Replies

1. 
   dkellernc | Oct 10, 2009 05:36am | #1

   Many of the most famous piece of Federal style furniture of all time used horizontal tambour doors.  I'm speaking of the work of John and Thomas Seymour, of course.  And all they had was wood, canvas and hide glue, so access to some higher-tech and lower-friction materials would probably get you a very successful piece.

   But - most folks nowadays have flat screens, the minimum diagonal measurement of which is about 42".  That's a pretty huge set of tambour doors, and a pretty huge piece of furniture.  Moreover, since these screens are quite thin, why bother hiding them?  It makes more sense to mount them on the wall.

2. 
   oldusty | Oct 10, 2009 07:44am | #2

     Machinist ,

            Depending on the size , a one piece horizontal may be doable.

         The vertical tambour is easy to do and utilizes the same wood track that a horizontal tambour has . After the finish wax the edge of the tambour and down in the bottom and top  tracks , that is all you need to make them glide .

            regards         dusty

3. 
   RMillard | Oct 10, 2009 01:39pm | #3

   John,

   I have made a couple of horizontal tambours, and while they were significantly smaller than what you are proposing, I think they would work very well. The key to having the doors slide easily is working to very tight tolerances; both the upper and lower track boards, must match perfectly, and the tambours must be accurately machined. In my case historical accuracy dictated traditional materials, but if I were not so constrained, I would have liked to line the bottom groove with a piece of UHMW plastic (I'm not sure how I would do this). This would wear like iron, but be as slick as ice.  Concrete like rigidity will also be important; any shifting, racking or sagging will cause havoc with the action of the doors.

    My tambours rode in a track with a very tight radius and I thought it would be difficult to have the door go around that corner, but it wasn't, even before waxing. The weight of the tambour riding on the bottom groove was where almost all the friction was.  

   Your design should provide easy access for future maintenance on the tambours.

   There is an article in FWW by Alphonse Mattia. This is reprinted in the FWW Techniques 2, so the article ran before 1980, and I don't know which issue it was in.

   Rob Millard
   http://www.americanfederalperiod.com

4. 
   hammer1 | Oct 10, 2009 03:05pm | #4

   As a person who has made a few entertainment centers, I would suggest you double think hiding the television unless you use a lift. TVs change and rather dramatically as the years pass. I have a customer or two that has the perfect space for a 37" CRT but they no longer have a 37" CRT. Todays flat screens will likely be replaced with something we haven't dreamed of yet, and it won't take too many years. You may not want a piece of furniture that has a large center space where nothing fits.

   Another issue is the electronic components. A 50" plasma doesn't generate much heat but your 7.1 surround receiver along with the Bluray player, game console, satellite box, etc. do. You need plenty of ventilation for these items along with space and access for lots of wires.

   The last "entertainment center" I built was a low console type cabinet, not a full wall unit. In the event it doesn't suit it's use as an entertainment center, it could be used for other purposes. It would be unfortunate to build something that will be obsolete a few years down the road. Big tambor doors may actually hide the TV but they scream, there's a TV behind. Just my opinion.

   Beat it to fit / Paint it to match

1. 
   Machinist60 | Oct 13, 2009 04:03am | #5

   Many thanks to all respondents.  The SO wants the TV hidden and in order to try and lighten the look of the cabinet I thought the hutch section should be as shallow as possible.

   John.