Trial fit of the new LCD TV

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John Canfield

John Canfield

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Joined
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Getting the old Sony 27" TV out the door was a bit of a problem since I'm working by myself.  Thank goodness for the Kubota with the bucket - I positioned the bucket as close as I dared and used a couple of planks from the bucket to the coach floor to scoot the Sony into the bucket.  Of course I blew another hose on the Kubota loader hydraulics - I've replaced five hoses and have another seven or eight left.

It took me maybe two hours to get set up to widen the TV cabinet opening by 7/8" on each side, I made a guide for the saw so I would not have to worry about following a straight line.  My initial thought was to use a router, but wound up using my battery powered trim saw.  That worked okay, I think a router with a pattern bit would have been better though.

I made a prototype mount for the TV articulated mount to see how it would all work.  Looks good so if the system does okay on a road trip, I'll build it for real and nicely finish out the cavity.

I think I'll use 3/4" birch ply on the top and bottom of the 'cavern' and some 1/4" birch ply to trim out the sides.  I have a little leftover cherry that I can use to trim out the opening.  The finished project will look considerably than the prototype does.

When all is done, I'll make a full project report on my RV pages (at janeandjohn.org.)

BTW - The speaker mod (a couple of resistors across each speaker for variable audio out) worked great when I tested the TV.
 

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Hey Buddy, it looks like the project is coming along nicely...... but a couple of questions.....

How does the new swing out bracket lock when you're traveling?

Do you have access to the rear of the tv space by going in thru the left side  (deeper) of the cabinet?

My cabinet is similar to yours and I just bolted the tv to the pair of vertical plywood risers but I had lots of room to access it from the rear.

In my case the stock RCA tv was 32" and must of weighed 120 lbs.  My husky fireman neighbor helped me lug it out the door......jeez what a ton of glass.

I'm sure you'll enjoy this upgrade a lot!

Good luck,
Bill
 
Hey Bill!

My friend Rex (LK23) has an identical Horizon and replaced his CRT a few months ago.  He used a glass sliding door lock on each side of the TV (like they use on display cabinets) to immobilize the TV during travel.  I might just use a rubber wedge on each side of the bezel (between the side of the TV and the cabinet) and I have thought about using a small wood batten maybe 2" long that rotates (twists) to rotate to cover the edge of the TV bezel.  I used something similar on the boat to keep cabinet doors closed during passages.

There is no side door on out TV cabinet unfortunately, but there will be pretty good access to the TV area when the new TV is pulled all the way out.

A 32" TV - whoa - that's a lot of fused sand and phosphors    :D
 
Looks great John. 

Where did you get the mount?  I have been looking for something like that to use in my TV change out.
 
Art - I was going to use the extra volume and CCC to hold the cash you're going to pay me to install a slide-out tray on your basement air  ;)
 
Mr_Bill said:
Looks great John. 

Where did you get the mount?  I have been looking for something like that to use in my TV change out.
Click to expand...
Thanks Bill.  The mount was ordered from Newegg - here is the link.  I thought a double arm mount would resist motion and I must say, this is one hunk of steel.  In fact the mount weighs as much or more than the TV!  I had to use clamps to hold it in position while I marked the mounting holes to bolt it to the plywood verticals.
 
John,

Looking good.  Actually, your installation will look and operate very similar to mine.

After I installed the plywood to the interior, I mixed some Minwax stain to match the cherry interior finish.  I could not get an "over the counter" stain to match so I experimented by mixing two of the Minwax colors and came pretty close.
 
Brings back memories.... I was all set to do the cuts myself. Had the sawhorses, clamps, straight edge, saws, routers, bla-bla..... And then got a call back from a local really high-end cabinet guy that did it for $20. He did it do matter-of-fact it scared the hel out of me... it was over before I could raise my hand in doubt...  After the anxiety attack was over I noticed it was a flawless job :)
 
SCVJeff said:
... it was over before I could raise my hand in doubt...
Click to expand...
He must have been good - I'm afraid I would starve if I had to make a living as a cabinet maker.  I spend an inordinate amount of time in planning and making jigs/prototypes in prep for the finished goods.  (Even then I don't always get it right  ::) )

Rex - do you remember which two Minwax stains you mixed - I think we both have the Honey finish cherry in our Horizons.
 
