I need a shelf to hold 3 CRT monitors above my existing desk. It needs to
extend about 36" from a normal house wall and hold the weight of the
monitors. Is that enough to go on? The monitors are 2 19" and 1 21 inch. I
guess they weigh about 40 lbs each. It would be a pain to access below or
behind the current desk.
I appreciate your help as always,
: -)

So many monitors,why not change to LCD monitor,they are lighter

On 11ÔÂ21ÈÕ, ÏÂÎç2ʱ35·Ö, "AKA gray asphalt"
wrote:
I need a shelf to hold 3 CRT monitors above my existing desk. It needs to
extend about 36" from a normal house wall and hold the weight of the
monitors. Is that enough to go on? The monitors are 2 19" and 1 21 inch. I
guess they weigh about 40 lbs each. It would be a pain to access below or
behind the current desk.
I appreciate your help as always,
: -)

AKA gray asphalt wrote:
I need a shelf to hold 3 CRT monitors above my existing desk. It
needs to extend about 36" from a normal house wall and hold the
weight of the monitors. Is that enough to go on? The monitors are 2
19" and 1 21 inch. I guess they weigh about 40 lbs each. It would be
a pain to access below or behind the current desk.
I appreciate your help as always,
-)

I would guess you are doing color critical graphic work (photographs?)
If not the suggestion to move to LCD's would be good.

If you want CRT's (some of the newer LCDs really do have great color
capabilities) then I suggest looking at some of the larger TV supply sources
and find a wall mount for TV's

Another possibility is to build small tables to hold the monitors on the
desk.

--
Joseph Meehan

Dia 's Muire duit

For that weight support cables into the ceiling or up from the floor is
necessary to hold the shelf.

In article .com,
wrote:

So many monitors,why not change to LCD monitor,they are lighter

Agreed. However, the CO$T of such a change-out would be very high.

If they are in good, working order, replacing them simply to achieve weight
savings would be extravagant and possibly wasteful.

If they are heavy CRTs, a good design is particularly important from a safety
standpoint. Good luck!
--

JR

No project too small
All projects too big

"Jim Redelfs" wrote in message
...
In article .com,
wrote:

So many monitors,why not change to LCD monitor,they are lighter

Agreed. However, the CO$T of such a change-out would be very high.

If they are in good, working order, replacing them simply to achieve weight
savings would be extravagant and possibly wasteful.

If they are heavy CRTs, a good design is particularly important from a safety
standpoint. Good luck!

Decent LCDs can be had now for a couple hundred bucks and would pay for
themselves in energy usage many times over their life span.

m Ransley wrote:
For that weight support cables into the ceiling or up from the floor
is necessary to hold the shelf.

Not really. But you do need to bolt into a stud. I have a TV that
heavy hanging from a stud wall in my exercise room right now. It is on a
commercial fixture designed for that use.

--
Joseph Meehan

Dia 's Muire duit

first, look into a SVGA switch so you can switch between ONE monitor.
If you must have three monitors (Why heavy CRT's?) then you'll need
some badass carriage bolts and some heavy duty supports.

Sounds to me like you need to rething your setup... I have multiple
computers at home and use a single monitor, keyboard and mouse via a
KVM switch. maybe that would be helpful.

Heat will also be an issue with that many crt's next to each other if
they're on simultaneously.

Joseph Meehan wrote:

m Ransley wrote:
For that weight support cables into the ceiling or up from the floor
is necessary to hold the shelf.

Not really. But you do need to bolt into a stud. I have a TV that
heavy hanging from a stud wall in my exercise room right now. It is on a
commercial fixture designed for that use.

--
Joseph Meehan

Dia 's Muire duit

I did a very similar setup for a non linear video editing workstation.
It's been holding three 21" CRTs for at least 8 years not without issue.

What I did:

Get four of the heavy duty double slotted shelf standards and attach
them to the wall solidly. I attached them to a wall which was composed
of a double layer of 5/8" type X sheetrock with 16 1/4" toggle bolts.

