I don't know my wood

[Brad]

I am building a rack using Poplar wood and I plan to stain it with an ebony stain (this is what I have laying around, I am trying to do this cheap!) Can anybody tell me if this is a good combo? Is Poplar a good hard wood for rack purposes?

Thanks,
Brad

[pglewis]

uhhhh.... huh-huh... you said "wood".

[MISTERQCUE]

The one rack that I made (which I'm very proud of)
I used plain,ordinary oak i got from my neighbor.
I found it to be good and strong (and d@mn heavy)
for all the crap I hooked up into it.

[Spider]

i made a great 22 space rack ... i made it so cheaply ... though it looks absolutely great .. The most expensive part was the rack strip.. Use the search up the top to find some good posts on this , i know there out there .
I just used particle board and its as strong as hell.. What i found was that all the gear u put in it doesnt weaken it at all , in fact it strengthens it. Its like adding heaps of supports accross the front with every space thats filled and bolted in .. well thats my thoughts anyway .. cheers ...
spider

[Recording Engineer]

I used walnut for my 12X3 rack/counter. I think I spent around $300US. I even made my rack-rails out of 1/2" Ls from your average hardware store. A lot of measuring, drilling, and tapping though...

[buddyholly]

Another possibility. Look around for hamfests and other ham radio related sales (auctions, ads in the paper, monthly meetings). I got my 44 space, all metal rack for $5 at an estate auction for a man that was a ham radio buff. Perhaps I should not reveal this little secret because I have gotten other goodies too. A pair Amperex EL34's NIB and a four channel tube mixer, for example. Sorry, had to brag.