I'm looking to buy a large screen TV, and I want to build an in-wall
entertainment system for it. I was considering making a frame with a
tambour in it so I could cover the TV when not in use (and a tambour
would not obstruct the view once opened) Of course, I've never built
a tambour, so I'm not sure what it would involve. I have a few
questions about it:
How hard is it to make a tambour, and what are the chances of making a
good tambour by a newbie (I'll do a mock up first of course, but I
won't have years of experience when I build the entertainment
unit...).
Can a tambour be made to slide vertically rather than horizontally
(can it close from the side, rather than the top?)
Is there any good way to determine the size of the tabmour when it is
rolled up? - A tambour that can cover a 40" screen would have to fit
within the thickness of the wall...
Finally, is there any advice (what kind of cloth/glue to use, useful
jigs/techniques, etc) that anyone can suggest for making tambours?
Thanks,
John
<[email protected]> wrote in message
> It is available everywhere these days, as well as installation tips
> for the correct radius to cut to allow movement of the finished
> tambour.
And to that end, here's what Lee Valley Tools has to offer. Don't know if
it's big enough for your purposes, but that you'll have to figure out.
http://www.leevalley.com/hardware/page.aspx?c=1&p=40016&cat=3,43738,43739
Upscale wrote:
> I wonder if there's a way to stiffen up those long spans? Perhaps thin metal
> strips screwed through the back of the canvas into the slats. I was trying
> to envision dual tambours size by side for wider spans like a large screen
> TV, but couldn't figure out the mechanics of such an installation.
By the time you go through all of that, why bother with a tambour at
all? There are many more efficient and easier doors that you could
build, either flipper doors or slide up/down solid panel doors that
would do the same job without the chance of catastrophic failure.
--
Blog Me! http://BitchSpot.JadeDragonOnline.com
"Upscale" <[email protected]> writes:
>
>"Brian Henderson"
>>
>> My only real concern about this is the width of the tambour that you'd
>> need. For a large television, that would be a considerable span and
>> most tambours are going to be pretty flexible across that kind of span.
>> I'd be worried about it continually popping out of the tracks as it
>> flexed.
>
>I wonder if there's a way to stiffen up those long spans? Perhaps thin metal
>strips screwed through the back of the canvas into the slats. I was trying
>to envision dual tambours size by side for wider spans like a large screen
>TV, but couldn't figure out the mechanics of such an installation.
>
It sounded like the OP wanted this to fit into a standard studwall
cavity. For that, I'd eschew the tambour, put a header in at the
top of the cavity and use the cavity above the TV opening to store
a lift-up (counterweighted e.g. sash weights) door.
I'd be very concerned about heat dissipation were the flat-panel
operated in the cavity, however, even with the door up.
scott
"Brian Henderson"
> By the time you go through all of that, why bother with a tambour at
> all? There are many more efficient and easier doors that you could
> build, either flipper doors or slide up/down solid panel doors that
> would do the same job without the chance of catastrophic failure.
You're right of course, but more than once I've built something to turn out
a certain way just because I wanted it that way and didn't worry much about
the excessive time needed to build it.
OP here:
I'm much the same mind frame as Brian -- I know what I want, and
there's no point in taking up woodworking if I can't build it. I also
enjoy trying new things -- I'm actually a little dissapointed that the
lee valley tambours are likely a viable solution to building my own...
As it turns out, in my case, I only have about 12" on either side of
where the unit will be installed -- it's under a staircase, so sliding
doors won't work, unless I make the door slide downwards, which would
be plain ugly (and defeat the purpose). Swinging doors would not look
good either, and would obstruct the built in on the other side -- so
pocket door is my only real option if I want a door at all.
So regarding a few of the issues: Flex: The bottom couple of rungs
will be made thicker to accomidate a handle. This thicker wood would
not flex, and should hold the rest of the rungs in line, so the
tambour should not fall out of its grove. I can also make the grove
1/2" deep on either side which will also help.
As far as heat goes, the wall backs onto a staircase going to my
basement. I was planning on building a vented metal door at the back
of the unit. This would allow me access to wiring, and prevent the
unit from overheating. I'm also getting LCD, not plasma, so that
should also help.
I'm still not sure if I'm putting a door on it at all (I'm still in
the design stage). I'm pretty good with mechanics though -- I built a
prototype of the following:
http://www.ulvr.com/john/animations/XTable4.jpg
The following shows a preliminary design of the mechanics of the
table. The actual design was actually much simpler, as it only took
one gearing mechanism.
http://www.ulvr.com/john/animations/XTableDesign.jpg
It works great -- I can stash the table under the couch in less than
4s, and pull it out in less than 6. The table also has multiple
heights -- one for eating, one for working, and one for a regular
coffee table (it also looks really good to boot). So, with that said,
I'm not scared of 'complicated mechanics'
Anyways, thanks for all the comments and suggestions. I now have
enough info to discuss with the wife (AKA 'master of decor') which
option I'll take.
BTW, one thing I didn't mention, as far as mechanics go -- I'm also
contemplating having the door open automatically when I press a button
on my remote...