Take four of the 12" long (longest I could find) shelf brackets and cut
four pieces of oak 1x2 about 24" long. Attach these 1x2s on top of the
shelf brackets (allow clearance for them to connect to the rails)
through the holes of the bracket using long machine screws and "T" nuts.

Attach these brackets to the rails on the wall and place two standard
12" deep shelf boards across them. At the front of the shelf about an
inch back drill a 3/16 hole through both the shelf and the oak 1x2.

Enlarge the hole in the 1x2 to 1/4" and install a 3/16 "T" nut from the
bottom. Get four 3/16 turnbuckles. Remove the right hand threaded eye
bolts from the turnbuckles and install with washers through the shelf
and 1x2 into the "T" nuts. Trim off excess length.

Remove the left hand threaded eye bolt from the turnbuckle and pry the
eyes open just enough to fit them through the eye bolts in the shelves
and squeeze closed again.

Get four of the smaller 8" shelf brackets, four lengths of 3/16 all
thread (~36" ea), four of the 3/16 coupling nuts for the all thread and
eight 3/16 hex nuts. On one end of each piece of all thread install a
hex nut followed by a coupling nut and tighten together to lock in place
at the end of the all thread.

Feed the all thread through the back hole of the 8" shelf brackets.
Position the 8" shelf brackets on the rails above the big shelf, high
enough up to clear the monitors you intend to put on them. Swing the all
thread to the front and align with the turnbuckles. Trim off any excess
length on the all thread and then thread into the turnbuckles. Adjust
the turnbuckles until they lift up slightly on the front of the lower
shelf.

Install regular 8" shelves on the upper brackets and install more above
on the rails if desired. Place the monitors on the lower shelf.

This "suspension bridge" shelf will support your three monitors nicely
as well as monitor speakers at the ends in the case of a video
workstation. The shelves above will hold tapes, CDs, DVDs, manuals, etc.
It's also a lot less complicated to build than to describe. Painting the
hardware to match the shelves works nicely too.

Pete C.

wrote:
first, look into a SVGA switch so you can switch between ONE monitor.
If you must have three monitors (Why heavy CRT's?) then you'll need
some badass carriage bolts and some heavy duty supports.

Sounds to me like you need to rething your setup... I have multiple
computers at home and use a single monitor, keyboard and mouse via a
KVM switch. maybe that would be helpful.

Heat will also be an issue with that many crt's next to each other if
they're on simultaneously.

Ditto the KVM switch, and note that many now also switch USB, and
audio connections. Assuming you initially have one monitor per comp.

J

wrote:

wrote:
first, look into a SVGA switch so you can switch between ONE monitor.
If you must have three monitors (Why heavy CRT's?) then you'll need
some badass carriage bolts and some heavy duty supports.

Sounds to me like you need to rething your setup... I have multiple
computers at home and use a single monitor, keyboard and mouse via a
KVM switch. maybe that would be helpful.

Heat will also be an issue with that many crt's next to each other if
they're on simultaneously.

Ditto the KVM switch, and note that many now also switch USB, and
audio connections. Assuming you initially have one monitor per comp.

J

I think your missing the fact that a lot of systems these days have
multiple monitors either for more "desktop space", a panoramic gaming
view and different workspace and toolbar areas for CAD, graphics or
video. A KVM switch certainly makes sense if it's just for intermittent
management of multiple computers.

Pete C.

AKA gray asphalt wrote:
I need a shelf to hold 3 CRT monitors above my existing desk. It
needs to extend about 36" from a normal house wall and hold the
weight of the monitors. Is that enough to go on? The monitors are 2
19" and 1 21 inch. I guess they weigh about 40 lbs each. It would be
a pain to access below or behind the current desk.
I appreciate your help as always,
-)

Best: Some part of it reaches all the way to the ceiling for attachment
there.

Second: Box approach; shelf for the monitors, smaller shelf well above the
monitors. Then you have room to get some cube-strength designed into it.
a very large backboard with substantial bracing below and above the
shelf. The monitors will cover the backboard for the most part. Be sure
the top shelf is plenty high for the monitors.

