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#1
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Best wood for long shelves
I am building a 6 foot long shelf that is going to be supported at the ends
(no option of support in the middle). The shelf needs to support about 50- 70 pounds of weight (stereo equipment), so the "sag" (or deflection) in the center is going to be a problem. I plan on building the shelf as a hollow box, and using steel angle iron on the inside as a stiffener. Just out of curiosity -- what commonly available wood product is best for resisting deflection under a continuous load (i.e. shelving)? The easily available ones at my local lumber store a laminated pine, mdf, playwood and particle board, I am assuming that the laminated pine would be best, since all the grain is running longitudinally. Is my assumption correct? -- Murray Peterson |
#2
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Best wood for long shelves
"Murray Peterson" wrote in message
... I am building a 6 foot long shelf that is going to be supported at the ends (no option of support in the middle). The shelf needs to support about 50- 70 pounds of weight (stereo equipment), so the "sag" (or deflection) in the center is going to be a problem. I plan on building the shelf as a hollow box, and using steel angle iron on the inside as a stiffener. Just out of curiosity -- what commonly available wood product is best for resisting deflection under a continuous load (i.e. shelving)? The easily available ones at my local lumber store a laminated pine, mdf, playwood and particle board, I am assuming that the laminated pine would be best, since all the grain is running longitudinally. Is my assumption correct? -- Murray Peterson Check out the sagulator shelf deflection calculator. Might be useful. http://www.woodbin.com/calcs/sagulator.htm -- Stoutman http://home.triad.rr.com/brianmeliss...ing_frames.htm (Featuring a NEW look) |
#3
Posted to rec.woodworking
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Best wood for long shelves
Murray Peterson wrote:
I am building a 6 foot long shelf that is going to be supported at the ends (no option of support in the middle). The shelf needs to support about 50- 70 pounds of weight (stereo equipment), so the "sag" (or deflection) in the center is going to be a problem. I plan on building the shelf as a hollow box, and using steel angle iron on the inside as a stiffener. Just out of curiosity -- what commonly available wood product is best for resisting deflection under a continuous load (i.e. shelving)? The easily available ones at my local lumber store a laminated pine, mdf, playwood and particle board, I am assuming that the laminated pine would be best, since all the grain is running longitudinally. Is my assumption correct? You could make the shelves a torsion box. Think hollow core door. Lightweight and very strong. 1/4" ply top and bottom, hardwood edging and pine innards. No steel needed. Joe Barta |
#4
Posted to rec.woodworking
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Best wood for long shelves
"Murray Peterson" wrote in message
... I am building a 6 foot long shelf that is going to be supported at the ends (no option of support in the middle). The shelf needs to support about 50- 70 pounds of weight (stereo equipment), so the "sag" (or deflection) in the center is going to be a problem. I plan on building the shelf as a hollow box, and using steel angle iron on the inside as a stiffener. Just out of curiosity -- what commonly available wood product is best for resisting deflection under a continuous load (i.e. shelving)? The easily available ones at my local lumber store a laminated pine, mdf, playwood and particle board, I am assuming that the laminated pine would be best, since all the grain is running longitudinally. Is my assumption correct? -- Murray Peterson For the sheet goods, on average, plywood would be the best, then particle board, then MDF for initial sag. I'm a bit unclear on how you're going to build the shelf as a hollow box. If you're going to go to that much trouble, and then include a steel angle, I'd suggest just doubling up on the wood for the shelf. Two of the 3/4" glued-up pine boards would deflect only about 3/32 at the middle under a distributed 70 pound load (assuming a shelf depth of 12"). You can get an estimate of sag using the Sagulator at http://www.woodworkersweb.com/sagulator.htm. todd |
#5
Posted to rec.woodworking
