I've got a small amp (75Wx4 RMS) sitting around, so I was looking to put it in the trunk. I've seen lots of people mount theirs on the back of the rear seat, on top of the spare tire, or even on a shelf hanging down from the rear deck (saw this one here in the forums):
The thing is, I don't want the amplifier taking up valuable cargo space in the trunk, and fold down my rear seats a lot to put my bike in the back of the car, so the back of the seat isn't going to work (imagine the bike snagging the power wire ).
A drop-down shelf from the rear deck makes the most sense, since between the speakers probably won't get in the way of loading anything in the trunk. Problem with the shelf idea is the controls are on the top of the amp, so I can't make adjustments with it in place. I could take the amp off the shelf, make adjustments, and put it back on, but where's the fun in that?
Instead, I got some inspiration from a pull down knife rack we have in our kitchen which uses something called a pull-down rack hinge:
Here's my mockup (don't mind the Pampers, I've got lots of those boxes right now):
I've got two issue's i've got to solve.
1 is what to make it out of. I bought a bunch of aluminum L-bracket from Home Despot, which will work for the arms, but for the shelf and the top mount, I'm going to need something that comes in sheets, which they don't carry in any kind of thickness that's going to have some strength. Anyone an experienced metalworker out there that might have a good idea for what sort of gauge aluminum I'd need for this and where a good supplier might be?
2. How to make it latch closed. The springs will do a lot to take the weight, but they're not going to work over bumps. The kitchen version uses magnets, but that's not a good idea near a piece of audio electronics.
The thing is, I don't want the amplifier taking up valuable cargo space in the trunk, and fold down my rear seats a lot to put my bike in the back of the car, so the back of the seat isn't going to work (imagine the bike snagging the power wire ).
A drop-down shelf from the rear deck makes the most sense, since between the speakers probably won't get in the way of loading anything in the trunk. Problem with the shelf idea is the controls are on the top of the amp, so I can't make adjustments with it in place. I could take the amp off the shelf, make adjustments, and put it back on, but where's the fun in that?
Instead, I got some inspiration from a pull down knife rack we have in our kitchen which uses something called a pull-down rack hinge:
Here's my mockup (don't mind the Pampers, I've got lots of those boxes right now):
I've got two issue's i've got to solve.
1 is what to make it out of. I bought a bunch of aluminum L-bracket from Home Despot, which will work for the arms, but for the shelf and the top mount, I'm going to need something that comes in sheets, which they don't carry in any kind of thickness that's going to have some strength. Anyone an experienced metalworker out there that might have a good idea for what sort of gauge aluminum I'd need for this and where a good supplier might be?
2. How to make it latch closed. The springs will do a lot to take the weight, but they're not going to work over bumps. The kitchen version uses magnets, but that's not a good idea near a piece of audio electronics.