Did the same thing here with an 8 ft long shelf system for books; still as
solid as the day it went up.

AKA gray asphalt wrote:
I need a shelf to hold 3 CRT monitors above my existing desk. It
needs to extend about 36" from a normal house wall and hold the
weight of the monitors. Is that enough to go on? The monitors are 2
19" and 1 21 inch. I guess they weigh about 40 lbs each. It would be
a pain to access below or behind the current desk.
I appreciate your help as always,
-)

Remember, the main force is not down, but OUT (from the wall). The weight
of the load puts rotational torque on the shelf. The shelf will try to move
OUTWARD not down. Assuming the anchors you choose won't bend, if you attach
the shelf such that it cannot be pulled outward or rotate on its connection,
the shelf will prevail.

Visualize a failed shelf; the disconnect damage is not some anchor sliceing
down the wall like a ripped sheet. The anchor mechanism pulled out of the
wall!

AKA gray asphalt wrote:

I need a shelf to hold 3 CRT monitors above my existing desk. It needs to
extend about 36" from a normal house wall and hold the weight of the
monitors. Is that enough to go on? The monitors are 2 19" and 1 21 inch. I
guess they weigh about 40 lbs each. It would be a pain to access below or
behind the current desk.
I appreciate your help as always,
: -)


I once put up book shelves on living room wall that were anchored to the
studs. I made the shelves of oak, with mitered decor. edge, and 3
shaped brackets under each shelf. I screwed metal mending plates onto
the back of each bracket so that they were fastened to the bracket and
the shelf and had one hole at top to use for bolting to the studs.
Brackets were spaced to fit the spacing of the studs. Used lag bolts to
fasten to the studs, and they didn't show with books on the shelves.

36" depth is a whole nother story - you would need some legs. How about
replacing the desktop or just laying a new counter on top of it?

I did but I can't get rid of the old ones so I'm going to connect an extra
video card and use the old ones as duals. I'm addicted to the extra screen
space.

I'm going to try to post a link to a drawing, if I can. I really appreciate
the help. The problem of heat hadn't occurred me. It should have because it
is already pretty hot in this small room and next summer it will be worse. I
was thinking about bolting a 1x8 into the studs and putting a heavy duty
hinge between the shelf and the 1x8 and putting legs on the shelf, maybe
with a support going at a 45 degree angle from the leg to the shelf for
support. I bet that sounds wrong but maybe after you see the drawing. Maybe
I can use the monitors just when needed to save on heat. The flat screens
have got to be cooler, no? They sure seem so. One of the suggestions, I will
need to draw out too because it is a little complicated for my beginning
skills. If I don't get back it's because I decided to forget about it
because of the heat issue, and thanks again for your input.
: -)

In article ,
says...
wrote:

wrote:
first, look into a SVGA switch so you can switch between ONE monitor.
If you must have three monitors (Why heavy CRT's?) then you'll need
some badass carriage bolts and some heavy duty supports.

Sounds to me like you need to rething your setup... I have multiple
computers at home and use a single monitor, keyboard and mouse via a
KVM switch. maybe that would be helpful.

Heat will also be an issue with that many crt's next to each other if
they're on simultaneously.

Ditto the KVM switch, and note that many now also switch USB, and
audio connections. Assuming you initially have one monitor per comp.

J

I think your missing the fact that a lot of systems these days have
multiple monitors either for more "desktop space", a panoramic gaming
view and different workspace and toolbar areas for CAD, graphics or
video.

Yes, I have dual monitors (laptop plus LCD) in panoramic mode.
Wouldn't go any other way (though I'm having trouble with my Linux
desktop).

A KVM switch certainly makes sense if it's just for intermittent
management of multiple computers.

Another alternative is VNC (Virtual Network Connection).

