Flatpack Vinyl Holder.

Tool-free record furniture

Course: ID200 · Flatpack furniture
Year: 2025

The flatpack vinyl unit in a lounge with a turntable on top and records in the side bays

A CNC-routed unit for records, turntable and amplifier that assembles by friction fit alone: no glue, no fasteners.

Brief

Design flatpack furniture cut from a single sheet, with under 20% wastage, that assembles without tools.

Research

A 25-response survey of collectors put mobility above capacity. Records, turntables and amps usually live in mismatched furniture that can't be moved without taking it apart.

Design

Interlocking slots hold the shelves at −0.2 mm interference, and the bays are sized to the 12-inch sleeve. The parametric joint model is driven by material thickness, so it can be re-cut for a different ply. I tested full assembly and disassembly cycles to check the joints keep their grip.

Outcome

A self-supporting prototype, a six-page assembly manual and a studio shoot. Unit cost R2,990, one unit per sheet.

Studio photo of the unit three-quarter view, stained ply with routed line pattern — Studio shot.

Close-up of the stained birch side panel and records leaning in the bay — Records lean in the side bays.

Detail of the friction-fit slots where the shelves meet the side panel — Slot joints, no hardware.

Front elevation of the unit showing the interlocking shelves — Front elevation.

The unit in the corner of a lounge next to a sofa and plant — In use.

Side panel with its routed curve pattern — Routed side panel.