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Best wood for long shelves
Murray Peterson wrote:
I am building a 6 foot long shelf that is going to be supported at the ends (no option of support in the middle). The shelf needs to support about 50- 70 pounds of weight (stereo equipment), so the "sag" (or deflection) in the center is going to be a problem. I plan on building the shelf as a hollow box, and using steel angle iron on the inside as a stiffener. Just out of curiosity -- what commonly available wood product is best for resisting deflection under a continuous load (i.e. shelving)? The easily available ones at my local lumber store a laminated pine, mdf, playwood and particle board, I am assuming that the laminated pine would be best, since all the grain is running longitudinally. Is my assumption correct? If you are interested, can tell you how to build this shelf using foam, knitted fiber glass and epoxy along with the basic wooden shelf that is say 3/4" thick. It would probably support at leat 200 lbs, weigh maybe 10 lbs max. Contact me off list if interested. Lew |
#6
Posted to rec.woodworking
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Best wood for long shelves
"todd" wrote in
: For the sheet goods, on average, plywood would be the best, then particle board, then MDF for initial sag. I'm a bit unclear on how you're going to build the shelf as a hollow box. If you're going to go to that much trouble, and then include a steel angle, I'd suggest just doubling up on the wood for the shelf. Two of the 3/4" glued-up pine boards would deflect only about 3/32 at the middle under a distributed 70 pound load (assuming a shelf depth of 12"). You can get an estimate of sag using the Sagulator at http://www.woodworkersweb.com/sagulator.htm. Are the sagulator numbers good for long-term loading, or just initial deflection? My experience with purchased bookshelves has been poor -- shelves that progressively sag more as the years go by. BTW, the loading is not distributed -- almost all of the weight is pretty close to centered. -- Murray Peterson |
#7
Posted to rec.woodworking
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Best wood for long shelves
Joe Barta wrote in news:Xns9745D6430F2CAjbartaapknet@
207.115.17.102: You could make the shelves a torsion box. Think hollow core door. Lightweight and very strong. 1/4" ply top and bottom, hardwood edging and pine innards. No steel needed. That's pretty much what I had in mind, but with some 1/2 inch steel angle- iron screwed to the inside of the front and back edges for increased stiffness. Sounds like my design may be overkill for the application. -- Murray Peterson |
#8
Posted to rec.woodworking
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Best wood for long shelves
"Murray Peterson" wrote in message
... "todd" wrote in : For the sheet goods, on average, plywood would be the best, then particle board, then MDF for initial sag. I'm a bit unclear on how you're going to build the shelf as a hollow box. If you're going to go to that much trouble, and then include a steel angle, I'd suggest just doubling up on the wood for the shelf. Two of the 3/4" glued-up pine boards would deflect only about 3/32 at the middle under a distributed 70 pound load (assuming a shelf depth of 12"). You can get an estimate of sag using the Sagulator at http://www.woodworkersweb.com/sagulator.htm. Are the sagulator numbers good for long-term loading, or just initial deflection? My experience with purchased bookshelves has been poor -- shelves that progressively sag more as the years go by. BTW, the loading is not distributed -- almost all of the weight is pretty close to centered. -- Murray Peterson From the sagulator: "The Sagulator computes initial sag only. As an engineering rule of thumb, wood beams/shelves will sag an additional 50% over time beyond the initial deflection induced by the load." -- Stoutman http://home.triad.rr.com/brianmeliss...ing_frames.htm (Featuring a NEW look) |
#9
Posted to rec.woodworking
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Best wood for long shelves
Murray Peterson wrote:
Joe Barta wrote in news:Xns9745D6430F2CAjbartaapknet@ 207.115.17.102: You could make the shelves a torsion box. Think hollow core door. Lightweight and very strong. 1/4" ply top and bottom, hardwood edging and pine innards. No steel needed. That's pretty much what I had in mind, but with some 1/2 inch steel angle- iron screwed to the inside of the front and back edges for increased stiffness. Sounds like my design may be overkill for the application. Over 6 feet, 1/2" steel angle ain't gonna do squat. You'd get far more bang for your buck increasing the thickness of the torsion box. |