--
Keith

On Tue, 21 Nov 2006 18:53:03 GMT, Norminn
wrote:

AKA gray asphalt wrote:

I need a shelf to hold 3 CRT monitors above my existing desk. It needs to
extend about 36" from a normal house wall and hold the weight of the
monitors. Is that enough to go on? The monitors are 2 19" and 1 21 inch. I
guess they weigh about 40 lbs each. It would be a pain to access below or
behind the current desk.
I appreciate your help as always,
: -)


I once put up book shelves on living room wall that were anchored to the
studs. I made the shelves of oak, with mitered decor. edge, and 3
shaped brackets under each shelf. I screwed metal mending plates onto
the back of each bracket so that they were fastened to the bracket and
the shelf and had one hole at top to use for bolting to the studs.
Brackets were spaced to fit the spacing of the studs. Used lag bolts to
fasten to the studs, and they didn't show with books on the shelves.

36" depth is a whole nother story - you would need some legs. How about
replacing the desktop or just laying a new counter on top of it?

Not necessarily. Chains hooked to screw-eyes into the top plate of
the wall should hold any reasonable weight.

A 21 inch monitor weighs a lot more than 40 pounds.


"AKA gray asphalt" wrote in message
...
I need a shelf to hold 3 CRT monitors above my existing desk. It needs to
extend about 36" from a normal house wall and hold the weight of the
monitors. Is that enough to go on? The monitors are 2 19" and 1 21 inch. I
guess they weigh about 40 lbs each. It would be a pain to access below or
behind the current desk.
I appreciate your help as always,
: -)

On Tue, 21 Nov 2006 22:26:35 GMT, "Art"
wrote:

A 21 inch monitor weighs a lot more than 40 pounds.


I have used a 19 inch CRT (before replacing with LCD). It seemed to
weigh around 75-80 pounds.


"AKA gray asphalt" wrote in message
...
I need a shelf to hold 3 CRT monitors above my existing desk. It needs to
extend about 36" from a normal house wall and hold the weight of the
monitors. Is that enough to go on? The monitors are 2 19" and 1 21 inch. I
guess they weigh about 40 lbs each. It would be a pain to access below or
behind the current desk.
I appreciate your help as always,
: -)



--
34 days until the winter solstice celebration

Mark Lloyd
http://notstupid.laughingsquid.com

"I have found Christian dogma unintelligable. Early
in life I absented myself from Christian assemblies."
-- Benjamin Franklin

you have three monitors from a dual video card?
That's interesting, you may be able to consider remote control software
like VNC (freeware) or a KVM switch in order to save yourself a third
of the weight and heat.

Projectors are cheap nowadays.

I need a shelf to hold 3 CRT monitors above my existing desk. It needs
to extend about 36" from a normal house wall and hold the weight of
the monitors. Is that enough to go on? The monitors are 2 19" and 1 21
inch. I guess they weigh about 40 lbs each. It would be a pain to
access below or behind the current desk.

You could probably build a platform with legs or supports on each side to
span your current desk. No need to attach anything to the wall, a bonus if
you are renting.

A crude platform could be built out of 2x4's with a layer of plywood on
top.

If you want something more attractive, you could use 3/4" birch plywood,
with 1x4's glued and nailed to the front and back edges. Sand, stain, and
poly and it'll look like a piece of furniture.

Of course, you may want to consider replacing those large, heavy CRT's with
flatscreen LCD's. Then you could put up just about any shelf to hold them.

Anthony

In article ,
says...
I need a shelf to hold 3 CRT monitors above my existing desk. It needs
to extend about 36" from a normal house wall and hold the weight of
the monitors. Is that enough to go on? The monitors are 2 19" and 1 21
inch. I guess they weigh about 40 lbs each. It would be a pain to
access below or behind the current desk.

You could probably build a platform with legs or supports on each side to
span your current desk. No need to attach anything to the wall, a bonus if
you are renting.

A crude platform could be built out of 2x4's with a layer of plywood on
top.

A solid-core door isn't much more expensive and will be much more
stable. A coat of stain and some poly and it won't even look bad.

If you want something more attractive, you could use 3/4" birch plywood,
with 1x4's glued and nailed to the front and back edges. Sand, stain, and
poly and it'll look like a piece of furniture.

