Buiilding a white plinth / display pedastal

[jiffage]

Hi,

I'm looking to buy one of those square pillars used to display art in museums and galleries. Similar to those shown on this page:
http://www.plinths.co.uk/products/pedestalbases.htm

I can't stretch to the £125 cost of those and really need it for Friday... so I'm intending to try and build my own.

It will be used to sit a computer monitor on top of. Ideally I'd really like a removeable rear that exposes a shelf about 3/4 of the way up. This is where I would store the laptop that connects to the monitor. I'd have a small hole in the top of the rear panel to let the wires enter/exit. I would also consider adding a base, so that something very heavy can be placed there to make the display more stable and "bottom heavy"

I'd be really interested to know how you would advise me to build this? I'm quite inexperienced with wood-working so feel free to be as "basic" in your instructions as you like - it will be impossible to offend me! I've got most of the basic hand tools plus a drill, electric jigsaw and electric hand sander.

Would you make a frame + thin mdf sides? No frame and make it out of pine? How would I do the joins? Any specifics or links to tutorials I could adapt would be really, really helpful here.

Any tips for the removable back? I have a bunch of strong magnets and I was thinking of just holding the back on by magnets. That would spoil the seamless look a little bit, but it would be against the wall so not too obvious.

Any advice much appreciated!

 

[gregers]

mdf,12/15/18 mm self supporting,i:e screw through the edges with glue.
or use biscuits to join edges together.

 

[dan83590]

Painted MDF could look very well if you make it well enough.

All of your cut edges would need to be perfectly square. For this I'd either get yourself a circular saw or you could work out what sizes you need and ask somewhere like B&Puke to cut it for you on their table saw. Remember to allow for overlaps on your edges. The overlap depends on what thickness MDF you use.

Assembly. No absolute need for glue as long as you used enough screws< gluing with some PVA based glue as well as screws would make a stronger job though. Every screw MUST be pre-drilled with MDF as it will split and ruin. Assemble your edges squarely and screw squarely.

Once assembled and if you want a nice job I'd then fill along the edges with some 2-Pak wood filler (or car filler, its essentially the same thing) then sand back to square again, taking care not to round off the edges. Fill any screw holes at the same time.

Painting. You could brush finish but you would probably have brush marks all over it. Even Pro decorators sometime leave brush marks, I have only ever worked with a couple of decorators who can finish their work without brush marks. If it were me I'd use a brush on undercoat, allow to dry then sand flat. Repeat until you have a good layer covering ALL of the MDF. Remember to do the edge that will sit on the floor as MDF is like a sponge, the slightest spill of fluid will ruin all of your hard work.

To finish you could use spray can paints. A radiator paint or hammersh!te, something like that. Do a test piece first though to make sure the top coat does not react with the undercoat.

My 2 cents ..

 

[foxhole]

I would use 18mm mdf , simple construction is to use internal blocks to screw together leaving no visible fixings and then paint with a short bristle roller for no brush marks.
Used similar method for this fire surround , step in the top using two or three squares of mdf will give it am elegant look.

Lounge Now

• foxhole
• 27 Apr 2011
• 4

 

[nickdsjnk]

I made about 10 of these last year for the display of architectural models.

I used my festool circular saw to get straight square cuts. you will never be able to get a perfect cut with the jigsaw. You are better off getting the timberyard to do the cuts for you unless you buy yourself a circular saw and guide rail.

I used 18mm MDF throughout, and I glued and screwed all joints. I used PVA glue throughout and I filled all joins and screw holes with 2-part filler. Bondo is a good brand but dont get any crazy expensive ones as it is all the same. I primed with a water based dulux trade wood primer, and then applied about 3 or 4 coats of cheap white epoxy.

They looked great and were pretty stable, but if you are worried about stability, just put a bag of sand in the bottom before sealing it up. Make sure the sand is dry or in a sealed bag though.

They are pretty easy to make but if you want it to be perfect expect the filling sanding a painting to take a while. I think I did them over 3 days to allow enough time for the glue and paint to dry but obviously I was not working full tiem on them.

A few points:
1. make sure the pilot and countersink all screw holes as MDF will split and bulge if you don't

2. sand down all joints before you start painting, and if there are even tiny gaps, wipe some filler along them before sanding.

3. MDF "grain" will stand up after painting on all cut edges and so you will need to lightly sand down the piece between coats. You only need to sand enough to get an even texture. After the 2nd or 3rd coat this wont be necessary anymore unless you have some runs.

4. Use a dense foam roller or a short haired roller to apply the emulsion as it'll give you a nice fine texture. An even tecture is great but you don;t want the paint going on too thick.