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How did it go?

Thanks for the photo. I’m glad you had a satisfying build. I actually just built another one last week, 11 years after posting the instructable. Cheers!

Good luck. Post some photos.

1x4s will be fine, but definitely anchor it to the wall, and make sure everything is plumb and straight. The all thread diameter doesn’t need to be changed, but the pieces will need to be longer.

Yes.

1x4 is more than adequate, even for full shelves of books. I wouldn’t use 2x4s in your application. The wire crisscross photos are somewhere in the comments here, but I can’t remember the user name, and there are a lot of comments...You don’t even have to crisscross the wires. A single vertical wire, run through vertical holes at the end of each shelf, is more than sufficient.

I know it is a long comment chain, but at least one other user has done so and posted pictures.

Only when getting freaky.

For side tables just replace the top few slats with a 10’ 1x10.For a headboard, find something you like, and screw it to the wall, like hotels do.

Thanks for the photo.

The wide support board provides more friction with the shelf, thus better stability. Feel free to experiment though.

He asked me to reply to you with specs and a pic: “Douglas-fir lumber, 2 X 4 uprights. 2 X 10 shelves. 0.375” all thread rod. 1.5” heavy fender washers. acorn nuts”pic with my mother and her weaving supplies. The shelf is still in use.

Maybe, but not soon. He is a pretty private guy...

Actually, ask him directly. He is on here as “id.steelheader”

I’m a little late to reply, but the easiest way is to do what hotels do: attach the headboard to the wall.

We use an Otisbed futon on it.I vary between 225 and 250, and my wife isn’t petit, and sometimes our 2 kids pile in with us, adding another 110lbs. And we are still using the same bed as featured in this instructable, over a decade after. I did replace one slat in the first few weeks because it had a spike knot that was about to cause it to break.

Excellent, and thanks for the photo.

Thanks for the photo.

I think part of your confusion might be due to the fact that a 1x8 is really only 7-1/4” wide, and a 1x4 is really only 3/4” thick. This makes the relavent width 8-3/4” (the thickness of two uprights plus the width of the shelf). Add 5/16” at each end for the nuts. Total length 9-3/8”.For 1x12 shelves, which are usually 11-1/4” wide, try 13-3/8”, but there is some variation in lumber, and in acorn nuts, so cut one piece and test it before cutting the rest.

Thanks for the photos, and the compliment. Looks great!

They are given several times in the comments. Pretty much just make the slats a little shorter.

A contraption is an assemblage of parts.To make a curve with the triangle, place a marking implement at the apex, then slide everything to one side, then the other, keeping the two legs of the contraption in contact with the fixed pins, and the marking implement at the apex.

Good work, and thanks for the photo. I’m glad you are happy with it. I’m a few inches taller than you, and my wife is a few inches shorter than you, but in the 11 years since I posted this, we have gotten used to it, and are still using it.

No.

Some diagonal braces for each leg, in each plane, would be a good idea.

It is highly likely that they would buckle. You could either rip down MDF or a/c plywood to the width you need, or as some other commenters have done, use three uprights per grouping instead of two. The third upright goes between the two shelf boards. It is essentially a double-thick version of my original post. The center upright doesn’t need nuts and washers, so just the lumber count, and the allthread rod length needs to be increased.

Diagonal braces in both directions on each leg would be a good idea.

No.

Glad you enjoyed it, and thanks for the photos. It looks good.

Thanks for the shoutout, and I’m glad it worked well for you. We’ve moved four times with them, and they are still holding up well. We are now in our long-term home now, as of last summer, so I’ll probably replace them with built-ins at some point, and relegate these to shop shelves.

I’m pretty sure, intuitively, and based on my carpentry experience, that the sag is the limiting factor. The sag will become undesirable far before the racking resistance is an issue. You could use wider uprights if you are worried, but you would likely have to use a progressively bigger stack of washers to distribute the force, not just a single fender washer at each connection.