It's still plywood.

Of course, you may want to consider replacing those large, heavy CRT's with
flatscreen LCD's. Then you could put up just about any shelf to hold them.

The rich-man's option. ;-)

--
Keith

Okay, new approach. What if I cut and threaded some 1/2 or maybe 3/4 or 1"
pipe and put together a kind of mini-scaffold? It would seem to be very
sturdy and not take up much space. I could fit piece of plywood to be the
shelf and it wouldn't have to be connected to the wall or ceiling. And I
could construct it pretty much without having to move the current desk. I
wonder how much weight those pipe would hold? I guess it all depends on the
spacing of the supports. Maybe there is some kind of foot, I mean the kind
that rests on the floor, that could be screwed into a fitting. I'm not sure
what would be the best way to interface with the vinyl floor.
Thanks again,
: -)

AKA gray asphalt wrote:

Okay, new approach. What if I cut and threaded some 1/2 or maybe 3/4 or 1"
pipe and put together a kind of mini-scaffold? It would seem to be very
sturdy and not take up much space. I could fit piece of plywood to be the
shelf and it wouldn't have to be connected to the wall or ceiling. And I
could construct it pretty much without having to move the current desk. I
wonder how much weight those pipe would hold? I guess it all depends on the
spacing of the supports. Maybe there is some kind of foot, I mean the kind
that rests on the floor, that could be screwed into a fitting. I'm not sure
what would be the best way to interface with the vinyl floor.

Go to your local home store and look for something like this:

http://www.metro.com/consumer/index.cfm

The shelves are adjustable in 1" increments and the uprights have feet
to protect the floor. Menards has cheap versions of these in sets, and
also the individual pieces if you want to customize. They are quick to
assemble and very strong.

--
Warren Block * Rapid City, South Dakota * USA

On Fri, 24 Nov 2006 11:34:15 -0800, "AKA gray asphalt"
wrote:


Okay, new approach. What if I cut and threaded some 1/2 or maybe 3/4 or 1"
pipe and put together a kind of mini-scaffold? It would seem to be very
sturdy and not take up much space. I could fit piece of plywood to be the
shelf and it wouldn't have to be connected to the wall or ceiling. And I
could construct it pretty much without having to move the current desk. I
wonder how much weight those pipe would hold? I guess it all depends on the
spacing of the supports. Maybe there is some kind of foot, I mean the kind
that rests on the floor, that could be screwed into a fitting. I'm not sure
what would be the best way to interface with the vinyl floor.
Thanks again,


2x3 posts, plywood, and either 2x4s with a notch for the plywood
or build-up rails of 1x boards are going to be easier to work with,
cheaper, and just as effective as anything you're going to make out
of pipe or more exotic materials. It doesn't really matter
that the surface is plywood, since it's going to be covered with
monitors and other assorted junk, anyway, so don't bother with
expensive furniture plywood, just use 1/2" BX and paint it.

DONT use sheetrock screws to hold the shelves to the posts,
use bolts.

On Fri, 24 Nov 2006 11:03:15 -0600, HerHusband
wrote:

I need a shelf to hold 3 CRT monitors above my existing desk. It needs
to extend about 36" from a normal house wall and hold the weight of
the monitors. Is that enough to go on? The monitors are 2 19" and 1 21
inch. I guess they weigh about 40 lbs each. It would be a pain to
access below or behind the current desk.

You could probably build a platform with legs or supports on each side to
span your current desk. No need to attach anything to the wall, a bonus if
you are renting.

A crude platform could be built out of 2x4's with a layer of plywood on
top.

If you want something more attractive, you could use 3/4" birch plywood,
with 1x4's glued and nailed to the front and back edges. Sand, stain, and
poly and it'll look like a piece of furniture.

Of course, you may want to consider replacing those large, heavy CRT's with
flatscreen LCD's. Then you could put up just about any shelf to hold them.

