Author Topic: Project - front opening oversized frames  (Read 969 times)

Online 50s

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Project - front opening oversized frames
« on: September 03, 2024, 08:33:55 AM »
Well, I started a project 6 months ago to build some picture frames. I've never built a picture frame in my life before, let alone a big one.

My posters are typically huge (as some of you might remember when I used to post here a lot long ago) however they have lived rolled up in tubes or folded in boxes, rarely displayed and when a few were they were tacked (to the linen excess backing) to a wooden rod and hung from it.

I thought unless I start to display them, what's the point having them and they're a pain of dealing with the storage. Sell them/toss them or else show some.

I wanted front loading frames as if I had the usual frame design of opening at the back I new I would only swap out posters every year or ten(!) because they are so heavy. With front loading frames, the idea was to basically leave it on the wall when swapping out posters. Inspiration was snap frames and also T's lift out front opening frame.

So the project has been to build the following 5 frames (as shown left to right in image below):
- 6 sheet frame
- 3 sheet frame
- French bus poster frame (2.8m ~ 9 feet long)
- French Grande frame (1 panel)
- Italian 4F frame



I designed the frames and got a metal fabricator to make them as per photo above (in Stainless 316). From there I plan to do the rest.
You might think darn they will weigh a ton frames made of metal. Well I don't know how heavy normal wood huge frames are but you can see there is not much to these (mostly 3mm thick). The only other metal to be used is thin aluminium angle.

Well, I progressed and made the backing boards out of Corflute temporarily positioned in place in the frames



Cutting to the chase, the first frame, the 3 sheet frame, is now (finished?) up on the wall. I am going to think about it - if I like it enough to roll out the design to the other frames.

Things I'm thinking of is mainly around what I call the outside frame - the part that lifts off from the front. (The images above I call the inside frame.)
- Do I like it in white? Well at the moment I do because black I feel would be too dominating and close up the room. Generally I prefer black frames though. I live in an apartment and like the area looking as spacious as it can. Plus another factor is for some frames like the Italian and French 1 panel, they will have posters swapped out of different sizes (advertising posters) where some are the full height but narrow leaving large white areas to the left and right and a black frame would make these uneven sizes look odd I think. I am not too precious about perfection, so I am open to even spray painting the outside frame black or whatever colour or even attach some wood veneer or black powder coated aluminium, whatever. Though I could just make a new outer frame again as is not hard.
- also thinking if I am happy with how the outer frame attaches.

The outer frame is made of thin aluminium and weighs next to nothing, like, slightly more than the weight of my phone.

To swap out a poster, unclip the outer frame and remove it. Then unclip the acrylic and remove it, then swap out the poster and put it all back.

The acrylic feels like it weighs the same as the frame. Lifting it as one completed unit (frame and acrylic) is quite hard for just myself but doable. But doing it in halves (inner frame and acrylic) this way is quite manageable.

Below picture shows what the 3 sheet frame looks like with the outer frame removed (to the right) and no acrylic (that is it leaning against the wall covered in brown paper from the supplier). The inner frame has a few removable clips in place (hard to see) ready to hold the acrylic. Tape can be put around the edge sealing the acrylic in to the frame, however the outer frame has sealing foam so when joined provides a seal of its own. The poster displayed is not the greatest but serves as the test dummy in case the whole things falls in a heap  :D



So the finished 3-sheet frame from two angles. It's not the final position for the 3-sheet as it will go in another room. What will go here will be the Italian 4F frame (or the 6-sheet):





« Last Edit: September 03, 2024, 08:51:11 AM by 50s »

Offline Antoine1973

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Re: Project - front opening oversized frames
« Reply #1 on: September 03, 2024, 09:10:01 AM »
Thank you for sharing, the first prototype you built for your 3-sheet looks great!  I'm curious to hear your report once you have built a frame for your 6-sheet posters, as I'm contemplating having some of mine framed.  I share your frustration owning so many large posters gathering dust rolled in tubes or folded in flat file drawers, and I'd love to be able to display more of them on my walls if I could easily swap them within a few different frames.

