Screen Mount - All new steel frame
I've been using a fairly cheesy arrangement as my screen mount for seven years now, and it was overdue to engineer something solid and adjustable.
While those seem like conflicting requirements, it is indeed possible to build a frame support that meets both. Read on ...
With a CRT projector, getting the screen positioned relative to the PJ (and vice-versa) is critical. It must be vertically and horizontally centered, which means the frame must allow X/Y axis adjustments. It also must be within a fairly tight tolerance in terms of distance to the PJ (and stay there, so focus is not affected). So add the Z-axis as well (front-to-back) as needing adjustment ability.
Also, this screen sits 3 feet out into the room, as it’s acoustically transparent and has a rather large center behind it. It also places the screen in the same plane as the front of the Monoliths.
Nothing commercial that I could find to do this, so once again, a bit if DIY is required in to solve my needs (hum, there’s a theme here…)
During the research, I found that adjustable framing elements actually abound and can be re-purposed to this type of need. So I chose some steel (cheap, strong) channelized framing and accessories to do this.
Using the McMaster-Carr site, I selected the elements (listed in the attached PDF) to do this. Several 6’ elements would be used to create the x/y framing with adjustable height and lateral movements to support almost a foot of variance in X or Y. Each component is tied to another with sliding fasteners, so it’s easy to loosen a set of fasteners and move the parts until they are at the right settings and lock them down.
The Z axis arms are 3’ in length and basically pretty much position the screen just about right without further tweaking. But they can be slid back and forth 4” or so to let me both square up the screen to the PJ (being square to the wall is no help, as it’s the screen that needs to be aligned with the optics from the PJ) and ensure focus range is maintained.
The screen frame itself, which is lightweight aluminum, has mounting holes that some adapter plates are screwed into. On the bottom, there are some 20” aluminum legs and adjustable feet that support the front end of this thing and let me adjust the vertical height and skew of the screen.
The end result came out better than I expected. At first, before you lock down all the junctions (so one can adjust), it felt strong, but wobbly. But boy, once I lock these fasteners down, this heavy gauge steel frame is going nowhere!, It’s rock solid.
No more worries about bumping the screen frame while vacuuming or other mishaps. The concern now is not getting hurt if you bump into the frame, it will not budge
OK, enough words, let’s see if a pic or two can do this justice:
[2009.04.12 comment: The wall behind the center is now fully treated. See newer photo's from this angle later in the thread]