Anthony

I try/tend to re-purpose furniture for another cause. Some ends up in
the garage. One computer work station in the garage is a kitchen table
and it turns out the church pew (solid wood) makes a nice platform for
the monitor. Fits nicely on the table and it would hold two more
monitors.

--
Oren

"Well, it doesn't happen all the time, but when it happens, it happens constantly."

AKA gray asphalt wrote:
I need a shelf to hold 3 CRT monitors above my existing desk. It needs to
extend about 36" from a normal house wall and hold the weight of the
monitors. Is that enough to go on? The monitors are 2 19" and 1 21 inch. I
guess they weigh about 40 lbs each.

I think you're underestimating the weight.

My 19" monitors are 50 lbs, and my 21" is 80 lbs.

The best would be aircraft cable up to the ceiling to support the front
edge of the shelf.

Barring that, you'd want substantial diagonal braces above or below the
shelf. That much weight 3' out from the wall is going to put a lot of
torque onto the supports.

Chris

In article , Chris Friesen wrote:
AKA gray asphalt wrote:
I need a shelf to hold 3 CRT monitors above my existing desk. It needs to
extend about 36" from a normal house wall and hold the weight of the
monitors. Is that enough to go on? The monitors are 2 19" and 1 21 inch. I
guess they weigh about 40 lbs each.

I think you're underestimating the weight.

My 19" monitors are 50 lbs, and my 21" is 80 lbs.

Yup, but it's worse than that. Most of the weight in a CRT
is at the front of the unit. That's where all the thick
glass is (and the supporting frame).

Personally, I'd forget any kind of cantelever design for 3
large CRT's. Take even more care if there will be children
around and/or you live in an earthquake zone.

--
|~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~|
| Malcolm Hoar "The more I practice, the luckier I get". |
| Gary Player. |
| http://www.malch.com/ Shpx gur PQN. |
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

In article , goodidea1950
@hotmail.spam.com says...

Okay, new approach. What if I cut and threaded some 1/2 or maybe 3/4 or 1"
pipe and put together a kind of mini-scaffold? It would seem to be very
sturdy and not take up much space.

It wouldn't be sturdy nor cheap. Buy a couple of cheap file
cabinets or buy/build a couple of saw-horses and throw the door on
top. Trust me, a solid-core door will take all you can throw at
it, and look a lot better than plywood.

I could fit piece of plywood to be the
shelf and it wouldn't have to be connected to the wall or ceiling. And I
could construct it pretty much without having to move the current desk. I
wonder how much weight those pipe would hold?

Straight down? A *lot*. Twist it and you have a long lever to
pull the screws out' not much. If you're going to make a complete
frame out of threaded pipe, consider the twisties. I'ts not going
to work.

I guess it all depends on the
spacing of the supports. Maybe there is some kind of foot, I mean the kind
that rests on the floor, that could be screwed into a fitting. I'm not sure
what would be the best way to interface with the vinyl floor.

A door in top of an MDF box or 2-drawer filing cabinet on a scrap
of carpet really is the way to go.

--
Keith

Here's something that might be fun and functional...

You may need to read the Construction Instructions all the way through
before this makes sense. You may also want to beef up all
materials...we're just going for a design idea here.

Materials required:

- 2 each 1 x 4 hardwood stock, the same length as your shelf.
These are Cleats # 1 and # 2.
- 1 each 2 x "whatever width is required for your monitors" hardwood
stock.
This is your shelf.
- Aircraft cable or similar material - something strong enough to
support the weight
of the monitors and that will not stretch.
- Some type of anchoring device for the ends of the cable - this will
be explained later.
- Maybe some metal bushings - also explained later.
- 3/8" x 4" lag bolts (I'm not sure how many)

Construction Instructions:

Attach Cleat # 1 to the wall, lagged into the studs, to support the
back edge of the hardwood shelf. Make sure your cleat is long enough
to hit studs at each end. Lag all interior studs also.

