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Chapter 8: Built-In Television-High-Fidelity System, Plus Record Storage #2

Entire turntable assembly is placed in cabinet, carefully centered and fastened with glue and screws or nails through top and bottom of carrier cabinet. Upright partition must be absolutely square with cabinet bottom. Also, front and back edges must be flush and may be covered with matching wood trim.

Cover all inside surfaces with l/16"-thick asbestos sheeting, with the exception of record player unit. This is for fire-proofing, a necessity in a combined unit such as this.

Mount the masking frame for the tv cabinet NEXT. This television set is placed slightly higher than the average height, so the chassis mounting base is  slanted 5 degrees forward. For this unit an old table model set (20") was dismantled and fitted to a mask filler to test steps for placement of a set that size.

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However, for the finished project, a 24" Fleetwood chassis, with remote control, was used. This made it necessary to cut away part of each filler strip. Size of the filler strips will depend on size of the set you use. All filler strips should be made so they can be removed in case changes are made later.

All filler strips are mounted to cabinet with screws through cleats to cabinet sides and bottom All cleats are made of 3/4" by 3/4" solid wood strips, pre-bored then mounted to the filler strips flush with the edge that is to be mounted against sides or shelves.

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To install hi-fi tuner property cut a top strip from 3/4 plywood to dimensions in diagram. Put tuner temporally in place, mark placement of strip, remove tuner, and mount strip, leaving equal margin around top and side edges. Use glue and 4d finishing nails. Sink nail heads and putty holes with matching putty.

Cut front panel of record player unit to dimensions shown m diagram Mount to record player case contact cement and 1 1/4" screws driven through from inside of player case. Make sure front panel is in line with front panels of TV cabinet.

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Un a 3/4"by 6 "by"2I back C0Ver for tuner and amphher compartment from matching plywood. Next, cut a 1" by 3" grip hole in the cover about 1" from top edge at center. Cut 3/4" by 3/4" solid wood cleats and mount them to inside of amplifier section, 1" from back edge and parallel to it. Mount two cabinet catches on top and one on bottom to hold lid in place.

To install TV set, cut a piece of 3/4" matching plywood for back door, following diagram. Fit it in place-then make a square cutout in the center leaving 4" all around for margin. Mount a decorative brass or copper screen to the inside of the back door Use a stapler, or 1/2 head nails, through pilot holes as was done with screen in cabinet top.

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Next, mount 3/4" by 3/4" solid wood cleats, 1" from, and parallel with, back edges of cabinet. Mount cleats all around inside of TV section. The inside edge of cutout can now be covered with a solid wood strip moulding, mitered around inside edge. Mount the door of TV section to cleats in cabinet, with 1 1/2" roundhead screws in each corner, and one in between. Brass screws with washers are recommended here.
 
Mount heavy-duty slides (Grant steel slides, No. 317, were used here) to the inside of built-in housing. Mount them so the sliding platform is 1/2" above the record storage cabinet. Rollers and slides must be installed according to manufacturer's instructions.

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Detail A. (see Fig. A.) Platform slides roll on wheels.

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To install carrier cabinet properly, shim out  around the cabinet at the base, to enable proper alignment while assembling. Mount lazy Susan bracket to platform; then mount cabinet on top of sliding platform. Next, mount lazy Susan bracket with 1/4" bolts into tee nuts of cabinet bottom.

This is where the 1 1/2" holes bored previously in top of platform are useful.

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To make speaker enclosure to fit in corner built in, the author suggests that you follow instructions supplied by manufacturer of the enclosure you choose. Most loudspeaker manufacturers will supply plans to make an enclosure suitable for the speakers you wish to use and the space you intend to place it in.

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When assembling enclosure parts, follow manufacturer's instructions carefully. Secure joints solidly with ample glue and drive nails from both sides.

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Use a clamp to keep base baffle snug against outside shell during final assembly. Check constantly to be sure parts are straight and joints are properly sealed.