Offline eatbrie

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Re: Project - front opening oversized frames
« Reply #2 on: September 03, 2024, 05:03:40 PM »
I am impressed.  That's a lot of work.  Something I would never be willing to do.  So it looks amazing to me.

My bus shelter frame was built by my father-in-law.  I think you saw that.  I don't know if you saw the two other frames that I bought.  I bought them for one sheets, but one of them has been empty for months because I don't know what to put in it.  I can't remember where I posted them, and I don't want to clog your thread with my crap.  But just in case you're tired of building stuff, they work great for one sheets and they're cheap.

For the rest, good luck and really nice.  I'd love to see a CU of those clips though.

T
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Online 50s

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Re: Project - front opening oversized frames
« Reply #3 on: September 03, 2024, 09:25:50 PM »
Thanks very much for your comments Antoine. I hope you get to display yours, good luck! They do need to be easy enough to replace. I assume with the normal kind of wooden frame for large posters, where you swap out the posters from the back, those frames would have additional bracing to keep the frame in shape due to the weight. Swapping out posters from the rear seems to me too much hassle (undoing the wood or wire bracing as well)

Online 50s

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Re: Project - front opening oversized frames
« Reply #4 on: September 03, 2024, 10:37:02 PM »
Thank you very much T also. Yes your father in law's frame was an inspiration to me for this project. Now you mention I do remember seeing the 1 sheet frames you mention.

Just some queries:
1. Your father in law's frame, is there a seal when it closes? When I hung long ago some of my larger posters from a wooden rod and nothing else they seemed to survive fine so I'm not saying a seal is needed, but I tried to incorporate a seal with these.
2. I remember you had a Star Wars six-sheet, I think in a frame above your lounge. You had a big room to fit that up there! Wondering, do you know how thick the acrylic was? There is a big difference in weight from the 2 options I have: 3mm (1/8") and 4.5mm (3/16"). The thinner one is lighter weight but at that size lacks rigidity (thus may be a bit wavy).

Here in Australia I can't find a acrylic sheet bigger than 82" all around which means the 6-sheet frame may obstruct a bit of the poster, so the 6-sheet is the last frame I'll make till I try to find acrylic a little larger than currently available. If I have to use this smaller size acrylic in my frame, the frame border will need to be wider instead of an inch or two wide, more like 3-4 inches which would look odd, but less so if I stuck with the white frame (instead of black) then it wouldn't be as noticeable.

Re the clips, some pics below. I made them a U shape with a short side (flange?) and a long side(flange) so I can use them either way around. The short side is good at the bottom of the frame as the acrylic sits resting on the frame (whereas the other sides is a gap). Having a long side there is unnecessary and additionally it gets in the way to get knocked off the frame during fitting the acrylic. The clips support no weight, they serve to stop lateral(?) movement to stop the acrylic popping out of the frame. It is held in place with (I dont know what it's called) a type of velcro (not the hairy loose hook loop type) but a plastic type the clicks in place with no lateral movement at all. The clips are mainly to hold the acrylic in place during assembly. I guess they can be removed and replaced with some sealing tape to hold the acrylic in, but the clips can happily stay in place with the outside frame fitted over it and the clips are also hidden out of view. Sealing tape and clips can both be used together. The gap seen under the clip in the photo below is to allow the sealing tape (if used) to attach to the frame. The clips in the photos below show bare metal but I put some tape over the ends to not scratch the acrylic.





During assembly the side clips can be positioned in place at an angle out of the way so I can easily access it rather than fumble for it in a pocket. I unclip it and rotate it 180 degrees to use the long side to clamp the acrylic



Half of the 6 months was trying a different clip system that just didn't work out as they kept breaking off. Here I glued a metal strip with a gap I could hook the U clip into. It would have been sitting close to the frame which was the goal. That thing I now replaced with the velcro with all the benefits it has - readily manufactured, easy to attach, attaches strong, easily replaceable. It's not what I had envisioned but I'm happy with it.




