Searching AVS, I found many references to people using furring strips that they say are 1" thick. However, when I look at their pictures, I see pre-cut 1x wood which is actually only 3/4" thick. Since Linacoustic is 1" thick, this would seem to be a problem.

Doesn't the 1/4" difference cause a slight bulge? Are people finding 1x strips that are actually 1" thick? I was looking at 1x3 and 1x4 strips at Lowes and everything was actually 1/4" less than advertised.

Many have used 3/4" without much difficulty. I guess the linacoustic is compressed slightly at it tapers down to the furring strip by the fabric. Others have made a true 1" furring stips by ripping wood and laminating pieces together.

Cool, Thanks.

tlllava - go to home depot or lowes and look for corner boards. They should have a tag 5/4" x 4"x8". Rip those in half for 1" x roughly 1.x" wide. They are around 4.99 per board and you get 16 feet.

I ripped 1/2" off of some 2x2's (which are really 1-1/2" square), making them 1" thick.

5 minutes with he table saw was all it took. The fact that the strips are 1-1/2" wide allowed me to put a pair side-by-side to act as backing for my crown, basboard, and chair rail:


http://caesare.homeip.net:32171/basement/slides/IMG_1890.jpg

More pics (http://caesare.homeip.net:32171/basement/slides/IMG_1890.htm)

The best option is either fir or cedar SPF. This is 1 inch thick (called 5 quarters for a reason known only to the lumber gods) and in varying widths. It is pre-primed and used most often for exterior trim. It comes in 20 foot lengths. We used almost 50 pieces in our theater. Available at almost any lumber yard.

The cedar is very straight but very spendy and should be glued with polyurethane. The Fir is cheaper but you need to hand select for straight. If you are doing fabric panels, be sure that if your panels are large, it is wide enough to resist bending when you stretch the fabric. 2 inch minimum for fir and 3 for the softer cedar.

I read an article that explained the lumber measurements some time ago. From what I got from it, when the lumber is first cut, it does measure accurately (a 2x4 is 2" x 4") but when it goes through the drying process, it shrinks, so a 2x4 becomes 1 1/2 x 3 1/2.

I have found that many times, the thicknesses are inconsistent, esp. with PT lumber, I got a batch of PT 1x6 once, and the widths varied from 4 7/8 to 5 3/8. I ended up having to rip them to a consistent width.

if anyone wants a listing of what the actual sizes are click here (http://www.arnoldlumber.com/size.html)

I haven't made any for my build yet, but will start next week. my plan is to sandwich 2 pieces of 1/2" MDF together to build the frame. I got the idea from GPowers' thread....(although he used mdf + ply)

Drat. I already picked up some 1" strips and didn't even see the 5/4" board. I'll have to go back tomarrow and look for that. Thanks a bunch for everyone's input.

I finally found some 5/4 board at the 3rd Home Depot I checked. My usual Depot didn't carry it and the second was out.

Boy, is 5/4 board expensive! $5.95 for a 5/4x4x8 board. I think the 1x4x8 was $2.50 or $3 by comparison so anyone looking to save a few bucks (could be $100 depending on the size of your job) should use the 1x boards.

But, hey, who ever said home theater was a cheap hobby? I went ahead and got the 5/4 board.

I bought several 2"x6"x 8 foot kiln dried lumber.

Next, I had someone rip the boards into 1" thick strips. I THINK he used a band saw.

Each board gave me 5 good 1" thick x1 3/4" wide x 8 foot furring strips.

Voila!

All it cost me was a six pack of beer. (Plus the boards, of course)

Worked like a champ, and saved me from those pesky 5/4" boards....
As usual, YMMV...
Best,
Tom
Chinaclipper

As it turns out, Linacoustic is about 7/8" to 15/16" thick (29/32"?). So, you could easily get away with 1" thick furring strips (which are 3/4" thick) rather than 5/4" board (which is 1" thick.) In the attached picture, I've laid a piece of 1" and 5/4" board next to some Linacoustic to show the difference. The linacoustic is from the start of the role and had all night to expand. (It's compressed on the role.)

The 1" furring strip is definately thinner than the Linacoustic, but not by that much. Remember that 5/4" board is harder to find and cost double what 1" boards do so many people may choose to save the money.

Remember that 5/4" board is harder to find and cost double what 1" boards do so many people may choose to save the money.
True, but given what the Linacoustic and GOM cost, it seems to me a pretty minor savings...

With regard to making GOM panels backed with Linacoustic - we have just finished doing a LOT of them so here is my advice (repeated from another thread):

After doing about 60 panels in sizes from 12 x 18 to 45 x 60, I have found there are four things that are important.

1) TIGHT. You cannot get a big panel tight enough w/o making a jig to hold the frame on one side and use a bar with the fabric clamped between it on the other side to pull it tight. We made a jig as part of a table (4 x 8 plywood screwed to sawhorses and weighted with sandbags). We stapled the FR701 to one long side and then clamped the other long side between two 1 x 4 strips with 5 C-Clamps. Then TWO people pulled on the fabric as hard as possible before wrapping and stapling it.

2) Be sure that the panels in the area subject to impact (mostly below elbow level) are backed right behind the fabric wherever possible. 1 inch Linacoustic works well for this for 1 inch panels/frames and this usually works out for acoustics. The Linacoustic panels should be glued to the wall behind the frame. 3M Super 77 spray works great for this!

3) Make sure the frames are wide enough so that the fabric tension will not bow them. Depending on the wood used, at least 2 and as much as 4 inches wide.

4) If possible, screw the frames to the wall at least every 16 inches along each side - this will help to keep the fabric from bowing the frames.

We have had the frames in place for 6 weeks for some of the big panels with no evidence of sagging and casual contact does not seem to affect them. In our case (see below) nearly all the walls are fabric panels.

http://nightskypictures.com/theater/Front.jpg

As it turns out, Linacoustic is about 7/8" to 15/16" thick (29/32"?). So, you could easily get away with 1" thick furring strips (which are 3/4" thick) rather than 5/4" board (which is 1" thick.) In the attached picture, I've laid a piece of 1" and 5/4" board next to some Linacoustic to show the difference. The linacoustic is from the start of the role and had all night to expand. (It's compressed on the role.)

The 1" furring strip is definately thinner than the Linacoustic, but not by that much. Remember that 5/4" board is harder to find and cost double what 1" boards do so many people may choose to save the money.

Actually - your image argues more for the 5/4" board than 1" due to the fact that the compression from any fabric will be visible or look puffy...I know because I tried it. Think of a fat woman wearing a juicy t-shirt 2 sizes too small... :D

Actually - your image argues more for the 5/4" board than 1" due to the fact that the compression from any fabric will be visible or look puffy

I agree - you also will benefit from gluing the Linacoustic to the wall - that will also help to control bulge.

Think of a fat woman wearing a juicy t-shirt 2 sizes too small... :D

There's an image I didn't need... :eek: