Fraim Re-assembly Query

Bob, no, the glass should not touch the rear safety bar.  The glass should line up parallel with the front edge of the Fraim wood and as such there should be a little bit of a gap between the rear of the glass and the safety bar.

Richard

Thanks for such a quick reply - 4 minutes!! - really appreciated as I was unsure and have taken quite some time dissembling, assembling and checking all nuts and spikes for tightness and I even splashed out on some Fraim chips - expensive but much better than the smaller discs I used previously.

What a brilliant asset we have with the Forum and its many contributers

Bob

Interesting, I bought a second hand set of Fraim without the locators, I then just bought a new pair of shelves. They come with a paper template, using this you do not touch the rear pin. I now want extra locators and was considering just putting the locators in the front indentation/ ball baring and pushing up against the pin. Will not be doing this now, thanks Richard.

Similar here - upto now I have just placed the glass shelves on the ball bearings and then pushed them back against the pins to hold them in place. 

The silly plastic rings are best avoided unless you have inquisitive children or dogs with excessively waggy tails. It’s virtually impossible to get them centred over the ball bearings, and unless you do, the performance will be compromised. 

I only use them for the top shelf that holds my record deck and then I only fitted the front two.

Use of the template was invaluable for fitting them.

I realise the pitfalls of these plastic rings but I’m fed up of the shelves moving and balls popping out when I unplug powerlines or interconnects. Naim now only supply packets of 2 for the front balls. I have emailed Naim for a template and am hoping they can supply one

Shropshire Hills posted:

I realise the pitfalls of these plastic rings but I’m fed up of the shelves moving and balls popping out when I unplug powerlines or interconnects. Naim now only supply packets of 2 for the front balls. I have emailed Naim for a template and am hoping they can supply one

Wasn't it always just two sets at the front for each shelf? Fitted locators when i first set mine up 11 years ago (Christ - where has that gone?) but removed them since as there's no pets or kids to knock the shelves around. 

With the template there’s no reason they should touch the balls. I use them and recommend them to anyone as just plugging in cables can easily cause the glass to slide off then balls if you’re not careful. I must admit I can’t hear any degrading of the sound if I push the locators against the balls. 

The rings are never going to stop the shelf crashing off when you plug in a Powerline. You still need to hold the front of the box, or wedge it with your knee if it’s on a low shelf. I think the rings look pig ugly and really spoil the look. It’s not like one is plugging and unplugging very often. 

Like HH, I prefer to avoid the plastic rings the Fraim glass... 

Shropshire Hills posted:

Richard

Thanks for such a quick reply - 4 minutes!! - really appreciated as I was unsure and have taken quite some time dissembling, assembling and checking all nuts and spikes for tightness and I even splashed out on some Fraim chips - expensive but much better than the smaller discs I used previously.

What a brilliant asset we have with the Forum and its many contributers

Bob

 

 

 

Thanks for asking Bob - I'm sure last time I set mine up I used the pins as buffers to set the back line of the glass shelf.  Another item for the spring clean list!

Peter

Crikey you lot are fussy I just popped downstairs to have a look and had to look pretty hard to see the locators. 

And to add, i know pushing a powerline in without holding the front of the amp or power supply etc will overcome the locator but when i had my old fraim i had a crash on more than one occasion. It was just too easy to knock the glass off the balls

Agreed

You only have to look at the shelf the wrong way and it has fell off and the ball disappeared for ever

Shropshire Hills posted:

I realise the pitfalls of these plastic rings but I’m fed up of the shelves moving and balls popping out when I unplug powerlines or interconnects. Naim now only supply packets of 2 for the front balls. I have emailed Naim for a template and am hoping they can supply one

Idea? - put the glass shelf on upside down* properly located as Richard records (*i.e. 'dull side' up when 'pinged') and then look at where the ball bearings are from above and stick the rings on - and then turn it over.

Don't you just hate it when someone has a really good idea that is so simple you think

Why didn't I think of that....

I’m just pleased to read this helpful suggestion which is a great idea. Re-building and levelling the Fraim, following Richard’s excellent instructions in the FAQ, had been therapeutic if nothing else. I will try out the shelf locators although I appreciate some of the comments suggesting that they are not worth the bother.

Bob

I too,only used the locators on the top shelf of my rack,the rest are pretty much self contained inside the rack.If I recall correctly,I think the instructions that come with the template,tell you how to line it up,including putting it on upside down to mark it.

As a compromise why not just a single plastic cup locator, at the rear of the shelf?

When I re-build my Fraim stack (it's been in place for a few weeks now) that is what I will do.

Nick  - 

I would suggest care with this, as when cabling up, I often use the rear stop bar as a brace point (esp with the Powerline push-ins) and then slide the shelf forwards. I'm not sure how much tolerance there is with these cups (not much IIRC).

Plus, IIRC it has been suggested as a tweak that adjusting the front edge forwardness of the shelf/kit can change bass response on some of the amps i.e. it's far easier to move the shelf than try and reposition a heavy amp when in situ.

..which is why I don't use them...but the balls do go a rolling sometimes!

When I load my shelves with the heavier units, I ensure the casework is at/close to the front edge of the shelf.