yes, 90 percent of the work was not difficult it just required thinking and Ybe working it out in his head the best cuts to conserve lumber.
the hardest part of the build was getting the entire thing home. its a 3.5 hour drive normally that took well over 5 hours and a trip down US 1 instaed of us 29. (opposite sides of viginia 29 is in the middle us 1 is a good hour or more away from 29)
sanding and staining/satining was also a big issue . If you do it right the first time, you dont have to keep going back. while its not what I envisioned the first time i saw the tank ( i was seeing oak and very nice setup, but was not feasibly sound for what i demanded the stand hold, and what Ybe normally builds , I didnt have the budget to do it in oak so we went pine which is as strong but definatly does not have the deep rich finish that true oak does. but my wallet and im sure ybes wallet are happy we went with pine, as this build cost him upgrading two saw blades (120 bucks total) and a lot of other various parts.
It is stronger than i need, its better than what i had planned, and its certainly better than the stand i was once willing to pay 350 bucks for
and its been designed to be upgradable to any lighting system that exists currently as the entire lighting now sits on the tank itself, not on the canopy. and so im drooling over a 6 bulb tek lighting fixture that will be brighter than the sun i fear
that and those mj1200 boat propellar mods should bring me clsoe to my desires tank current of 47-55x turnover as i had in my 55 gallon.
If i had to build this for a business id say no thanks. too much work and stress went into making this work right and being that we went off the cuff and planned 90% in one night, and the rest while building. id say its amazing Ybe didnt kill me.
however if YBe asked me to help him build him one for the 75 that is being shipped to him, id gladly pitch in. nothing like spending a day sanding, the wood starts really coming out brilliantly. speaking of which ybe if you want a 75 for your fish room let me know i think i may have a solution for you that is cheaper and ill help you switch them up.
none of the pictures i took do this setup any justice. it really is phenomenal. i only wish i could get decent shots now with things more settled so you can see what the tank is really like. alas the camera went back to its real owner and i await Pa to roadtrip down for pics
Londonloco i need some frags for this bad boy. if youd pm me pricing id love to work something out. and i have tons of thick caulerpa to send if you want to trade.
If Ybe decides hes willnig to make another stand for someone ill gladly help him do it. just gotta give me the time and the place. ill bring the wood putty and the finish sander.
) so I should not have to build anything for this tank. I will have to bug my sister for a complimentary set of Maristar lights to go with it though!