Xtreme box building techniques

2x4s would be the way to go:

9-21-09Samuraibuild010.jpg


Pic was taken before I finished the 2x4s but it goes all the way to the top.

 
what i have found thats indestructable. is glue the joints. then screw together the box with 1 5/8 screws unless double walling then use over 2 inches. than resin the entire box inside and out at least 2 layers. then use automotive GOOP for all the seals and seams so no air leaks. then use 1.25 inch dowel rod or .75 all thread every way! up and down, left to right and front to back. then u should have a tank of a box
A couple things:

1. If you can avoid screwing the box together, then don't. Adding screws, let alone adding screws after gluing only makes the joints weaker. Also when using screws, use lengths no longer than 1.5x the sheet's thickness. That means when using .75" mdf, 1 1/4 screws are ideal with 1 1/2 being acceptable but being on the close side. The reason being is the same reasoning behind splitting logs. The longer piece of metal that you put through the middle of that vertical panel, the more stress is trying to split the wood.

2. Resin will not give you any strength by itself. If you meant to fiberglass the whole box, then sure, although that is a monumental waste of time. hardened resin is more brittle than plate glass, which is why it's only used as a binding agent when you are putting mat down with it.

3. Sealing the joints shouldn't be necessary, but if you must, then use silicone sealant. Other caulks and glues can end up weakening the wood which is why glue and sealants are not interchangable. Take this one from me especially. //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/laugh.gif.48439b2acf2cfca21620f01e7f77d1e4.gif

4. While dowel rods are helpful mainly because they grant you some extra rigidity without compromising air flow, you'll always have better results when you couple more than two sides together. Lattice bracing (that's what I call it) with the enclosure's native material is always the best choice when weight is not an issue. The following image is what I'm talking about on a smaller scale (called shelf bracing, so ignore the speakers, and this isn't my image either):

pushpullassembly2resize.jpg


You want that enclosure to be like it's one solid piece, and coupling four sides together is the second best way to do that, right behind the lattice bracing as shown here:

15987d1253462319-earthquake-supernova-15-mkvi-build-bracing.jpg


If weight is an issue, then I agree that threaded rod is a great substitute. //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/smile.gif.1ebc41e1811405b213edfc4622c41e27.gif

 
i dont have room for 2x4s for this design but i just dont see how 2x4s actually can help tremendously since they are made out of wood and i know they can flex.

 
weight isn't an issue. I'm gonna be having air ride installed on the car sometime very soon.

I've always thought that lattice bracing would restrict air flow because of how much material is used to do the bracing...

 
A couple things:
1. If you can avoid screwing the box together, then don't. Adding screws, let alone adding screws after gluing only makes the joints weaker. Also when using screws, use lengths no longer than 1.5x the sheet's thickness. That means when using .75" mdf, 1 1/4 screws are ideal with 1 1/2 being acceptable but being on the close side. The reason being is the same reasoning behind splitting logs. The longer piece of metal that you put through the middle of that vertical panel, the more stress is trying to split the wood.

2. Resin will not give you any strength by itself. If you meant to fiberglass the whole box, then sure, although that is a monumental waste of time. hardened resin is more brittle than plate glass, which is why it's only used as a binding agent when you are putting mat down with it.

3. Sealing the joints shouldn't be necessary, but if you must, then use silicone sealant. Other caulks and glues can end up weakening the wood which is why glue and sealants are not interchangable. Take this one from me especially. //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/laugh.gif.48439b2acf2cfca21620f01e7f77d1e4.gif

4. While dowel rods are helpful mainly because they grant you some extra rigidity without compromising air flow, you'll always have better results when you couple more than two sides together. Lattice bracing (that's what I call it) with the enclosure's native material is always the best choice when weight is not an issue. The following image is what I'm talking about on a smaller scale (called shelf bracing, so ignore the speakers, and this isn't my image either):

pushpullassembly2resize.jpg


You want that enclosure to be like it's one solid piece, and coupling four sides together is the second best way to do that, right behind the lattice bracing as shown here:

15987d1253462319-earthquake-supernova-15-mkvi-build-bracing.jpg


If weight is an issue, then I agree that threaded rod is a great substitute. //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/smile.gif.1ebc41e1811405b213edfc4622c41e27.gif
u are wrong about 50% of that post. but i dont have the urge to argue. so ill just let u have ur rant lol

 
u are wrong about 50% of that post. but i dont have the urge to argue. so ill just let u have ur rant lol
//content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/laugh.gif.48439b2acf2cfca21620f01e7f77d1e4.gif:laugh://content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/laugh.gif.48439b2acf2cfca21620f01e7f77d1e4.gif No, I'm definitely not. Now I'm very interested in hearing what I'm wrong about since I wasn't ranting, I was merely informing.

 
//content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/laugh.gif.48439b2acf2cfca21620f01e7f77d1e4.gif:laugh://content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/laugh.gif.48439b2acf2cfca21620f01e7f77d1e4.gif No, I'm definitely not. Now I'm very interested in hearing what I'm wrong about since I wasn't ranting, I was merely informing.
its not worth it man. u found ways that work for u i guess and i have found mine. BUT to entertain u here goes. resin IS NOT brittle. i have a peice in my back yard that is about an 1/8 thick and is very hard to break. it doesnt just snap with ease. and goop is amazingly strong, i have tested a DRIED and cured bead of it and the bead was about 1/4 thick, i literally could not pull it apart. im telling u man with glue, then screws, then resin then goop. theres no air or anything for that matter gonna break my boxes. there buillt like tanks.

 
Well, since 2x4s are so thick....

I've got 2 ideas and want to see what you guys think about it-

I got a small 2door car so space is a problem, therefore i must lean toward the strongest method with the least room taken up...

So, here is 2 methods-

method 1-

Use 2 sheets of 1\2" Baltic Birch. In between these 2 sheets, use 4 layers of Durock. durock is concrete and fiberglass mesh mixed together. I read back in 2001 that a competitor used resin to pour in between each Durock layer and all around it to seal the layers up. Then use all-thread cross bracing to finish the bracing off...

OR...

method 2-

Use 1.5" of Baltic birch for the box material. On the Outside, weld an entire framed enclosure out of 1" steel square tubing. Wrap this tuning all around the box and use 1\2" thick steel runs on the inside to bolt to the tuning on the outside.

Method 1 - 2.25" thick

Method 2 - 2.5" thick.

Which method sounds fullproof... if any?

 
both options are good

option 2 will be stronger, especially if you can get steel bracing on the inside as well. If so, that thing shouldn't be able to flex at all

 
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