Build You Own (BYO) TV Stand - Page 6

Awesome Possum NPC!!

My approach is to use dadoed or rabbetted joints, then glue, clamp and nail. The really good fillers are well enough color-matched to the wood to successfully hide a filled in countersunk finishing nail. The glue's the thing! With patience you can cut a dado or rabbet with your table saw blade, but for the money you are saving on your furniture you can treat yourself to a dado set!

I tend to use screws only in applications where they won't be seen, or for "no alternative" applications like screwing the hanging bar of a tall bookcase or wall cabinet to the studs.

Hey folks, I just finished building a "TV Stand" for my 62725. A lot of work but it was worth it!

Dean

Pix attached.

Wow - the stands are looking great, guys! I will be posting some more pics soon as my stand is almost done as well. Plugs would seem to be pretty hard to use with hardwood plywood . . . anybody have experience with this?

I used a battery operated finish nailer on mine and lots of glue. Those paslode nailers are awesome! All the nails were already countersunk and I got some color matched putty. I knew I was going with a dark finish and there's hardly anyway you can see where it's put together. I am really happy with the results.

I wish I had a table saw . . . and a garage . . .

Oh well - someday.

I posted earlier about various options I was considering for a stand including BYO. Here's an update for what I did. I have limited woodworking experience, skill, tools and time. So, this solution worked well for me.

I found a Hooker armoire floor sample for CRT RP TVs on closeout for $800. This was more than what I was initially considering for a stand, but fit my situation well. It fits my TV - a JVC DILA 61", has closeable doors for a perfect WAF and childproofing. Unfortunately, this model did not have a stand inside it because it was made for floor standing TVs. That's where this thread came in.

I built an open stand 15" high (perfect for our viewing height), 20" deep, and 58" wide out of 3/4" birch plywood. I had Home Depot cut a full sheet to the depth I needed and made the precision cuts myself. The stand fits the armoire and allows the tv to fit the armoire perfectly. Since this stand will sit inside another cabinet, it doesn't have to look as nice as a standalone. I used 1/2" shelves mounted on drawer slides to house my components. I have some staggered arrangement to allow for cooling. I am using screws and glue for joining and T-plates for lateral reinforcement. The tv stand will never move by itself so lateral reinforcement is not such a big issue. The screws are countersunk and will be filled with putty. Not perfect, but saves time and it'll mostly be hidden anyway.

At the moment the stand is ready for a test run to make sure everything fits. When that's done, I will unscrew everything, apply edgebanding, glue and screw it all back, clean and finish and then screw it down into the armoire.

I still need your help. People have suggested that birch plywood needs a gel stain to look good. Could you recommend a stain/sealer or combination that looks decent with a dark stain (antique walnut to match the armoire) and can be done quickly (wife is getting impatient)? It doesn't have to be perfect if it'll save some time. I have some experience with Minwax oil based stain trying to refinish a table that didn't go quite so well. I am considering Minwax Polyshades and Wood Sheen products, but am not sure if they will cause more problems than they are worth.

Any advice appreciated.

Thanks

Iron- Thanks for the tips.

I usually countersink (nails and screws), drill a 1/4 hole and glue hardwood dowel in place.

Cut off the dowel close, but not too close, and sand down until smooth.

If you layout your (nails and screws) in a uniform fashion, the slight wood dowel contrast looks nice.


Good work from everyone.

Alex-Thanks, good tips everyone. Looking forward to when I get to build my cabinet.

Hey guys,
I don't do anything exotic with joinery, and you can still hide things. Using things I learned from my Dad the way they used to make things. I use screws and glue, as well as guns. My cabinets use hidden cleats under the base, for example. They are screwed into the sides and into the bottom shelf, but from the bottom, so the are not seen. Same with the top. I do use biscuits too. I will take some detail pictures for you. Still finalizing the plans for the new stand.

Gaajar,
I never had great luck with the Polyshades, or any combo stain/poly. Went back to the other stuff. I use Minwax stains pretty much all the time. Never had any problems with birch plywood. Have done a lot with birch too. Even mixed with pine and dark stains. I made a stand to match stuff my Dad made for my Mother years ago. Dark Walnut, Jacobean, etc. and birch plywood have been fine for me. Just don't be afraid to let it sit a little before you wipe it, and probably a couple of coats. It will soak up faster into the birch plywood.
Good Luck.

Pablo

Stain several scrap pieces first. Leave the stain on for varying lengths of time on different test pieces before wiping. Pick the result you like best. Buy small quantities of several different stains, too. The price is small compared to a) the rest of your materials, and b) what you're saving by doing it yourself!

Yeah, I'll second that comment about polyshades. I can't quite remember what I used it on, but it didn't turn out well. It's really soupy and sticky and doesn't spread well.

And if you're looking for a deeper color, definitely do an additional coat of stain. Testing is always a good idea as others have suggested.

What do you guys use for plugs on hardwood plywood? Birch, for example - do you make your plugs out of the plywood?

