Introduction: $1.50 Knockdown TV Stand From Pallets

Here's my new corner TV stand, made from bits and pieces of pallets. I spent fifty cents per pair for two pairs of used hinges. Each hinge and 4 screws/hinge came from Second Use (used) Building Materials, sort of like Habitat for Humanity's RE:Store. I estimate that I spent approximately fifty cents for PVC glue.

On moving day, it should take about 2 seconds to disassemble and pack flat. I might beef it up with a shelf underneath for my DVD player and Roku. Also, it needs a bit of sanding and to be finished. I glued up the leg assemblies before drilling pilot holes and screwing them post glue-up.

Step 1: Glue Up and Clamp the Pieces That Make Up the Top.

I don't have any pictures of how I put the top together, but basically I measured the triangular area that I wanted the top to fill and then glued up boards on their edges into a roughly tringular shape. I used lots of clamps and braced the pieces of the top temporarily against pieces of 2x4s to keep the glue-up more or less flat and straight.

Step 2: Trim the Top Using a Circular Saw and Saw Guide.

Using a saw guide that I custom-made to pair with my specific circular saw, I trimmed the glued-up boards that make up the top. I used a speed square to mark the cuts and clamped the top against my saw guide before trimming the top.

Step 3: Make the Leg Assemblies and Hinge Them.

I glued and clamped the leg assemblies. When the glue dried, I drilled pilot holes and drove screws to strengthen the joints of the leg assemblies, and then hinged the leg assemblies with a pair of recycled hinges from Second Use (used building materials, sort of like the RE:Store).

Step 4: Glue and Screw Blocks and a Shelf to the Underside of the Top.

The shelf under the top is for my DVD player and Roku.