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Show me your wood columns/pillars!

128K views 98 replies 56 participants last post by  Nicolas Sole 
#1 ·
I am getting ready to build the columns or pillars on the side walls of my theater. Mine will be purely for looks, as they will not house my surround speakers. I think I would like to do something in a nice looking wood or some sort. I haven't done much carpentry yet, so I'm hoping to find something that looks very nice but isn't that hard to make. Also my theater is rather narrow (13' 7"), so I'm looking to make fairly small ones.


Could you show me pictures if you have wood columns? Also, any descriptions of what materials you used to make them would be very helpful. I have heard of lots of people using MDF for their columns, but I how to you make them look nice? A veneer perhaps?


To get an idea what I'm looking for, here are some columns that I love (hopefully David Rostowsky won't mind me posting the link). These columns would be perfect, but I'm no where near the carpenter that David is, plus I don't have a bisquit joiner and some other tools needed. So I'm looking for other options like these:

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showt...&post8919774


Thanks,

Guy
 
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#5 ·
I was going for the Roman-Gothic look. This involved round columns. As I wasn't able to talk the wife into letting me get a lathe that size, I had to order them on-line. HD had these, but in 8" diameter. Too big for my application. I ended up finding them at Pacific Columns .

The sales reps worked with me on the height, size and delivery charges.

They came with the column, cap, and base. Here they are in "position".



After trimming about a 1/2" off and mounting them, I primed with 2 coats of Kilz. I got a great deal from a painter in the neighborhood to marblize them.





After final painting and carpet... yep, that's what I was looking for





While I got the round ones, they may have the 1/2 rounds it sounds like you want. The alternative is building your own or cutting some down the middle with the handy dandy table saw.

Hope this helps.
 
#6 ·
I built some shallow columns for My Theater to frame my accoustic panels as well as to house my surround speakers. Constructed from clear pine and MDF pnale insets.


Side wall:



With lights up:



Speaker detail without grill (and before touchup):



With grill attached:



Rear wall surrounding fireplace (also houses rear surround speakers):



Distance Shot:
 
#8 ·

Quote:
Originally Posted by RxMan1 /forum/post/0


Those look very similiar to what I want to do. Your link didn't work for me. What is on the walls between the shallow columns? I mean specifically what are those acoustic panels made of. Also want the details of those columns if it isn't in your link.

That's what I get for not double-checking my link.
Fixed now.


The walls have acoustic panels built directly on to them. I ripped some 2x2's down to 1" thick, and used them to build frames directly on the wall. I then used cotton batting on the upper section for sound dispersion, and Linacoustic material on the bottom for sound (specifically bass) absorption. I then stretched material over the cotton/Linacoutc and frames and stapled it.


On the top and bottom, the staples are hidden by the crown moulding and baseboard. For the sides, the material was stretched around to the "sides" of the wall frames and stapled on the outsides of each frame. The spaces between each frame are where the columns were placed, this hiding the staples on the sides.


You can see some pictures on my site of this in-process.


I don't believe I have any pics of the column construction, but they are simply 1x4 clear pine ripped to the right size to make the face frames. The sides extend back only 2"or so, the column only extends past the 1" thick acoustical panels by about 1.75". Behind the face-frames is a 1/2" piece of OSB backing running the entire height of the column. In the center openings of the face frame, the routed panel inserts were glued in place. A buddy had a router jug and we made the panels out of MDF and painted them up. The OSB was cut out for the 4 columns housing speakers, and they were mounted instead of a panel.
 
#10 ·

Quote:
Originally Posted by RxMan1 /forum/post/0


Thanks for the working link. Those pictures are great! I might copy quite a bit of your design. How deep are your surround speakers in the columns? I'm hoping something like these slim columns will work in my room.

The speakers are in-walls, so they protrude about 3-1/4" out the back. I had to make sheetrock penetrations for the speakers, as my columns weren't that deep. I boxed the penetrations in, and then added extra insulation to help avoid sound transmission.
 
#11 ·
One of my favorite columns of recent (and the ones I plan to duplicate) are Ronnie Jackson's. Very elegant and most of all unique in shape. I think his design also allows the option of having columns in a fairly narrow room, since the top is deeper than the bottom.