Again, when installing the speakers and other hi-fi components, follow manufacturer's instructions for the components you buy. The following photos and captions bring out important points to remember, suggested by hi-fi expert, Jock Brittain. Connect wires to woofer (bass loudspeaker), leaving sufficient wire extending to reach your next connecting base. As a rule, 4' is enough.

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Fig. C. Top, front and side views of speaker enclosure used by the author. (Courtesy, University Loudspeakers, Inc.)

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Fig. D. Author made top piece (1) removable to gain access through top. (Courtesy University Loudspeakers, Inc.)

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Bore a 3/16" hole in the most convenient place to the wire through. Then insert woofer into housing, holding it by its metal frame only. Do not touch the moulded paper diaphragm. Fasten the speaker with 1/4" bolts into tee nuts.

Adjust mounting bracket of midrange horn and mount lead the driver unit to it. Solder leads on next, and again leave about 4' of wire extending.

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Install complete midrange unit into mouth of main horn. Use 1/2" by 1 2/1" bolts through top and counter sink the heads so as to keep them flush.

Install hi-frequency speaker just above midrange unit. Use 2" iron angles with rubber shims and mount with 3/16" machine bolts through top. Countersink heads. Make sure all bolts are tight.

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Prepare crossover-control network, following manufacturer's instructions supplied with unit.

Crossover-control network should be mounted so as     to gain access to the controls at all times. Also, take into consideration the placement of wires leading from the unit.

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Be sure to check all instruction manuals concerning both amplifier and tuner, and the locations of their plugs and connectors. This is in order to become familiar with their layout and purpose. Also, make certain that all tubes are seated firmly in their Occasionally, tubes may jar loose in transfer.

Refer again to the instruction manual and make the proper electrical connections, using the cables supplied by the manufacturer. Finish all connections between the units and other essential equipment, such sockets.as loudspeakers and record player.

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When installing, hold tuner and amplifier by their metal frames only. Do not hold them by knobs or any other component on the inside. Be sure that both tuner and amplifier are lined up perfectly in front, even if shimming on inside is necessary.
 
The speaker grill depends on the shape of the entire speaker housing. Some persons may like a curved front, as in this project, or a straight front. In any case, the inside edges of the grill must be straight to fit against the speaker enclosure. Only the front edges are made in curved form. To cut out the grill cross-pieces (there are three—top, middle and bottom), a cardboard pattern was made following dimensions in Fig. E, below, with all necessary cutouts on it. The pattern was placed on each 3/4" solid wood crosspiece and traced, then the front curve was sawed from each front piece. The three crosspieces were placed together in a vise with clamps, and finished smooth with rasp and sandpaper. While still held together, 1/2" notches were cut, 1" deep and 2" apart. Notches were chiseled out and filed even and clean. Then all cross-pieces, while still held together, were cut in half so grill could be made in two equal parts for easy installation in cabinet.

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Using 1/2"-thick-by-2"-wide matching solid wood, cut out upright fins for speaker grill. The length of fins depends on the exact height that needs to be covered by the grill. This again may vary according to the speaker housing and the outside cabinet. Break all sharp edges in front of fin strips with sandpaper.

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Finally, assemble crosspieces with fins, using glue. Make sure fins are in tight and entire assembled frames are perfectly square and tight. Make top and bottom of grills flush, then fit and mount them into place.

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Fig. E. Grill is made in two separate sections.

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Place shelf on top of speaker housing and grills. Front edge of shelf is to be cut the same shape as outside edge of grill base and top, then exact shape of cardboard template to be cut away in front. This will give you two parts to the top shelf, of which the larger     part with straight, front edge is to be screwed down  to speaker housing. The cutout front part is removable so the speaker grills can be taken out by lifting them out through top.

Bore two pilot holes in top and bottom of each grill. Now fasten grills against top shelf front and bottom with 1 1/2" No. 10 brass, roundhead screws. While doing this, make sure that both grill halves align perfectly. This finishes speaker section. Next, the speaker grill should be removed again, painted or finished, then covered in back with a special speaker fabric, The fabric can be fastened either with little head nails or staples. Finally, put speaker grills back into place.

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Television, Hi-fi unit moves out, turns completely around to allow access to back.

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