#10
Posted to rec.woodworking
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Best wood for long shelves
Murray Peterson wrote:
"todd" wrote in : For the sheet goods, on average, plywood would be the best, then particle board, then MDF for initial sag. I'm a bit unclear on how you're going to build the shelf as a hollow box. If you're going to go to that much trouble, and then include a steel angle, I'd suggest just doubling up on the wood for the shelf. Two of the 3/4" glued-up pine boards would deflect only about 3/32 at the middle under a distributed 70 pound load (assuming a shelf depth of 12"). You can get an estimate of sag using the Sagulator at http://www.woodworkersweb.com/sagulator.htm. Are the sagulator numbers good for long-term loading, or just initial deflection? My experience with purchased bookshelves has been poor -- shelves that progressively sag more as the years go by. BTW, the loading is not distributed -- almost all of the weight is pretty close to centered. I'm no engineer... more of a shoot from the hip from experience type. I think a torsion box with 1/4" glued on ply top and bottom with a total thickness of 1-3/4" should be strong enough for even the heaviest stereo equipment. I think the "sagulator" is just a guide and it has no use in calculating the strength of engineered assemblies... which is what a torsion box would be. Joe Barta |
#11
Posted to rec.woodworking
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Best wood for long shelves
You can add an enormous amount of support strength to your shelving by
adding a cleat underneath the front edge of a shelf. This is usually a 3/4 x 1" plywood strip, glued (and preferebly screwed as well) about 1/2" back from the front edge of the shelf and running the width of the shelf... also gives a classy look to the shelf. "Murray Peterson" wrote in message ... I am building a 6 foot long shelf that is going to be supported at the ends (no option of support in the middle). The shelf needs to support about 50- 70 pounds of weight (stereo equipment), so the "sag" (or deflection) in the center is going to be a problem. I plan on building the shelf as a hollow box, and using steel angle iron on the inside as a stiffener. Just out of curiosity -- what commonly available wood product is best for resisting deflection under a continuous load (i.e. shelving)? The easily available ones at my local lumber store a laminated pine, mdf, playwood and particle board, I am assuming that the laminated pine would be best, since all the grain is running longitudinally. Is my assumption correct? -- Murray Peterson |
#12
Posted to rec.woodworking
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Best wood for long shelves
"Joe Barta" wrote in message
.. . Murray Peterson wrote: "todd" wrote in : For the sheet goods, on average, plywood would be the best, then particle board, then MDF for initial sag. I'm a bit unclear on how you're going to build the shelf as a hollow box. If you're going to go to that much trouble, and then include a steel angle, I'd suggest just doubling up on the wood for the shelf. Two of the 3/4" glued-up pine boards would deflect only about 3/32 at the middle under a distributed 70 pound load (assuming a shelf depth of 12"). You can get an estimate of sag using the Sagulator at http://www.woodworkersweb.com/sagulator.htm. Are the sagulator numbers good for long-term loading, or just initial deflection? My experience with purchased bookshelves has been poor -- shelves that progressively sag more as the years go by. BTW, the loading is not distributed -- almost all of the weight is pretty close to centered. I'm no engineer... more of a shoot from the hip from experience type. I think a torsion box with 1/4" glued on ply top and bottom with a total thickness of 1-3/4" should be strong enough for even the heaviest stereo equipment. I think the "sagulator" is just a guide and it has no use in calculating the strength of engineered assemblies... which is what a torsion box would be. Joe Barta We're in luck. I'm a mechanical engineer who specialized in materials engineering. I wasn't attempting to calculate the strength of a torsion box. I'm sure it would work. But for the original poster, I'm just imagining that a couple of 3/4" thick boards that he can buy off the shelf and laminate together would be easier to deal with and would also be very effective. Of course the sagulator is just a guide. For one, it doesn't take into account end conditions, which can have an effect on deflection. It also makes assumptions regarding the bulk properties of the material that may or may not be true. And it can't do stuff like figure the deflection if a thicker piece is applied to the front of the shelf to add rigidity. todd |