Here's a drawing that he posted on his overall side dimensions. I've narrowed these dimensions a bit for my theater, but the overall look will be the same.

 
#12 ·

Quote:
Originally Posted by scaesare /forum/post/0


The speakers are in-walls, so they porotrude about 3-1/4" out the back. I had to make sheetrock penetrations for the speakers, as my columns weren't that deep. I boxed the penetrations in, and then added extra insulation to help avoid sound transmission.

I will have to go into the sheetrock as well to run the wires. I sent you a pm.
 
#14 ·
I stole,,,, err,, uhmm,, aaahh,,, was inspired by Danny's as well!




See my build thread for construction pics...


PS. Thanks Danny!


 
#15 ·
Hi Digital Man,


Here is the pillar I built but not for my theater. I installed it between living room and dining room to make it act like a divider or entrance. I'm thinking of doing the same design again for my future theater but I'll make some revisions so that it can accomodate surround speakers and a little bit of contemporary design.


You can see more detailed pics from this link .




Updated Nov 16:

My links above were dead. I corrected them. I'm including my latest columns which I did in the family room. Ceiling is also new.
However, the columns that I'm planning for my dream theater will be totally different.


Here are all the pictures during my family room renovation, this link .
 
#16 ·

Quote:
Originally Posted by Digital Man /forum/post/9682083


Could you show me pictures if you have wood columns? Also, any descriptions of what materials you used to make them would be very helpful. I have heard of lots of people using MDF for their columns, but I how to you make them look nice? A veneer perhaps?

Thanks,

Guy

Guy: Here are my wood trimmed columns. I used MDF, like so many others, and a thin veneer to cover.

Actually pretty fun to build, and I like the finished effect. I am NOT a carpenter and don't even portray one on TV, but I think it worked ok.

Best,

Tom

Chinaclipper
 
#19 ·
80% done on my 1920 Art Deco style HT. Incorporated a plaster column/pillar (from a landscape store) and then build wood boxes at the top and bottom of the pillar to finish them off from the pony wall to the celing. If you look at my sig file for the 1st HT I built you will see the pillars in their original state before I brought them acrosss country when we moved for the 2nd HT



 
#20 ·
My columns are 10" wide made of 1x4's ripped down to 2 5/8" wide with a bevel on one edge. I then put a 1/4" sheet of birch that is 9.5" wide for the front. To add some detail I added a 2" wide piece of trim around the top, some trim to form a rectangle down the face of the column, and a plain 1x4 wrapped around the bottom to match the base trim. Making the columns 2 5/8" thick allowed the finished piece to be flush with the crown mold above it (1/4" face + 1/2" thick piece of trim), which is a 1x4 width out from the wall.










Yes there is no trim around the second column yet, not quite finished...
 
#90 ·
My columns are 10" wide made of 1x4's ripped down to 2 5/8" wide with a bevel on one edge. I then put a 1/4" sheet of birch that is 9.5" wide for the front. To add some detail I added a 2" wide piece of trim around the top, some trim to form a rectangle down the face of the column, and a plain 1x4 wrapped around the bottom to match the base trim. Making the columns 2 5/8" thick allowed the finished piece to be flush with the crown mold above it (1/4" face + 1/2" thick piece of trim), which is a 1x4 width out from the wall.>
How much are these costing you per column?
 
#23 ·

Quote:
Originally Posted by dc_pilgrim /forum/post/13742925


Not wood columns, here are mine:


DIY sconce, dazian janus fabric wraping mdf. Black trim to hid staples, ascend htm-200's in the side columns (wired for 7.1, installed 5.1):


The four rear columns:


The front two:


Do you have any issues with the Dazian fabric hiding speakers?


I have some Celtic on the way, but I'm concerned about it being AT enough to hide the surround speakers.
 
#25 ·
Here's mine. I built a 2x2 frame and then ripped the cherry plywood for the bottom on the table saw to get the miters. the top section is actually 3 separate "frames" of symmetrical chair rail with fabric stapled on the back, and then nailed to the 2x2's...



Garen
 
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