« Last Edit: September 03, 2024, 10:48:12 PM by 50s »

Online 50s

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Re: Project - front opening oversized frames
« Reply #5 on: September 03, 2024, 10:41:26 PM »
This whole project I had designed it in detail in a 3D CAD system over a number of years, but then when I started making it big changes had to be made at many steps, for example the outer frame was meant to have the acrylic attached so they both lift out together in one piece. The problem I had was that then the outer frame needs to be made very strong as the acrylic is very heavy. That meant the outer frame would be very heavy too in its own right. In fact I spent over $1K on the metal for it for all outer frames but when I received it and tried to lift it, it was clear that was a ridiculous idea. I might still make a frame this way but try with 3mm  (1/16) aluminium instead. Just saying best laid plans can all fall apart! I am also sure there are better ways of doing some or all of this, but is fun giving it a go.

On a side issue. I have a lot of connection problems trying to access APF (page saying your connection was interrupted) I am in Australia. It is almost impossible to connect to the APF forum unless I use a VPN (I don't know why, might just be something on my end).
« Last Edit: September 03, 2024, 10:43:35 PM by 50s »

Offline Tob

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Re: Project - front opening oversized frames
« Reply #6 on: September 04, 2024, 05:22:56 AM »
An interesting thread and the 3-sheet looks brilliant. I always admire stuff like this as I'm so cack handed when it comes to practical projects, so the planning and construction is really impressive to me. Looking forward to seeing the 6 sheet, Italian and French sized frames filled, please share photos!

Regarding access problems to the site...that's odd. I wonder if anyone else from Australia is having problems? I'll ping a friend over there to check if it's a wider issue.
« Last Edit: September 04, 2024, 08:49:36 AM by Tob »

Offline wonka

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Re: Project - front opening oversized frames
« Reply #7 on: September 04, 2024, 11:42:25 AM »
Where did you find acrylic that could be cut for a 6sheet?
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Online 50s

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Re: Project - front opening oversized frames
« Reply #8 on: September 04, 2024, 06:58:40 PM »
Thanks Tob, pictures will come through for sure. Here in Australia we have entered Spring. Where I am there are little (almost invisible) midge's (biting insects) starting to come out for the next 6 months. That is motivation to get the rest of them built/completed asap before they are in full force closer to Christmas when I'll need to be dressed covered head to toe plus being in the highest heat and humidity! This has been a winter project (which is perfect temperature here) that has over run.

Hi Wonka, I've bought all acrylics except the 6-sheet because I am not happy yet with the largest size available (3050mm x 2030mm) as hoping I find something a bit bigger (fraction too small but may be workable - the poster white border will get covered a bit by the frame holding the acrylic in).  The key size here is the 2030mm as the 6-sheet is 2030mm square approximately and they can be a bit bigger in the process of linen backing. Here I can find acrylic with UV protection against poster fading (as opposed to UV protection from yellowing of acrylic - sellers often either try to confuse the difference or just aren't aware) in 3mm (1/8") thick but that I think is too floppy at that 6-sheet size, and the more rigid 4.5mm (3/16") I can't find with UV poster protection. That's why I am interested to know the thickness T used for his 6-sheet - the rigid thicker one would be very heavy, wondering if its practical.
Two places in Australia, there are many places here, for these: For no UV protection, With UV protection

If anyone knows a larger size acrylic ie larger than 2030mm (80"), even if overseas, please let me know as a supplier here might be able to arrange to get it for me.

Online 50s

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Re: Project - front opening oversized frames
« Reply #9 on: September 04, 2024, 07:10:35 PM »
I might as well show the cross-section if anyone interested

The inside frame is 25mm (1") deep, so quite thin I think. With the outer frame attached it adds 5mm (3/16") so in total the frame is 30mm (1 3/16") deep

« Last Edit: September 04, 2024, 07:39:57 PM by 50s »

Offline Neo

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Re: Project - front opening oversized frames
« Reply #10 on: September 07, 2024, 02:26:14 PM »
Well done on the project there, Steve.  I'm having a difficult time visualizing exactly how they work but as long as it makes sense to you that's all that's important.  The metal, front loading, with the white cover and all looks good.  Wooden frames can be heavy, but I don't know how much heavier than these.  I almost forgot how cumbersome and awkward it was moving around my wooden 40"x60" frames, but now it seems not too bad to move them compared to these giants haha.  It would be nice to see how they look all setup.