#13
Posted to rec.woodworking
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Best wood for long shelves
todd wrote:
We're in luck. I'm a mechanical engineer who specialized in materials engineering. I have a couple questions for you then. Something I always wondered. Imagine a torsion box, well made with 1/4" ply top and bottom and 1- 1/2" thick. Let's say it's for a shelf 6ft long and 11-1/4" wide. Now imagine a solid plank, 2x12 construction lumber (not fir). Would you think the torsion box would be stiffer or would the solid plank be stiffer? I would imagine that if one used oak instead of spf, the oak plank would be stronger than both. Also, would I be correct in thinking that 2 pieces of 1x12 laminated together would be stiffer than a solid 2x12? If so, why? (other than minimizing and spreading out defects, which is pretty obvious) I know I could probably do some homework and look this stuff up... but you're here, right? |
#14
Posted to rec.woodworking
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Best wood for long shelves
"Joe Barta" wrote in message ... todd wrote: We're in luck. I'm a mechanical engineer who specialized in materials engineering. I have a couple questions for you then. Something I always wondered. Imagine a torsion box, well made with 1/4" ply top and bottom and 1- 1/2" thick. Let's say it's for a shelf 6ft long and 11-1/4" wide. Now imagine a solid plank, 2x12 construction lumber (not fir). Would you think the torsion box would be stiffer or would the solid plank be stiffer? Depends on what sort of plywood it is. Likely to be close. But make the box 2" thick and it will win. 3" and the plank has no chance. I would imagine that if one used oak instead of spf, the oak plank would be stronger than both. Also, would I be correct in thinking that 2 pieces of 1x12 laminated together would be stiffer than a solid 2x12? If so, why? (other than minimizing and spreading out defects, which is pretty obvious) No, it would be the same unless you had trouble finding 2x without splits and things. j |
#15
Posted to rec.woodworking
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Best wood for long shelves
On Mon, 09 Jan 2006 01:38:05 GMT, Murray Peterson
wrote: I am building a 6 foot long shelf that is going to be supported at the ends (no option of support in the middle). The shelf needs to support about 50- 70 pounds of weight (stereo equipment), so the "sag" (or deflection) in the center is going to be a problem. I plan on building the shelf as a hollow box, and using steel angle iron on the inside as a stiffener. Just out of curiosity -- what commonly available wood product is best for resisting deflection under a continuous load (i.e. shelving)? The easily available ones at my local lumber store a laminated pine, mdf, playwood and particle board, I am assuming that the laminated pine would be best, since all the grain is running longitudinally. Is my assumption correct? Ply or solid wood deflects the least. You might consider a 2" lip on front and in the back or a torsion box to help. Six feet is a lot. |
#16
Posted to rec.woodworking
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Best wood for long shelves
"Joe Barta" wrote in message
... todd wrote: We're in luck. I'm a mechanical engineer who specialized in materials engineering. I have a couple questions for you then. Something I always wondered. Imagine a torsion box, well made with 1/4" ply top and bottom and 1- 1/2" thick. Let's say it's for a shelf 6ft long and 11-1/4" wide. Now imagine a solid plank, 2x12 construction lumber (not fir). Would you think the torsion box would be stiffer or would the solid plank be stiffer? I would imagine that if one used oak instead of spf, the oak plank would be stronger than both. Also, would I be correct in thinking that 2 pieces of 1x12 laminated together would be stiffer than a solid 2x12? If so, why? (other than minimizing and spreading out defects, which is pretty obvious) I know I could probably do some homework and look this stuff up... but you're here, right? Tell me about the construction of the insides of the torsion box. The makeup of the longitudinal pieces will have the greatest effect on stiffness. I imagine it will be 3/4x1 SPF of some kind. todd |
