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25th September 2019, 03:04 PM #1New Member
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Need a latch / release for a bed tray table with folding legs
I am making a bed tray table with folding legs for my wife. I live in Guatemala and do not have access to the best tools or hardware, but am making due with what I can find. In the video link below, you can see what I've got so far. I need help trying to figure out how to make the legs stay folded under for when the tray is being carried, but then easily released. Imagine I bring my wife breakfast on the tray (with the legs folded under) and want to pop out the legs easily (while holding the handles still) so that I can set the tray right over her lap.
Thanks for any suggestions!!
Video here
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25th September 2019 03:04 PM # ADSGoogle Adsense Advertisement
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25th September 2019, 11:51 PM #2GOLD MEMBER
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Screenshot_20190925-224800.jpg
Dodgy sketch on phone ��
Orange rubber band pushes blue pin into hole in the end of the leg, keeping it held up.
To release the legs, pull the black ring, pulling the pins back out of the ends of the legs, letting them drop.
The black ring is meant to be at the bottom of the hand hole in the sides of the tray.
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25th September 2019, 11:55 PM #3GOLD MEMBER
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26th September 2019, 12:20 AM #4New Member
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26th September 2019, 09:03 AM #5
Because the legs are tied together in pairs, one possible simple way would be to fix a diagonal locking slat under the table, similar to the sketch. (Gah! I despise Windoze's Paint programs. )
Using a spring washer on the central pivot could adjust the "locking strength."
I guess it depends on whether you want 100% failure-proof or just... usable, sorta.
- Andy Mc
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26th September 2019, 09:24 AM #6New Member
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Wow! Thanks for taking the time to draw that out. I like the idea, but I just don't think I have space in the 'box' for that solution.
Another think I am considering is a spring loaded retractable pin that you can pull from outside. The way I imagine it, the pin would go through a hole drilled in one of the legs; when the pin is pulled, the legs fall open freely (so the nut would not be attached tightly.
Another thought is a closet door ball catch like this.
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26th September 2019, 01:53 PM #7GOLD MEMBER
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the problem with a ball catch will be how you force the legs to start descending. You can't "flick" the table with a sudden stop because you'll slop the tea everywhere, so you need a way to centrally push the legs down past the catch. That may be why @AROSE's solution above with a spring/tensioned pin to lock things may be easier to do from a central line?
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