inventive ways of storing records? Furniture-R

mannybolone

I am in L.A. now. Permanently.The drive down was ok until I hit I5 traffic south of 134. At that moment, I wanted to turn around and head back to the Bay. On the plus side, the new pad is looking spanktacular with new carpeting and no fleas. Proper. On the down side, one of my neighbors has his busted ass rusty Trans-Am parked in the garage and now I realize I have to figure out how to fit about 4000 records around that.Which brings me to:I want to build some record storage joints for the living room. Two ideas:1) 3 feet high, 1 foot wide, 1-2 feet deep. 3 levels.Top level = simple crate that you can flip through from the top. Middle and bottom level = file cabinet drawer style so you can pull out each level, flip through stuff vertically, then push it back in. I'd anchor the unit into a wall stud to make sure it wouldn't tip over if the middle drawer is pulled out, though I'd hope the weight of the top crate and bottom crate would prevent this. I thought about building something similar to this, only 3 feet wide but then thought against it since it'd mean that each of the two bottom drawers would have to be able to handle 100+ lbs of weight. 2) I have Ikea bookcases with variable height shelves. I was thinking of taking one shelf and building 6 inch high "walls" in the front and back so instead of shelving records horizontally (like books on a shelf), I can file them vertically and flip through 'em back to front. Feedback?

faux_rillz

Middle and bottom level = file cabinet drawer style so you can pull out each level, flip through stuff vertically, then push it back in.

Massive headache to build. Also seems likely that the weight of the records would do in the rolling mechanism, unless it was very sturdy.

HAZBEEN

I agree with the above poster about the drawers. A nice expedit type shelf, but larger & more sturdy with doors would look sharp. I had a carpenter build me something like that. He build it in segments that bolt together to make it easy to move.

mannybolone

I agree with the above poster about the drawers. A nice expedit type shelf, but larger & more sturdy with doors would look sharp. I had a carpenter build me something like that. He build it in segments that bolt together to make it easy to move.

How about idea #2 - turning a bookself into an improvised crate?

More feasible?

The main thing: I don't want to have to flip through stuff horizontally on a custom unit.

Brian

faux_rillz

I agree with the above poster about the drawers. A nice expedit type shelf, but larger & more sturdy with doors would look sharp. I had a carpenter build me something like that. He build it in segments that bolt together to make it easy to move.

How about idea #2 - turning a bookself into an improvised crate?

More feasible?

The main thing: I don't want to have to flip through stuff horizontally on a custom unit.

Idea #2 sounds like it could be kind of rickety--why are you fixated on being able to flip through records from front to back, anyway?

In order to replicate the digging experience in the comfort of your own home?

serg

what if you did something more like a really long trunk or credenza, the drawer thing has me assuming you don't want the records to be visable. basically build a long box with either one long lid or break it up. you could put dividers inside to seperate the records if you want. Put some legs on it and use it as a seating or something.

if it's the same color as the wall and the lid is flush it won't even look like storage but instead part of the wall

mannybolone

I agree with the above poster about the drawers. A nice expedit type shelf, but larger & more sturdy with doors would look sharp. I had a carpenter build me something like that. He build it in segments that bolt together to make it easy to move.

How about idea #2 - turning a bookself into an improvised crate?

More feasible?

The main thing: I don't want to have to flip through stuff horizontally on a custom unit.

Idea #2 sounds like it could be kind of rickety--why are you fixated on being able to flip through records from front to back, anyway?

In order to replicate the digging experience in the comfort of your own home?

Because it's easier - much more easy - to flip through records in a hurry when you can do it vertically than have to pull them out by the handful and then put them each back one by one when you have them horizontal.

Mind you - 95% of my collection is shelved horizontally and that's fine since most of them, they just sit there. But I'd like having easier access to my "new arrivals" pile which is usually 100-200 LPs. My brother-in-law has carpentry skillz so I figured here was a good opportunity to try something new.

HairyBelafonte

o-

you seen OM's under bed storage box/bed/cubby ? w/locks and all! it was the size of a double or queen size bed w/ 3 or 4 long drawers that slid out easily on masonite bottoms. maybe scaled down to fit your needs

oxnardcore

one thing you could do is get that expedit bookshelf and get the plastic opentop storage boxes that fit flush in each of the spaces. that way you can just pull out one box at a time and flip through it like a crate. it'll help with the organization too, since you can just designate each "crate" to whatever category. they're surprisingly sturdy, but if you go this route, keep the boxes on the lower shelves because they get pretty heavy when fully packed. i've got the bottom 8 spots of my 4x4 expedit filled this way.

scrimbo

one thing you could do is get that expedit bookshelf and get the plastic opentop storage boxes that fit flush in each of the spaces. that way you can just pull out one box at a time and flip through it like a crate. it'll help with the organization too, since you can just designate each "crate" to whatever category. they're surprisingly sturdy, but if you go this route, keep the boxes on the lower shelves because they get pretty heavy when fully packed. i've got the bottom 8 spots of my 4x4 expedit filled this way.

That sounds like a good idea:) Do the plastic storage boxes get sold through Ikea?? Or are they from somewher else??

waxjunky

one thing you could do is get that expedit bookshelf and get the plastic opentop storage boxes that fit flush in each of the spaces. that way you can just pull out one box at a time and flip through it like a crate. it'll help with the organization too, since you can just designate each "crate" to whatever category. they're surprisingly sturdy, but if you go this route, keep the boxes on the lower shelves because they get pretty heavy when fully packed. i've got the bottom 8 spots of my 4x4 expedit filled this way.

That sounds like a good idea:) Do the plastic storage boxes get sold through Ikea?? Or are they from somewher else??

Ikea does sell them. I have one that I use by my stereo, but I don't move it around much at all. They snap together, so I figure they're much less sturdy than a single molded piece (like a milkcrate). They may be better than I give them credit though. I just don't want that thing to bottom out when it's full of records, so I don't risk it.

If someone could make some nice sturdy wooden ones with a hole cut for a handle, that could look sharp. The sides of the box would would have to be pretty thin, though, with an Expedit.