Drill 4 holes about 2 - 3 inches in from the front edge of your shelf -
1 near each end and the other 2 spaced so they will end up between your
monitors like so:

Hole Monitor Hole Monitor Hole
Monitor Hole

Rout a channel on the back of Cleat # 2 just large enough for the cable
but not enough to weaken the wood. Optionally (or maybe preferably)
rout the channel in the wall instead of the wood. - Keep reading!

Drill 4 holes in the center of Cleat # 2 at the same locations as the
holes in your shelf.

Starting under the left hand side of shelf, thread the cable up though
the hole in the shelf and into a hole near the end of Cleat # 2.
Position the cable in the routed channel in the back of the Cleat # 2
and run it out the 2nd hole in the cleat and down through the 2nd hole
in the shelf. Run it under the shelf to the 3rd hole, thread it up
through and into the 3rd hole in Cleat # 2. Position the cable in the
routed channel in the back of the Cleat # 2 and run it out the 4th hole
in the cleat and down through the 4th hole in the shelf.

Position Cleat # 2 high enough on the wall so that the cables are at a
45-degree angle and then lag the cleat into the studs. You may want to
use 2 lag bolts at each stud. Anchor the ends of the cable under the
shelf in a secure manner.

Can you picture this? Cleat # 1 supports the back of the shelf. Simple
enough. The cables are threaded through the shelf and Cleat # 2 to
support the front of the shelf. Assuming the anchors at the ends of the
cable are secure, the cable would have to pull though the wood and/or
the lags would have to pull out of the studs before the shelf could
drop. The cable would also help to prevent the shelf from sagging. You
may want to consider metal bushings in all the holes to prevent the
cables from damaging the wood.

Feel free to consider other uses for Cleat # 2. Add hooks for your
ball caps. Hang pictures from it. Turn it into a plate shelf for
photos or other mementos.

AKA gray asphalt wrote:
I need a shelf to hold 3 CRT monitors above my existing desk. It needs to
extend about 36" from a normal house wall and hold the weight of the
monitors. Is that enough to go on? The monitors are 2 19" and 1 21 inch. I
guess they weigh about 40 lbs each. It would be a pain to access below or
behind the current desk.
I appreciate your help as always,
: -)

I need a shelf to hold 3 CRT monitors above my existing desk.

If you want something more attractive, you could use 3/4" birch
plywood, with 1x4's glued and nailed to the front and back edges.
Sand, stain, and poly and it'll look like a piece of furniture.

It's still plywood.

In many ways, plywood is a better option than solid wood. The cross plys of
the plywood help reduce warping and make it stronger than solid wood of the
same size.

A lot of furniture and cabinetry is built with plywood. As long as you
cover the edges with banding or solid wood strips, there's no real
indication it is plywood.

Of course, if you wanted to build a fine quality piece of furniture, you
could joint solid boards and glue up a 3 foot wide panel, but I was under
the impression the original poster just wanted something quick and easy.

Another option would be to build a torsion panel with an internal structure
and a thin plywood skin on each side. Essentially the way a hollow core
door is built. They're light, but very strong.

Anthony

"...I was under the impression the original poster just wanted
something quick and easy."

Reminds me of my favorite home repair line:

"It's only temporary...unless it works."

HerHusband wrote:
I need a shelf to hold 3 CRT monitors above my existing desk.

If you want something more attractive, you could use 3/4" birch
plywood, with 1x4's glued and nailed to the front and back edges.
Sand, stain, and poly and it'll look like a piece of furniture.

It's still plywood.

In many ways, plywood is a better option than solid wood. The cross plys of
the plywood help reduce warping and make it stronger than solid wood of the
same size.

A lot of furniture and cabinetry is built with plywood. As long as you
cover the edges with banding or solid wood strips, there's no real
indication it is plywood.

Of course, if you wanted to build a fine quality piece of furniture, you
could joint solid boards and glue up a 3 foot wide panel, but I was under
the impression the original poster just wanted something quick and easy.

Another option would be to build a torsion panel with an internal structure
and a thin plywood skin on each side. Essentially the way a hollow core
door is built. They're light, but very strong.

Anthony