Bed Assembly Hardware.

[Distinterior]

I have promised SWMBO that I would build a new bed for our guest bedroom, as we are in the process of redecorating the complete room.

I would like to use this type of fixing to hold the frame of the bed together as it gives me the option of taking the bed apart and when assembled there are no visible fixings.

The only ones I can find that are the same as the one's I'm after, only seem to be available on US sites, such as this :-

https://hachol02.hafeleonline.com/OA_HT ... 0:22372:US

I have looked at the Hafele UK website, but they don't seem to list this item.

Anyone got any idea's where to look?

Many thanks in advance.

Tim.

 

[Steve Maskery]

Have you tried Woodfit? They do quite a lot.
But frankly they are not a very effective solution, mainly because one part has to be screwed into the end-grain of the rail. It soon works loose and you have a squeaky bed.
You can do a better job with ordinary 12mm all-thread, a couple of nuts and some time. Totally invisible and rock solid for ever. Easily dismantles too, with just a spanner.
I'm sure I've posted about this before but I can't find the reference, but feel free to call me and I can talk you through it. It's not difficult and very effective.
S

 

[RobinBHM]

Ive used hafele 271.05.013 in the past, they work well. They flex a bit which Ive reduced by drilling an extra hole near the flex.

 

[Distinterior]

Thanks for the offer Steve, I will give you a shout if I cant find what I'm looking for and decide to go down the threaded rod route.

I was hoping to be able to use a fixing that, when assembled, was totally concealed but thanks for the info Robin.

I saw these type of fixings on a bed whilst on holiday in Austria. The bed seemed to be rigid enough, which gave me the idea to use them on my own bed project.

I was hoping that Hafele did them as I already have a trade account with them. It is infuriating that their US site sells them but not the UK one.

 

[r0nmlt]

Steve, how would you go about hiding the nuts on the foot board?

Sent from my GT-I9100 using Tapatalk

 

[Steve Maskery]

I saw a veneer of, say, 3mm off the face of the lag, then insert an embedded nut. Then glue the veneer back on. In this way I can also make the grain match exactly on both legs.
In the past I've inserted a contrasting veneer between the lef and the face veneer, so I end up with a line of stringing all round. Otherwise a chamfer hides the glue joint.
The whole thing is invisible, really.
Must be stainless or brass in oak, of course.

 

[Mr T]

Hettich have what you are looking for http://web2.hettich.com/hbh/Start.do?localeId=EN&itemId=25185 It doesn't look like there is any end grain screwing involved either. They even have some adjustable ones.

Chris

 

[nanscombe]

If not invisible how about countersinking for the head of the bolt then squaring the hole and using something like a 50mm / 70mm black plastic square cap and making it a feature, a bit like Greene & Greene.

Or maybe just a plug cut from a contrasting wood.


However ... Bed Fitting Set - Yellow Steel at IronmongeryDirect @ £7.30.

Also ... Bed fittings: bed connecting fittings from Hafele UK, Noval K bed fitting, 130 mm.

 

[r0nmlt]

Thanks Steve.

Would a mortice and tenon also do or would there be a risk of it slipping out eventually?

 

[dkaardal]

I've personally made beds with the following hardware (sorry for posting links to a Canadian store - I'm still working out where to buy stuff now I'm in the UK).

Mortis bedlocks - These were of the same type the original question was asked about. I've not had any troubles with them coming loose on the endgrain, but I did make a point to make the mortis fit the fixture perfectly. Fitting the mortis properly provides quite a lot of support to the fixture, and after a couple of years of use there was no compression of the wood fibers around the fixture (which would indicate some level of movement). I used white oak - I'd feel less confident if I'd used a softwood.
http://www.leevalley.com/US/Hardware/page.aspx?p=67916&cat=3,40842,43730&ap=1