John
I used the bit set mentioned in several responses and was very happy
with the results. My application was about 45" wide and 20" tall. I
used bicycle cable as they have a welded ball at one end that I could
hide it in a pocket bored from the rear of the bottom rail. The only
word of caution is to take your time working out the tension if you
intend to use a radius of around 3" in your track as binding becomes
an issue. I wouldn't try to go much tighter than 3". A little time
sanding/smoothing out the track and a hot mix of thined candel wax in
the track and it should glide up and down very easily. This is a link
to the unit I made with the system. http://shannonwoodworks.bizland.com/rolltop_desk.html
. Good luck
On Mar 25, 8:39 pm, Maxwell Lol <[email protected]> wrote:
> [email protected] (Scott Lurndal) writes:
> > I'd be very concerned about heat dissipation were the flat-panel
> > operated in the cavity, however, even with the door up.
>
> I bought a DC-powered 3-speed fan for about $10, and cannibalized an
> old voltage convertor to power it. I put a hole in the back. This was
> for a media PC. The fan was in exhaust mode, and positioned next to
> the exhaust of the PC.
>
> Still, I'd test the temperature to make sure.
>
> I bought an AC fan from Rockler, and returned it. It sounded like a
> hovercraft. The DC fan is silent.
Lighter, plastic fans don't create rumble. You can cut
wind noise by running the fan at a lower voltage.
julvr <[email protected]> writes:
> How hard is it to make a tambour,
You can buy pre-made tabours.
You can buy router bits designed to cut tambour pieces.
[email protected] (Scott Lurndal) writes:
> I'd be very concerned about heat dissipation were the flat-panel
> operated in the cavity, however, even with the door up.
I bought a DC-powered 3-speed fan for about $10, and cannibalized an
old voltage convertor to power it. I put a hole in the back. This was
for a media PC. The fan was in exhaust mode, and positioned next to
the exhaust of the PC.
Still, I'd test the temperature to make sure.
I bought an AC fan from Rockler, and returned it. It sounded like a
hovercraft. The DC fan is silent.
>How hard is it to make a tambour, and what are the chances of making a
>good tambour by a newbie (I'll do a mock up first of course, but I
>won't have years of experience when I build the entertainment
>unit...).
>
>Can a tambour be made to slide vertically rather than horizontally
>(can it close from the side, rather than the top?)
>
>Is there any good way to determine the size of the tabmour when it is
>rolled up? - A tambour that can cover a 40" screen would have to fit
>within the thickness of the wall...
>
>Finally, is there any advice (what kind of cloth/glue to use, useful
>jigs/techniques, etc) that anyone can suggest for making tambours?
Rockler sells router bits to cut the profiles, or you can buy the ready made
slats and assemble your own. There are many other places to get tambour slats,
cloth backing, etc, online. Tambours do not typically roll up, they just slide
up into a long slot that goes across the top and down the back as required
http://www.rockler.com/search_results.cfm?filter=tambour&submit.x=13&submit.y=6
--
Dennis
"Brian Henderson"
>
> My only real concern about this is the width of the tambour that you'd
> need. For a large television, that would be a considerable span and
> most tambours are going to be pretty flexible across that kind of span.
> I'd be worried about it continually popping out of the tracks as it
> flexed.
I wonder if there's a way to stiffen up those long spans? Perhaps thin metal
strips screwed through the back of the canvas into the slats. I was trying
to envision dual tambours size by side for wider spans like a large screen
TV, but couldn't figure out the mechanics of such an installation.
On Mar 26, 2:11 am, "Upscale" <[email protected]> wrote:
> You're right of course, but more than once I've built something to turn out
> a certain way just because I wanted it that way and didn't worry much about
> the excessive time needed to build it.
That my friend, is when you are still having fun doing woodworking.
Good for you.
Robert
On Mar 26, 8:30=A0pm, Woodgit <[email protected]> wrote:
> I used the bit set mentioned in several responses and was very happy
> with the results. My application was about 45" wide and 20" tall. I
> used bicycle cable as they have a welded ball at one end that I could
> hide it in a pocket bored from the rear of the bottom rail. The only
> word of caution is to take your time working out the tension if you
> intend to use a radius of around 3" in your track as binding becomes
> an issue. I wouldn't try to go much tighter than 3". A little time
> sanding/smoothing out the track and a hot mix of thined candel wax in
> the track and it should glide up and down very easily. This is a link
> to the unit I made with the system.http://shannonwoodworks.bizland.com/rol=
ltop_desk.html
> . Good luck
Wow, that's a nice desk! Congrats -- question though -- what are the
slots at the side of the desk for?
I would certainly look into the premade tambour products. I have
never made any, but I had an office/shop many years ago that had a
custom commercial furniture shop as a neighbor.
He showed some of the premade stuff, and it was great. It was uniform
in appearance, and best of all, it was stable. He told me he made his
own for a while, but the wood he purchased moved around after he made
the panels making the panels very hard to operate.
Then when he figured out how much time he had involved in purchasing
and culling the material to make the slats, making the slats, then
gluing up the materials, he felt like purchasing was a no-brainer for
him.
