OT: Record Racks

Saw some expensive alternatives that worked and some cheap alternatives that looked bad or were weak. So I built my own. This rack can be built from between 100-200 dollars depending on aesthetic need.
http://www.superbadcat.com/images/recordrack1.jpg
http://www.superbadcat.com/images/recordrack2.jpg
http://www.superbadcat.com/images/recordrack3.jpg

The metal rack was around 70 bucks at home depot.
The plastic drop clips I found in the conduit area at home depot.
The wood...well use whatever your budget allows.
Maybe someone can use this info... enjoy! :)

Cool use of the wire rack. I've used those and like your addition of the wood.

Think it will take the weight of all that vinyl?

Nice job Steve.

Nice presentation!
I've used them, with pieces of 'dog cage grid' the thick wire from a discarded dog cage - easiest to cut with bolt-cutters fwiw. Secure with nye-ties. Of course it doesn't look as pretty as wood... but you can also angle the grid to allow some lean, and create sub-divisions within a shelf with them as needed.

I used to wait to buy them when they went on sale @ Tar-jay, typically for @ ~$30 /set for their largest ones. I think I've seen them comperable to that normally elsewhere since, but have not been in the market for a while.

They can also be modded fairly easily to be a rack unit - if you have extra rack rails laying about. The old 'studio' was one complete wall including the improvised rack unit approach - about 15ft long. With multiple sets, you can also get 1.5x the width out of each pair of units, by sharing of the supports - but you have to design for it first, as making changes after the fact requires complete tear down and rebuild of course.

I recommend a rubber mallet, or (probably better, but don't have one) a dead blow hammer for putting them together securely/disassy. The rubber mallet can/will bounce back on you of course. A pair of vice-grips can help to stabilize the position of the shims as needed (but you may want to pad w/cardboard lest they marr the support).


Also note that the thread on the little plastic feet used for these is typically a standard 1/4" SAE thread, so you can make use of the foot anchor inserts (bottom of pole) to either mount them (e.g. on a dolly, securely, using the feet or proper similar bolts) ...or insert casters which utilize the same thread - use of the casters is iffy though, as if they are too tall, with use, they will cause the anchor to pop out... leaving you with a several hundred pound leaning tower of vinyl - and no way to get the caster back on without risking catastrophe. If attempting that again, I'd drill then reinforce/stabilize the foot insert with 3 or 4 short sheet-metal screws/similar first (before assy of the shelves).

(Home depot carries the casters - spec'd/packaged for use on rolling tool benches or some such. Harbor Freight also typically has a selection)

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Panomaniac

Think it will take the weight of all that vinyl?

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The shelves IIRC, are generally rated @ 300lbs per shelf on the black painted Chinese made ones... so I think they suffice on that spec, but check your own box to be sure. US made (IIRC) 'Metro' ones ($$$) should have higher ratings and generally stouter construction - and you should also be able to buy actual Metro spec'd casters for use with them.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Steve Mac

This rack can be built from between 100-200 dollars depending on aesthetic need.

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Slick!

GM

Nice Job Steve ! They look really nice! One other thing I like to do WRT vinyl LP's is to keep them in boxes.Plastic corrugated Boxes,no matter how clean ones home is vinyl is loaded with static.And therefore becomes a dust magnet ....

http://www.bagsunlimited.com/c-277-storage-boxes.aspx

I have since bought these boxes and I am quite pleased with them keeping the LP's cleaner and dust free as we all know how hard it is to listen to a crackling,popping,record.I also use the original Discwasher poly/rice-paper sleeves V.R.P. Valuable-Record-Protector

LP sleaves

Thanks Steve for some ideas ! :2thumbsup:

Thanks guys.
The shelves I'm pretty sure are rated for 250 lbs. but we'll see if some dividers are needed to prevent bowing. Gonna try it first without em...lazy guy I am.
The goal was to do it as cheaply as possible with the minimum amount of work.
...but did not want something that looked like it fell off the back of a truck...though I hear that's the latest fashion. ;)

The records I'm putting here are pretty cool...they were my Dad's collection and he acquired a nice amount of interesting LPs around the late 50s/early 60s time frame which is just an awesome period of music...I'll probably take some pics to share soon. Cool!

A neat furniture-piece solution, Steve.:2thumbsup: If you put a back on it you will keep dust out of the albums.

Good equipment rack, also.

Aussies, this frame(or similar) is available at Officeworks in 2 widths for this depth and height.


My effort is not as elegant. A flat-pack ledger file "bookcase" from Officeworks-often on sale at a very much reduced price. Several heights available.

I added a 1"x3/4" pine strip to each panel to increase the carcase and shelf depth. Dividers are necessary for shelf support but not as many as I fitted.

Cheers, Marshall.

For LP storage I currently use a combination of surplus steel shelves and 2 by 4 vertical supports held together with 1/4" machine hardware, bolted to a bedroom wall and providing room for about thirty six feet of LPs. This has worked out fine, although I currently own way too many records to enjoy them all properly, and I find that viewing the spines only is a bit inconvenient.

I remember fondly the record storage units I built in the late 1970s. Armed with particle board, a Skill saw and spray paint I was dangerous! Two cabinets functioned as bookshelf speaker stands with record storage underneath, and another served as a stand for my 19" TV also with record storage underneath. The records were arranged as in a record store, i.e. you thumbed through them with the jacket fronts facing you. Funny, I think I enjoyed the relatively few LPs I had back then more than all the ones I have now. It seems to get harder and harder to "buy a thrill" as one gets older.

Well...the job is done...the shelves are plenty strong!
http://www.superbadcat.com/images/recordrack4.jpg
http://www.superbadcat.com/images/recordrack5.jpg
The bad news is...now I need another rack for my old records. :)