Homemade Power Rack

I know its not a real close up pic of the construction etc...but what is stopping the timber uprights from just falling/leaning back or forward?

kiwi wrote:I know its not a real close up pic of the construction etc...but what is stopping the timber uprights from just falling/leaning back or forward?

The rack is screwed into the wooden floor to keep the base from moving and a bottle jack is placed between the top (right hand corner) of the rack and the ceiling to further steady it.

danielemerson wrote:thats great! When i have spare time i will build one myself, funny i have been thinking of a solution to my lack of rack for a long time.

How much weight do you think it'll hold?

great job

It will hold more weight than I could ever lift! The metal conduit will have to be replaced with bar at some point, but the wooden frame is solid.

MarkR wrote:Al yes thats right.I have some stuff by Bill Starr on how to do them I can do you a p/copy if you want to read them before you start trying them

Mark, cheers that would be great!

Al wrote:

kiwi wrote:I know its not a real close up pic of the construction etc...but what is stopping the timber uprights from just falling/leaning back or forward?

The rack is screwed into the wooden floor to keep the base from moving and a bottle jack is placed between the top (right hand corner) of the rack and the ceiling to further steady it.

Close up of bottle jack & T-Plate. the uprights are also screwed to the base from below.

In the bottom photo I'd probably have extended the foot out so it was under the upright as that's one of the load baring stress points.

Steve Gardener wrote:In the bottom photo I'd probably have extended the foot out so it was under the upright as that's one of the load baring stress points.

Yes, I see what you mean. I could pack it out with some offcuts. The floor is on a slope which is why the front of the rack is built up to keep it level. I'll add some extra support under the upright.

I would still put a few small diagonal braces in the corners to help sturdy things up and I personally would have used bolts through a T bracket...I maybe a bit paranoid but none of the houses I have built have come down yet

kiwi wrote:I would still put a few small diagonal braces in the corners to help sturdy things up and I personally would have used bolts through a T bracket...I maybe a bit paranoid but none of the houses I have built have come down yet

You may be right, and I will modify if necessary.

Al
sorry for the late reply I have had no interent access for the past 24hrs Sorted now I hope
If you PM me your address i will get a p/copy sent off
Cheers
Mark

Mark

Done!

Alan

This might be a total noob question but will wood be strong enough to take the weight?

Wood can be very strong, as long as you make it thick enough. People have used wooden racks for years with no problem. You'd need to keep an eye on wear and tear more so than with a steel rack, particularly around screws and bolts, which can eventually pull through from repeated loading.

I'm fairly confident that the wood is strong enough. Point taken about the screws. The wood screws I'm using are 4" long and so go nearly all the way through the framework in some places. I'll be sure to tighten any wobbles when they happen.

Love the rack! Just found these designs in an old Peary Rader pamphlet.



From a quick read it looks like they all need to be secured between floor and ceiling.