Personally, I would concentrate on the rest of the cabinet and buy the
tambour.
It is available everywhere these days, as well as installation tips
for the correct radius to cut to allow movement of the finished
tambour.
Robert
"julvr" <[email protected]> wrote in message
> How hard is it to make a tambour, and what are the chances of making a
> good tambour by a newbie (I'll do a mock up first of course, but I
> won't have years of experience when I build the entertainment
> unit...).
>
> Can a tambour be made to slide vertically rather than horizontally
> (can it close from the side, rather than the top?)
It depends on your skill level and how well you experiment and measure it to
fit. If your set on using a Tambour, I'd make smaller scale model and iron
out some of the kinks such as figuring out the tightest curve that a tambour
could easily follow. And know that even with a perfectly working scale
model, you'll run into problems with a full size one because of it's size.
For the cloth, I'd go to an arts and craft store and buy paint canvas. And
yes, you can make them vertically operating than horizontal. Downside is
that there's a rather ugly track that shows wear at the bottom of the screen
when the tambour is open for TV viewing. Most (but not all) people with wide
screen TVs don't attempt to cover them, instead leaving them open to view
for all to see. Also, tambours when open for viewing don't usually roll into
a ball, but instead for a vertical one would slide up over the TV and
partially down the back of the TV. The mechanics and spring apparatus to
make it roll up are complicated and not what I'd use.
Undoubtedly, you'll get some other comments, but to start I'd suggest trying
to find a book on the subject or do an online search. You might also visit a
few furniture stores and closely look at some existing tambour
constructions.
"Upscale" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
>
> "Brian Henderson"
>>
>> My only real concern about this is the width of the tambour that you'd
>> need. For a large television, that would be a considerable span and
>> most tambours are going to be pretty flexible across that kind of span.
>> I'd be worried about it continually popping out of the tracks as it
>> flexed.
>
> I wonder if there's a way to stiffen up those long spans? Perhaps thin
> metal
> strips screwed through the back of the canvas into the slats. I was trying
> to envision dual tambours size by side for wider spans like a large screen
> TV, but couldn't figure out the mechanics of such an installation.
what about flipper doors?
charlie wrote:
> "Upscale" <[email protected]> wrote in message
> news:[email protected]...
>>
>> "Brian Henderson"
>>>
>>> My only real concern about this is the width of the tambour that
>>> you'd need. For a large television, that would be a considerable
>>> span and most tambours are going to be pretty flexible across that
>>> kind of span. I'd be worried about it continually popping out of
>>> the tracks as it flexed.
>>
>> I wonder if there's a way to stiffen up those long spans? Perhaps
>> thin metal
>> strips screwed through the back of the canvas into the slats. I was
>> trying to envision dual tambours size by side for wider spans like
>> a
>> large screen TV, but couldn't figure out the mechanics of such an
>> installation.
>
> what about flipper doors?
FWIW, Nahm did a roll-top desk a while back
http://www.newyankee.com/getproduct.php?9812.
Seems to me that the top on that has plenty of span--adapt the design
and turn it sideways and it should be fine I would think.
--
--
--John
to email, dial "usenet" and validate
(was jclarke at eye bee em dot net)
Something to consider, Amana makes a set or router bits that will let you
cut interlocking tambour pieces that require no gluing or cloth.
"julvr" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:8a197841-7730-48b0-988d-89dbff2cd760@s37g2000prg.googlegroups.com...
> I'm looking to buy a large screen TV, and I want to build an in-wall
> entertainment system for it. I was considering making a frame with a
> tambour in it so I could cover the TV when not in use (and a tambour
> would not obstruct the view once opened) Of course, I've never built
> a tambour, so I'm not sure what it would involve. I have a few
> questions about it:
>
> How hard is it to make a tambour, and what are the chances of making a
> good tambour by a newbie (I'll do a mock up first of course, but I
> won't have years of experience when I build the entertainment
> unit...).
>
> Can a tambour be made to slide vertically rather than horizontally
> (can it close from the side, rather than the top?)
>
> Is there any good way to determine the size of the tabmour when it is
> rolled up? - A tambour that can cover a 40" screen would have to fit
> within the thickness of the wall...
>
> Finally, is there any advice (what kind of cloth/glue to use, useful
> jigs/techniques, etc) that anyone can suggest for making tambours?
>
> Thanks,
>
> John
>
>
>
julvr wrote:
> How hard is it to make a tambour, and what are the chances of making a
> good tambour by a newbie (I'll do a mock up first of course, but I
> won't have years of experience when I build the entertainment
> unit...).
Seriously, I would look into buying a pre-made tambour or at the very
least, the parts to make one yourself. I know Rockler carries both the
pre-made and the parts, you'd have to see if they have what you need.
My only real concern about this is the width of the tambour that you'd
need. For a large television, that would be a considerable span and
most tambours are going to be pretty flexible across that kind of span.
I'd be worried about it continually popping out of the tracks as it
flexed.
--
Blog Me! http://BitchSpot.JadeDragonOnline.com