hot to touch, but with the metal in place no worries. Also removed the cabinet door. The metal acts as both heat shield & heat sink Next, spray the metal black!
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DIY racks Oct 26, 2017 16:22:28 GMT 12
- Edited Oct 26, 2017 16:26:53 GMT 12 by Deleted: Excited by my newfound punditry...
Post by Deleted on Oct 26, 2017 16:22:28 GMT 12
Musing aloud here... I've a good pile of 4x4 laminated, finger jointed pine that I'd been thinking would form the basis of a new rack... But 40 or even 50mm rhs is another option open to me. Sand filled. I have my SL600s on stands of the same construction and they're insanely heavy - 50kg per stand - but also insanely effective... And this is the method of construction I'd earmarked for a TT stand... I could extend this idea to a full rack but the diabolical weight of such a thing would require that it be easily dismantled which may require the kind of design compromise that would render the whole endeavour moot... Countersunk cap screws into discrete tabs at each join is the first thing that springs to mind. How much of a compromise would this be in terms of mass and vibration transference etc I wonder? My vague ideas around a TT stand from rhs had always included welded seams which, with a bit of grinding, polishing and a few coats of matte black paint would become invisible... Hmmmm. Feel free to comment and or pick me apart... Do it once, do it right... Hive mind and all that guff...
on another note, I notice I'm now a 3star Pundit... What does this mean I wonder? I like it. Does staff writer come next? 🤔 Gonzo HiFi journalism is what is needed to bring the youf back into the fold... ✌️🤘
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Post by foveaux on Oct 26, 2017 16:35:23 GMT 12
Hi Cooks, Yes, the Ecofans are at Qtown now. I did notice some heat build up last weekend after a 2 hour listening session. I'll have to monitor that this summer. However, I can increase the airspace above the amps by simply adjusting shelf heights. (The bottom shelf currently houses a printer that can be removed elsewhere if necessary)
"I see music as a lifetime affair." [Rory Gallagher]
"Free - I miss that band, but when I look back, we were very young" [Paul Rodgers]
863 posts
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DIY racks Oct 26, 2017 19:19:05 GMT 12
- Edited Oct 26, 2017 19:20:08 GMT 12 by Owen Y
Post by Owen Y on Oct 26, 2017 19:19:05 GMT 12
Graham..... are those metal bits all held together with Blutak, or did you employ clever screw connections?
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Post by Graham on Oct 26, 2017 19:54:57 GMT 12
Blutak !!!!! I'll have you know it is all held together with threaded capscrews. !!
The capscrews are fitted from the top down through the alloy tubes into fittings in the sides.
Angle alloy hides the raw edge as well as providing some reinforcement.
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Post by Graham on Jul 30, 2020 14:39:07 GMT 12
It's surprising what you can do with redundant office furniture ! A no longer needed office credenza has become a very practical hi fi rack. The original sliding doors were cut down and hinged to provided smaller doors to hide my diy rcm and various odds and ends. Large openings were cut into the rear panel for wiring access and cooling for the valve amp. The photos are just a dummy set up as it will be installed against the side wall.   
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Pundit
Post by LinnBoy on Jul 30, 2020 15:03:25 GMT 12
It's surprising what you can do with redundant office furniture ! A no longer needed office credenza has become a very practical hi fi rack. The original sliding doors were cut down and hinged to provided smaller doors to hide my diy rcm and various odds and ends. Large openings were cut into the rear panel for wiring access and cooling for the valve amp. The photos are just a dummy set up as it will be installed against the side wall. is the credenza king, if I remember correctly. 😀
I am a non-recovering audioholic, and Ivor is my higher power.
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DIY racks Jul 30, 2020 16:02:30 GMT 12
- Edited Jul 30, 2020 20:55:21 GMT 12 by Owen Y
Post by Owen Y on Jul 30, 2020 16:02:30 GMT 12
Excellent re-purposing Graham. Are the legs sturdy short metal ones?
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Post by foveaux on Jul 30, 2020 17:46:52 GMT 12
foveaux is the credenza king, if I remember correctly. 😀 yahaha LinnBoy... yr memory is exceptional. 'good ol' days' eh? ["... it's not a Board Room without a credenza..." (Mrs B)] 
"I see music as a lifetime affair." [Rory Gallagher]
"Free - I miss that band, but when I look back, we were very young" [Paul Rodgers]
863 posts
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Post by michaelw on Jul 30, 2020 18:21:54 GMT 12
A credenza is a posh sideboard
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DIY racks Jul 30, 2020 20:37:33 GMT 12
- Edited Jul 30, 2020 20:55:02 GMT 12 by Owen Y
Post by Graham on Jul 30, 2020 20:37:33 GMT 12
Excellent re-purposing Graham . Are the legs sturdy short metal ones? Yes my 'posh sideboard ' has short steel legs with rubber feet.
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