#17
Posted to rec.woodworking
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Best wood for long shelves
"Murray Peterson" wrote in message ... Joe Barta wrote in news:Xns9745D6430F2CAjbartaapknet@ 207.115.17.102: You could make the shelves a torsion box. Think hollow core door. Lightweight and very strong. 1/4" ply top and bottom, hardwood edging and pine innards. No steel needed. That's pretty much what I had in mind, but with some 1/2 inch steel angle- iron screwed to the inside of the front and back edges for increased stiffness. Sounds like my design may be overkill for the application. Serious overkill Murray. The 1/2 inch would weigh a ton and you won't need the strength that it will bring. -- -Mike- |
#18
Posted to rec.woodworking
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Best wood for long shelves
Mike Marlow wrote:
Serious overkill Murray. The 1/2 inch would weigh a ton and you won't need the strength that it will bring. I can't imagine 1/2" angle iron bringing much strength at all over 6 ft... and not that much weight either. Or maybe we're thinking different things. I'm thinking about 1/8" thick steel angle with each leg being 1/2" wide. Am I missing something?? Joe Barta |
#19
Posted to rec.woodworking
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Best wood for long shelves
Murray Peterson wrote:
Joe Barta wrote in news:Xns9745D6430F2CAjbartaapknet@ 207.115.17.102: You could make the shelves a torsion box. Think hollow core door. Lightweight and very strong. 1/4" ply top and bottom, hardwood edging and pine innards. No steel needed. That's pretty much what I had in mind, but with some 1/2 inch steel angle- iron screwed to the inside of the front and back edges for increased stiffness. Sounds like my design may be overkill for the application. Yep -- dadiOH ____________________________ dadiOH's dandies v3.06... ....a help file of info about MP3s, recording from LP/cassette and tips & tricks on this and that. Get it at http://mysite.verizon.net/xico |
#20
Posted to rec.woodworking
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Best wood for long shelves
Murray Peterson wrote:
You can get an estimate of sag using the Sagulator at http://www.woodworkersweb.com/sagulator.htm. Are the sagulator numbers good for long-term loading, or just initial deflection? My experience with purchased bookshelves has been poor -- shelves that progressively sag more as the years go by. Turn 'em over once in a while. BTW, the loading is not distributed -- almost all of the weight is pretty close to centered. *That* makes a difference. -- dadiOH ____________________________ dadiOH's dandies v3.06... ....a help file of info about MP3s, recording from LP/cassette and tips & tricks on this and that. Get it at http://mysite.verizon.net/xico |
#21
Posted to rec.woodworking
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Best wood for long shelves
In article ,
Joe Barta wrote: Mike Marlow wrote: Serious overkill Murray. The 1/2 inch would weigh a ton and you won't need the strength that it will bring. I can't imagine 1/2" angle iron bringing much strength at all over 6 ft... and not that much weight either. Or maybe we're thinking different things. I'm thinking about 1/8" thick steel angle with each leg being 1/2" wide. Am I missing something?? Yeah. other folks thought you meant 1/2" _thick_ steel -- a continuous piece running the length of the shelf. |
#22
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Best wood for long shelves
Robert Bonomi wrote:
In article , Joe Barta wrote: Mike Marlow wrote: Serious overkill Murray. The 1/2 inch would weigh a ton and you won't need the strength that it will bring. I can't imagine 1/2" angle iron bringing much strength at all over 6 ft... and not that much weight either. Or maybe we're thinking different things. I'm thinking about 1/8" thick steel angle with each leg being 1/2" wide. Am I missing something?? Yeah. other folks thought you meant 1/2" _thick_ steel -- a continuous piece running the length of the shelf. 1/2" thick angle iron... in a shelf? I can't visualize that. What are the length of the legs and how would it be oriented? |
#23
Posted to rec.woodworking
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Best wood for long shelves
