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Display cabinets


Gerhard

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Hi Gerhard,

 

I built my own cabinet. Basically, it is an aluminum frame mounted on a lower (wooden) base and top Plexiglas plate. For the corners, I used special connectors for the frame-parts with screw threads, to the frame could be screwed to the lower and top plates with massive M8 screws.

The frame holds the side and rear walls (white colored wood plates and thin > light Plexiglas plate). For the shelves, I used toughened or tempered glass. On the forward perpendicular frames, I mounted hinges which hold toughened/tempered glass plats as doors.

The lower plate sits on furniture castors, so it can be moved. Due to the glass shelves and doors, the whole construction is pretty heavy. Keep the weight in mind when searching for furniture castors.

 

I ordered the wooden/ tempered glass plates with pre-cut/drilled holes for screwing /mounting to the hinges.

I bought the aluminum frames and connectors here:

http://www.alusteck.de/25-mm-alu-stecksystem/

 

Now I have a 80 cm deep cabinet which should provide enough room for a B-17 or forthcoming B-24s and Lancasters :frantic:

 

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I built mine out of red oak available at Lowes.  I will warn you though. It will cost you a lot more than you think it will.  I priced my 2 sliding glass doors and was told about $500.  43" wide, 68" tall and tempered.  When it came to installing them I didn't think about asking about labor thinking I would do it myself.  Never dawned on me I had no way to transport glass that size.  :mental:

So tack on another $200 to the glass.  My mirrors for the back were left over from my two bathroom remodels.

I used lots of recycled glass from work and cut it myself for top and sides.  Each self sets me back about $100. $80 for the 42" X 22" glass and about $20 for brackets and steel stock to weld up to support the shelf.

 

I dropped just over $2000 with only 4 shelves when I started the project. I've added more shelves since then too.

 

I'll find pics later and upload them.

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Hi Gerhard,

 

I built my own cabinet. Basically, it is an aluminum frame mounted on a lower (wooden) base and top Plexiglas plate. For the corners, I used special connectors for the frame-parts with screw threads, to the frame could be screwed to the lower and top plates with massive M8 screws.

The frame holds the side and rear walls (white colored wood plates and thin > light Plexiglas plate). For the shelves, I used toughened or tempered glass. On the forward perpendicular frames, I mounted hinges which hold toughened/tempered glass plats as doors.

The lower plate sits on furniture castors, so it can be moved. Due to the glass shelves and doors, the whole construction is pretty heavy. Keep the weight in mind when searching for furniture castors.

 

I ordered the wooden/ tempered glass plates with pre-cut/drilled holes for screwing /mounting to the hinges.

I bought the aluminum frames and connectors here:

http://www.alusteck.de/25-mm-alu-stecksystem/

 

Now I have a 80 cm deep cabinet which should provide enough room for a B-17 or forthcoming B-24s and Lancasters :frantic:

 

That is definitely the nicest display cabinet I have ever seen!

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I bought one of these a couple years ago, also ordered 2of the glass doors as extras and swapped them out with the top doors that came with the unit. I also ordered extra glass shelves, you can easily get 2 shelves in each section, making 3 shelves in total if you include the bottom surface of each unit. A 1/24 Trumpeter Hurricane takes up one shelf, a 1/24 Hawker Typhoon won't fit, the Tamiya 1/32 Mosquito will fit on a shelf if positioned just right, 1/32 Ju88 is a no go. Trumpeter Avenger can fit with wings unfolded just. 2 Spitfire size types in 1/32 to a shelf if positioned correctly. Everything in my stash is bought with the intention of it fitting in there. Except the B-25 I want which will sit elsewhere. There's no models in mine at the moment as I'm yet to complete anything since I bought the unit. All old completed kits went to cousins kids and their friends. Wanted all new stuff in the new cabinet. The cabinet is currently home to a Lego Millenium Falcon and several Mr Potato Heads I've been given over the years. The unit has options to add a lighting unit to each section but I don't have a power point in the wall along which the unit sits, though being Ikea it won't be difficult to add them. Construction is solid and I have no concerns over the units longevity after a large outlay on it. Mine is set up with the top 4 units as glass door and glass shelves and the bottom 2 for book storage, though I mean to pick up 2 more glass doors and more shelves to convert the bottom 2units should I do the unthinkable and fill the top parts with builds as I can get should this ever happen the parts will no longer be available.

http://www.ikea.com/gb/en/products/storage-furniture/shelving-units-systems/bestå-storage-combination-w-glass-doors-white-valviken-grey-turquoise-clear-glass-spr-09138649/

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I currently have an Ikea Detolf cabinet for most of my 1/32 single engine fighters. I've added some wire clamps which allowed me to double the number of shelves in it.

 

DSC_0198-L.jpg

 

I'm currently planning to get a couple more and make a custom base and top for them which will alow me to siamese them into a larger cabinet. This should give me more room on each shelf for either additional models or a larger one.

 

Ade, I've got a similar one from Ikea as yours in our den. It holds my Tamiya Mossie, F-4D and F-104S nicely along with some of my other builds.

 

DSC_0248-L.jpg

 

Carl

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That's a stunning case Alex - could really do with something like that...

 

I have a few of the Ikea Detolf units as well Carl - brilliant value and, as you say, perfect for 1:32 fighters.

 

Don't suppose Ikea have a presence in SA though.

 

Iain

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I saw a very interesting idea at an art shop recently. Someone had built a cabinet out of decent plywood and installed a regular storm door for a house on the front. It's 3' wide, full glass, and it locks.

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That is a H*ll of a display case. Expensive, but not when you consider the time you'll have it..... you know, the rest of your life.

 

 

That is pretty much how I looked on it when I bought my two cases from a now apparently defunct showcasesforless.com. They were about $800 or more for the pair, and I will eventually need to add some more lighting to them, but if you start looking around at prices that is a GREAT price for two display cabinets that have a +20" depth to them. My cabinets are 20+" deep, by 48" wide (I think.....might be 36" I cant remember), by 79" inches tall, and have likely all the room Ill ever need at the speed I build. Anything outside of that, Ill definitely have to start doing some creative moving around of models to fit more in. This is an older pic, and they are presently much more full than in this pic, but you get the idea. They are significantly larger looking IRL VS pictures:

 

DSC00578-X2.jpg

 

 

DSC03336-XL.jpg

 

 

 

 

 

I have to agree with Jennings on this one...............if you start doing the research on building your own using materials like glass, finished wood, or aluminum, including lighting and wiring, you start to reach the prices you would be spending on one you could buy and not have to build or design on your own. 

Im still very happy with mine, with the exception of needing more light on the bottom few shelves. 

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Some brilliant cabinets here. I was thinking going the route of using plain old pine, which I can stain to any color I want. Glass, well I sort of have a contact there, that will cut and deliver for free. Will 5mm be thick enough? 

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