First Blog Ever: Studio Racks... on the cheap

My Cheap Rack Studio Furniture!

These were made from the remains of some kitchen units that have been stored in the garage for some time. (3/4" or 18mm) I Didn't want to throw the pieces out but have always considered any kind of chipboard to be sub-standard.

The idea for the banding down the edge which hides the ugly chipboard was probably what prompted the build. Having used a table saw for the first time recently, I was impressed with the thin strips that ended up in the off-cuts pile of my last project.

I drew up some measurements to fit my remaining 19" audio gear, The maximum height was so I could roll the finished units under my current desk, but this ended up being determined by the width of the wood.



Measuring out the Cut lines to the pieces I had on hand ensured matching angles and the most economic use of all the bits. The nice finishing wood strips were glued tight to the visible edges on the front and all the pieces were given a light sanding.

The whole thing was then butt jointed, glued (GORILLA GLUE RULES!) and clamped. Then screwed into place. The space behind the rack ears gives plenty of room for the joining blocks even if you didn't make the units with an angle like mine.

You can't really sand Conti board or other covered chipboard like this, as it is usually a cheap vinyl or plastic which does not take well to any kind of treatment.
I had assumed they may end up painted black. But with some care not to go through the veneer whilst lightly sanding these particular pieces, they look great after some Poundshop Yacht varnish.

There was one Major error on my part which I managed to rectify with the use of a router.

I had, for the second time, Failed to take the circular saws blade width into account, and the precise 19 1/8" clearance for the front panels was not the same after cutting.

You can see my 2mm skim of the surface on the inside. Keep this in mind ;)

I have probably spent about 3 hours total on both units combined, so far. This does exclude lots of procrastinating, which I'm assuming nobody else rivals me in.

I'm currently waiting on some rack strips to complete the project, but having only spent £5.30 total for two 11U rack units so far (Varnish and 8 wheels)... even if I end up paying full price for mounting strips it will still be a bargain.


Finished picture to follow If I keep up with the blog.


As I have never posted a blog before I thought I would use my very first post as more of a feature testing page than a proper blog post.

Having actually tried very hard in previous years to avoid all the 'Create your own blog' buttons.
For fear of ending up like one of the many thousands of other desperate internet whores, who will seemingly stop at nothing until you click their 'like' button.

I have also attempted websites.. and instructables articles. But with random project of the day often just turning into a brief rant it never really worked out. Then there's the domain maintenance, HTML and of course, the fees!

Guaranteed... By my fourth post I will be so desperate for some praise on my life changing blog, that I'll be investigating as to why I didn't receive all your heart-felt compliments and congratulatory E-Mails.