"Joe Barta" wrote in message .. . Mike Marlow wrote: Serious overkill Murray. The 1/2 inch would weigh a ton and you won't need the strength that it will bring. I can't imagine 1/2" angle iron bringing much strength at all over 6 ft... and not that much weight either. Or maybe we're thinking different things. I'm thinking about 1/8" thick steel angle with each leg being 1/2" wide. Am I missing something?? Joe Barta D'OH!!!! Color me the same color as a brain fart! I'm thinking 1/2" thick steel - and wondering why anyone would want to do such a thing. Some days are just really bad... -- -Mike- |
#24
Posted to rec.woodworking
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Best wood for long shelves
Joe Barta wrote:
I can't imagine 1/2" angle iron bringing much strength at all over 6 ft... and not that much weight either. The angle iron has a modulus of elasticity that is about 15 times that of wood. That 1/2" angle iron gives about as much strength as a 1/2"x2" lip of oak under the shelf. Of course, if you put the 2" dimention vertically under the shelf, the lip is about 16x stronger. For those who care about the math, the deflection of a beam is inversely proportional to the width of the rectangular cross section. However, it is inversely proportional to the *cube* of the height of the cross section. Chris |
#25
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Best wood for long shelves
Chris Friesen wrote in news:11s62ile2t3sqb2
@corp.supernews.com: The angle iron has a modulus of elasticity that is about 15 times that of wood. That 1/2" angle iron gives about as much strength as a 1/2"x2" lip of oak under the shelf. Thanks -- those numbers help me a lot. I wanted to create a shelf with quite a thin cross-section (1.2 inches at most), but then ran into problems with deflection. Sounds like the interior piece of iron could be enough to get me what I need. I'll put the thing together sometime in the next week (if work permits). I'll post back and let everyone know how it worked (or didn't). Thanks to all for their helpful responses. Learning new things is always fun, especially if I can see the results hanging on my wall :-) -- Murray Peterson |
#26
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Best wood for long shelves
"Chris Friesen" wrote in message ... Joe Barta wrote: I can't imagine 1/2" angle iron bringing much strength at all over 6 ft... and not that much weight either. The angle iron has a modulus of elasticity that is about 15 times that of wood. Unfortunately, it has a moment of inertia (even assuming there are 2 of them as the poster suggested) about 350 times less than the shelf. In the end, unless 1/2" angle iron is a lot thicker than I think, it doesn't end up contributing much to the combined moment of inertia, which means it doesn't reduce deflection in a significant way. That 1/2" angle iron gives about as much strength as a 1/2"x2" lip of oak under the shelf. i.e. not very much. Of course, if you put the 2" dimention vertically under the shelf, the lip is about 16x stronger. Of course, if the lip is made of tungsten carbide, it would be 30x stronger. For those who care about the math, the deflection of a beam is inversely proportional to the width of the rectangular cross section. However, it is inversely proportional to the *cube* of the height of the cross section. It's also directly proportional to the cube of the length. If the OP could reduce the width just 6", the deflection would drop about 25%. Chris todd |
#27
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Best wood for long shelves
todd wrote:
Unfortunately, it has a moment of inertia (even assuming there are 2 of them as the poster suggested) about 350 times less than the shelf. Oh, certainly. I should have maybe qualified that statement. That 1/2" angle iron gives about as much strength as a 1/2"x2" lip of oak under the shelf. i.e. not very much. Yep. Of course, if you put the 2" dimention vertically under the shelf, the lip is about 16x stronger. Of course, if the lip is made of tungsten carbide, it would be 30x stronger. True. But I think my suggestion is more practical. grin It's also directly proportional to the cube of the length. If the OP could reduce the width just 6", the deflection would drop about 25%. Yep. It was kind of fun digging up my old statics references--I trained as an engineer, but I've been doing software for the past 6 years. Chris |
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