Thanks for the photos, and I apologize for my tardy reply. It is indeed an infinitely modifiable and expandable system, and I can’t take credit for the system itself.

Allergic to pine, or pine pollen? If she is allergic to pine itself, that is a tough one. Maybe poplar, but I’d have to run the calcs.

The base is strong enough, but I’d make the width of the lower part of the trestle equal to the width of the top. If you have strength concerns, you could use fatter dowels where the spreader/stretcher passes through the trestles.

Slats weigh less, and cost less, and are easier to handle and fabricate. More importantly, slats allow airflow around the mattress. Mattresses sitting on solid surfaces get moldy or mildew. Also, slats provide more uniform support. That may seem counterintuitive, but in the US plywood only commonly comes in 48” widths, so there would have to be a seam somewhere...This is an old Instructable, and has literally hundreds and hundreds of comments. Many of these comments give dimensions for just about any size of bed imaginable, and I have even chimed in on quite a few of them.If you ever make it to south central MT, you can buy me a beer. I’m near Red Lodge these days.

Thanks for the photos, and glad you enjoyed it.

Awesome, thanks. Reuse is the best form of recycling.

They often will, for a small fee.

I’m amazed at how it took off. I keep hoping to see one “in the wild”. I’d like to see pics of the porch swing.

Oh, man. Has it really been that long? Thanks for the comment and photos.

Looks good. Thanks for the photos.

Most lumberyards can cut to order for a small fee.

An excellent variation. I've used the "thread all thread rod into the studs" method before to support thick live-edge walnut slab "floating" shelves, with 3/4" all thread. Thanks for the photo.

thanks for the photo. With tall shelves like this, I recommend attaching them to the wall with a piece of wire or a metal strap, just in case.

Thanks for the photo.

glad to hear it has worked out for you, and we're still using ours too. Thanks for the photos.

thanks for the photos.

check out KevShelby or Synaptyc's comments above this.

Were you using the right size of Phillips bit? If you could post pictures of the bit and the screws, that would help diagnose what went wrong.

As you go wider, cupping becomes more of an issue, but then, cupping is an issue with all boards. FJP will help with this, and is a good choice for the application. Edge-banded plywood would be a better choice, and if looks don't matter, MDF would work as well.Depending on your application, using two narrower 8" boards per shelf, and three uprights instead of two (like this: |-|-| in cross section) is also an option.Let me know how it goes.

looks good. Thanks for the photo.

The sag will be noticeable, about 3/16". I'd either use 2x shelves or use the 1x2s in the middle. You may also be able to just switch wood species and be fine. I'm a fan of The Sagulator (http://www.woodbin.com/calcs/sagulator/) for calculating this kind of thing. I input 1x8 lodgepole pine with 40lbs per lineal foot load, and got 2/10" deflection.

Thanks for the compliment and the photos. I'm glad you enjoyed it.

Yes. I've taken mine apart 5 or 6 times to move it.

an interesting variation that I hadn't considered. Thanks for the photo.

Thanks. Let me know if you have any questions.

Either use 1x6 for the legs, and more screws (2 more per 1x6) or add 45° braces (1x4) to the inside of the legs of the original design, with 1x4 spacer blocks (inside the 2x4 frame rails) to make up for the difference in thickness.1x4s wouldn't be unsafe, really, just unstable, particularly over time, as the longer legs have more leverage against the screws.

It looks to me like they should work fine. Post a picture of the finished product!

Snug up the leg-to-frame screws a bit using a manual screwdriver or a cordless impact driver.

I'm glad you're enjoying them, and thanks for the photos.

Just make the slats 5" shorter. Everything else is the same.

Thanks for the photos, and I'm sure others will appreciate the measurements.

My wife and I together are over 400lbs.

Thanks for the photo. I'd highly recommend getting the book(s), lots of other bread recipes. I just made pitas last night with the basic recipe.

I am bigger than that, and my wife isn't tiny. No problems for years now.

thanks for the photo.