No I wouldn't recommend using PW for the plugs. Use a solid of whatever species of wood you are using, if possible. IE oak plywood, oak plugs, etc.

Pablo

Pablo, Kenlex, Spiff69,
Thanks a lot for the tips. With y'alls help, I'm sure this thing will turn out great.

[quote]Originally posted by biphnest
[b]Hey folks, I just finished building a "TV Stand" for my 62725. A lot of work but it was worth it!

Dean

(pic sniped)

Nice looking wall unit. Any chance you have other pics with the doors open. I was thinking of doing someting similar.

Where do you have your speakers? I'm assuming they are behind the grill cloth sections.

Thanks
Bruce

I missed your pic the first time, very nice. Is that fabric on the door fronts? Shadows are organic looking so I didn't think it was wood. Any chance of another pic with the doors open?

Hey all. I'm hoping I can get some feedback on question. I was think about making the typical stand like IronHorse's a box maybe 3 divisions, etc. I attached a pic of my space and was just wondering what some people here would do in my situation. I have two flanking bookshelves I made painted the wall color, would i paint the stand the wall color, stain it a cherry type warm tone, paint it black, should it stick out further or be even? Also, the shelves are done, but I could always do more to them. One thought was 1x2 framing the edges. It's contemporary, so I don't think I'd do any crown molding type tops to it. Also, would the tv stand need to match those shelves exactly? And any ideas or suggestions that could make those shelves better?

Here's the photo-

It seems like you have a lot of space to work with. I you don't haveany plans on changing your equipment for a while you could make modular casing/shelves around your speakers as well as a new stand for the TV with a shelf above to support your center channel.

If you decide to get one of the new large srceen flat panel TVs then you could actually have it flush with the bookshelves.

Kid Rock

I personally would do something built in and really try to hide the TV and components. It is a little more difficult to work with the gear since you wouldn't have rear access. It will also limit where you could put things in the future. That would work for ME maybe not for you. Just spouting off here!

Pablo

Hey guys, my bad. I forgot to mention my current plans are to get the JVC 52". It would stretch from speaker to speaker with an inch or so extra. I thought about photoshopping in the TV to make it easier to visualize, but I just threw up the photo for you guys to see.

iron- thanks for the time/work, looks good. The only thing, is the JVC would be a tad higher and I'm not sure if the shelf would crowd that area? Good idea tho. Also, hard to se, but there are 2 pot lights at the corners of the shelves on the ceiling.

I have looked through this thread closely since I am in the process of building a stand similar to yours Ironhorse, but with casters and a right side full height area for a tower since I don't want to get another case for the computer. It will have four equal height and equal with spaces for equipment with no doors or drawers.
I haven't decided on edge treatment yet. If I wanted the 1x2 braces below the ply or flush with the ply upper and lower shelves. The middle shelve would just have a half round piece to cover the grain (stock trim at Home Depot).
Since I don't have Norm's shop or even 1/10th of it, I am very limited on what I can do. No tongue & grove, no mortise & tenon, no biscuits etc.
I wasn't planning on solid sides, but 1x2' legs face to side in a 'L' form. I'm concerned with racking. There will be a 50 or 52" Microdisplay on top and 4 or 5 pieces of A/V gear on the 4 partitions plus the tower on the left. It will be on 4 or 6 ball casters on a rug. I also wasn't planning on any back to the unit.

Input please(sorry no drawings).

Here is a drawing;
(for some reason the right and bottom lines were cut off)

video- kinda the same boat here and your idea sounds similar to mine as noted in the photo above and will be for the JVC 52. I too want an open back for air. As for joining, simple butt joint will be fine. If you have middle shelves they will add support. Since no open back, you could put 'L' brackets on each corner on the back where it won't be seen. You could also add a simple 1x2 brace on the back of each section between the vertical sides. They wouldn't really be visible but would add extra support.

Kid Red

The doors have tinted glass. I had the glass cut at lowes and just put some 5% automotive tint on them from PEP Boys. It still lets the IR light for the remote through. Here's a pic with the doors open. I still need to finish sanding the doors. The white things on the doors are paper towels I used to hold the glass in place while the silicon dried. I'll take some close up pics when it's all finished. I also have to take care of the birds nest of wires in the back.

npc2396- I see, looks good.

Videobruce,
Are you leaving the back off just for airflow? I have a solid back with 4 2" holes for wires, with no doors. I run an AVR 5700 receiver (Very heavy) a DirectTv Tivo, which runs all the time, another HD Direct TV tuner, and an xbox and Sony DVD player. I have never had any issues with heat. Even used to have a wood stove in this room.
I would recommend solid sides. I made mine with plywood sides, and 1 by strips on the front to give the appearance from the front of a leg. The solid sides will add strength front to back. If you don't use solid sides you have to be concerned about racking there too, especially when moving the unit. I will try to get a photo detail posted later of my sides/legs combo.