John,

Since I am traveling I don't have access to the stain cans I used.  I took a look at the online Minwax colors and it might have been Early American with Sedona Red added.  I recall using a base color like Early American that needed more red.  I kept adding red and applying to a test board until I got close.

For the cuts in the existing cherry wood, I used the Minwax natural finish.
 
Thanks Rex! 

It is really something how the cherry has darkened over the almost five years we have had the coach.  All of the nail holes filled with colored putty at the factory are now many shades lighter than the wood.

A couple of months ago I removed the dining table and took it into the shop for a much needed refinishing - wow did it brighten up after sanding and a few spray coats of urethane.
 
John, last year we had the same coach as you on the lot, we took it in trade and used it for our office when we did remote shows,. the buffet and table makes a great office. 
That was my wifes favorite coach layout.

That one had a slide out tray with freezer, did you get that option?

I am in the midst of my own rehab, TV wise.  In our case the TV will be movable, by hand, travel on the bed, then set on the dash.  The TV cab is becoming the component cabinet.  That is going quite well, just have to order the plexi doors, have hinges etc.  Inside is shelved and wired.  Pictrures to come.

Jolene didn't want to have the TV up high, no matter how I wated to set it up, she didn't like it.  I wanted to at least set it up perm on the dash so it would lay down for travel, but tv we have just won't quite do it.  It was so close it had me pulling hair and measuring about 8 times. 

 
PancakeBill said:
That one had a slide out tray with freezer, did you get that option?
Click to expand...
Bill - Jane didn't want the basement freezer (or the oven or the dishwasher) - so that was her call as galley queen.

Jolene didn't want to have the TV up high, no matter how I wated to set it up, she didn't like it.
Click to expand...
Exactly why we chose our most excellent Horizon with the TV on the side!
 
If you take a sample such as a cabinet door into a quality paint shop like a Sherwin Williams, they will mix up a quart of stain to match for a reasonable cost. This allows for a nice match even if the color has changed over the years.

Mike
 
John
I added a slide out baseent freezer to my Southwind.  Your wife missed a great addition.  Consider this, ice cream storage!  While out in Yellowstone, and 60 mile roundtrip to store, it was great for stocking meat and frozen veggies. 

 
John great looking job. How are you dealing with the surround sound system? I know we have had discussions about the lack of a proper surround system in our coach.
Also I have the outside freezer and oven. Wish I had a dishwasher other than me.
Are you traveling east this year?
 
Hi Manuel!

Funny you should mention a surround sound - a few days ago I talked the CFO into buying a modest Sony Home Theater system with wireless rear speakers.  We bought one at Costco for the stick house a few months ago and while a basic home theater, it sounds pretty darn good for the money and decided it would work in the coach (and it has a DVD/CD player.)

I just found out about one hour ago the Sony is too deep for either shelf  :eek:, so I have taken out the Winegard switch box and I will move it up a shelf and the Sony will go on the bottom shelf.

The center speaker and the woofer box will go in the TV cabinet cavity, the left-right speakers are going to be installed on either side of the buffet/dining area near the ceiling (both sides of the window treatment.)

The Sony home theater left/right speakers are way too large for the coach (they are about 2' tall and come with a stand), so I'm substituting some Bose cube speakers I had that were not in use.

The surround sound rear speakers are installed on the left and right side of the couch on the wall with the rear speaker amplifier under the sofa.

This will not be an ideal setup for 5.1 surround sound, but it will beat what we currently have.  Looks like I will have this mostly wrapped up in a couple of days.  I have some Bose speaker mounts ordered from Amazon that I need to mount the Bose left/right speakers, that will probably be the last activity.
 
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