90 degree bed rail fasteners - I've used these for a quickie knockdown bedframe once. They were very easy to install, locked everything up very tightly, and they worked well. It was a bed used in a spare room though, so it didn't get an enormous amount of use. I was always a little worried that everything rested on just a few screws, but I didn't end up having any problems with them. Time in use - 3 years. Pine.
http://www.leevalley.com/US/Hardware/page.aspx?p=67917&cat=3,40842,43730&ap=1


Mortis-free bedlocks - these I've used as well, and again they were fine. The bed in question was for a friends spare bedroom. No real issues with them, they worked just fine. Not my favorite, but they were inexpensive and did the job so I don't have any complaints. I was still worried about how they'd hold up, as like the ones above they rely on the screws to hold everything together. Time in use - 4 years. Ash.
http://www.leevalley.com/US/Hardware/page.aspx?p=65401&cat=3,40842,43730&ap=1

carriage bolt and barrel nuts - my personal favourite, use 'em all the time for beds and workbenches. They do loosen up over time, but it's a 60 second job to tighten them all up again once a year. The downside with regards to OP's question is that they can be seen as the carriage bolt sits in a countersunk hole in the bed leg. That hole can be covered up with a removable plug or a decorative medallion, or whatever strikes your fancy... but it will still be visibly different from the rest of the leg.
I buy mine from fastener supply houses or (most recently) on e-bay. Depending on the size of the stock I'll used anything from M6 to M10 - and buying the barrel nuts (also known as cross dowels) in bulk saves you a boatload of cash. The carriage bolts I just buy anywhere, but I recommend getting a hex-headed bolt you can ratchet instead of a head slotted for a screwdriver.
a link to a set on Lee Valley - but again, I'd recommend just sourcing the parts locally.
http://www.leevalley.com/US/Hardware/page.aspx?p=40445&cat=3,40842,43730&ap=1

There are a few other common bed lock hardware types you can use, but I've not had any experience with them personally so I can't really comment on them. Some look very cool though.

If I'm making something for myself and I have the time, I'll use mortis and tenon joints (preferably tusk tenons). If I don't have time I'll use carriage bolts and barrel nuts.

dak

 

[Distinterior]

Thanks to everyone for their input and advice !

I have managed to find a company in the UK that supplies the fittings I was after.

Here is a link, just in case anyone else should need a similar fitting.

http://unico.uk.com/kd-furniture-fittin ... connectors

Thanks again to everyone.

Tim.

 

[nanscombe]

For info, there is also a 100mm version of the Noval K bed fittings at Hafele UK.

 

[Sgian Dubh]

... frankly they are not a very effective solution, mainly because one part has to be screwed into the end-grain of the rail. It soon works loose and you have a squeaky bed. S

Not if you assemble the hardware using the set-up in the image below. The technique is to bore a hole on the inside face of the rail to coincide with the path of the two outer screws: you can do this for all three screws if you like, but I've never found it necessary. Use something like an 18 mm sawtooth Forstner bit and stop short of the outer face by about 4- 6 mm. Glue in an 18 mm dowel- a hardwood like oak, maple or ash is ideal, and flush off the dowel to the inside face of the rail. Create the pocket for the hooked part of the hardware in the end grain of the rail, bore the pilot hole into the hardwood dowelling, and fit the screws, thus giving a solid bite into the long grain of the dowel. If I remember it right I usually use a 2" to 2-1/2" screw, which means there's plenty of meat at the end of the rail to support the dowels, and the same sort of screw length is used for the female part of the hardware into the leg.

Job done, and solid as a rock. I can't recall any complaints about squeakiness or wobbliness in any of the beds I've made with this hardware and this methodology, and at least a couple of these beds are more than thirty years old. Slainte.

 

[Steve Maskery]

True, that would work, and I use the same technique when I have to drill into the edge of MDF.
I might even try that when I make my next bed, you never know.
Mind you, I like my method, I enjoy the process and as I'm not doing it for a living, I don't mind if it takes me longer.
Horses for courses, I guess.
S