[quote quote=37314]Thanks Alan, that makes things a lot clearer. Still I have a few questions.
You write that the two plates have threadless holes. But the holes in the top plate seem to have threads (at least the bolts do, as your pictures also show). Are you referring to the bottom plate only when talking about threadless holes?
Why did you have to find the type of bolts as in photos in a hardware store? Didn’t the bolts from the top plate fit?
The bolts you show in post #37307 (bottom plate), are they the original ones or the ones you bought from the hardware store? If they are the original ones, they are clearly different from mine.
(I’m repeating myself here.) Is there anyone who knows how to remove the bolts from my bottom plate? It seems that the hex key that can be used to remove the bolts from the top plate can also be used for the bottom plate (they seem the right size), but due to the material the bolts from the bottom plate are made of (plastic? rubber?) I cannot seem to get a grip on them.
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Mark,
On my unit, neither top nor bottom plates have any threads. Each plate has four threadless holes.
All hardware I bought at the store. I couldn't get anything from WE to fit. I think the top bolts were too short to reach bottom "receiver" bolt.
Yes, they were bought so I could accomplish bolting the two plates together.
I have no idea why you can't remove the bottom bolts. I can't remember if they were of a different size or not, but I think they were the same. I do remember that mine were steel, and came out as easy as the top.
Since neither plate has any threads, the only way to attach them is to have the top and bottom bolts screw into each other.
Take a close look at my second photo, 095755, where the long bolt, and receiver thingy are sitting next to each other. Maybe copy the photo and zoom in. Yes, that long bolt does have threads, but it just drops all the way into the hole in top plate. Then, that other “receiver” bolt has internal threads, and goes into the bottom plate underneath the bottom plate. The long bolt on top plate threads into bolt on the bottom.
The bolts on the bottom are probably hard to remove because of the powder coating. You’ll have to break that free, possible by chipping away at the inside of the hex heads to make the wrench fit, and then just using a little extra force. Once the powder coating breaks, they’ll unscrew normally. Both plates should have through holes that line up with each other and the bolts that Alan showed are probably the easiest way to bolt the two plates together. Another, very easy option would be to use some of our VBH tape that we use for the stones. It will create an incredibly tough bond between the two plates.
I just disassembled my unit and mounted the plates together with the VHB tape we use for the stones. It was super simple though I’m concerned that it might peel the powder coating off when I take them apart, unless I heat them a little and run them under very hot water. I do like the ergonomics of the lower platform and it makes me think we should offer a conversion kit that features the correct bolts for mounting the plates along with a different back rail and some additional holes in the back plate and backs of the shelf uprights so those could still be used as a shelf for the stones. We’ll work on that. Thanks guys for the great ideas!
I removed the 4 top 1/4-20 bolts and then the bottom 4 1/4-20 bolts. I didn’t have the right size bolts and washers to bolt the two plates together, so I just used two strips of our VHB tape which has created a super solid lockup. Then I cut the back plate into two sections, right at the dividing line at the top of the cabinet. The smaller, top portion was reattached to the back of the top housing plate and the larger, bottom section was reattached to the back uprights of the shelving section. I didn’t want to drill and tap additional holes, so I just used the VHB tape to secure the back plate to the shelf uprights. I used a jigsaw to cut the back plate and it went pretty easily.
Clay, if you attached the top plate to the bottom plate using bottom plate using VHB tape, how come I still see bolts in the top plate? Is that purely for aesthetic purposes? And why can’t the screws from the top plate be used to attach that plate to the bottom plate? In the original PP3 both plates have bolts of the same that seem to be screwed in the plates.
The result looks great, by the way and to me a lot more ergonomic. I definitely think it would be a good idea if you would offer something similar or a conversion kit.
Tuffy, I already asked the same question to Clay, but since both the bolts in the top plate and those in the bottom plate are threaded, and the bolts from the top plate are pretty long, can’t you just use the bolts from the top plate to directly mount the top plate to the bottom one?
The bolts I have in the picture are just there for aesthetic purposes like you guessed. The holes on both plates are not threaded, they’re just through holes because the threading is in the upright pieces of the shelf system. None of the bolts removed from top and bottom plates are long enough to go through both together, hence the need for longer bolts. The other part of that equation is that you also need nuts for the longer bolts to screw into to hold the plates together.
Mark I believe they are both bolts, male threads, the nut portion, the female threads, are inserts set or glued into the shelf verticals. You need a bolt to go on the screws. That’s why Alan used that funny insert thing. The bolt side is male and the receiver side is female. It works well because it gets smaller to tighten the space between the top and bottom plate without having anything protrude above the top plate or below the bottom plate.
The bolts/nuts that Alan used are called Binding Posts. They’re also called Barrel Nuts and Sleeve Posts. The need to be around 0.255" / 6.47mm in diameter.