Online 50s

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Re: Project - front opening oversized frames
« Reply #11 on: September 07, 2024, 08:22:35 PM »
Thanks Neo, I deleted the image in my above post and hopefully make clearer below.

I use velcro tags on 3 sides (left right and at bottom). At top I don't, as the velcro is there but it presses automatically together between frames during assembly as that's the first contact (at top) when I assemble it.
I forgot to mention another good thing about the velcro (it wasn't my first choice but solves many problems) is that it is adjustable so if say the foam between frames gets a bit compressed over time, it's easily adjustable.



« Last Edit: September 07, 2024, 08:32:15 PM by 50s »

Online 50s

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Re: Project - front opening oversized frames
« Reply #12 on: September 07, 2024, 08:24:57 PM »
Here are a couple of alternative front sealing options I could use (instead of the big red dotty one at top in outer frame), if I want to think about it more:


Online 50s

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Re: Project - front opening oversized frames
« Reply #13 on: September 29, 2024, 12:08:10 AM »
I see I didn't really show in any above posts how a poster gets added into the open frame, so here is a photo. The frame there looks a bit messy but it is all hidden when the front frame is put over it.




Well, after a lot of effort (everything takes 3 times as long as I planned), the French grande frame is up and also the Italian 4F frame. It is a dining room but I use it as a dance room. The chair is there just as reference for this photo, and the blinds open. There is an advertising poster and a movie poster. I just wanted to see the movie poster up for a while before I swap it out with another advertising poster next. The Italian looks huge in real life, I think the camera squished it a bit with the wide? lens.  The 3 sheet is now moved to a spare room I use as home office.




A thing I am not happy with in my design is the little white aluminium angle in the post above. It supports the acrylic. I used JB Weld to glue it (aluminium) to back frame stainless steel but is prone to breaking and it will be difficult to reattach. I have a new idea which solves this and a couple other small problems as well, but involves getting a sheet metal fabricator to make it. I'll think more about it first.

« Last Edit: September 29, 2024, 12:10:03 AM by 50s »

Offline struzaholic

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Re: Project - front opening oversized frames
« Reply #14 on: September 30, 2024, 04:07:12 PM »
This is very impressive!!! Love the look of the white frames actually. Hopefully someday I will end up with a poster large enough that I will want to display in something like this.

Offline Antoine1973

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Re: Project - front opening oversized frames
« Reply #15 on: October 01, 2024, 10:08:01 AM »
That Italian poster looks great in that frame, thank you for posting the end result. 

Online 50s

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Re: Project - front opening oversized frames
« Reply #16 on: October 02, 2024, 05:30:03 AM »
Thanks Mike. I hope you find a large poster and frame, and post up a photo of course!

Thank you also Benjamin. I have 2 more frames to build, the 6 sheet which I can't find acrylic the big size I need so that might take a long time to complete that frame, and the other what I call a French side of bus poster size (9 feet long) is 99% finished. They are the 2 biggest frames but I cant get them up to my apartment internally so they would have to be hoisted via the balcony so I don't know when they will see the light of day out of the garage!

Offline Antoine1973

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Re: Project - front opening oversized frames
« Reply #17 on: October 02, 2024, 08:25:12 AM »
Thanks Mike. I hope you find a large poster and frame, and post up a photo of course!

Thank you also Benjamin. I have 2 more frames to build, the 6 sheet which I can't find acrylic the big size I need so that might take a long time to complete that frame, and the other what I call a French side of bus poster size (9 feet long) is 99% finished. They are the 2 biggest frames but I cant get them up to my apartment internally so they would have to be hoisted via the balcony so I don't know when they will see the light of day out of the garage!

Sounds quite the ordeal getting them up via the balcony, good luck with that!

Offline struzaholic

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Re: Project - front opening oversized frames
« Reply #18 on: October 02, 2024, 02:34:34 PM »
What an effort!  But holy crap... A 9ft long poster is going to look beautiful in just about any space!  Will certainly be worth the 'ordeal'.  I dont think my spouse will ever let me put up a 9ft poster let alone a 6sh.