# Sherlock Holmes type Secret Hinged Bookcase



## woodnthings (Jan 24, 2009)

Anyone here have any ides re building a bookcase wall unit where one of the case sections is hinged or pivots in or out to reveal a secret room behind it? When my government comes to "help me" I want to hide from them. :laughing: bill
Thought I would post to my own post the following URL I found: 
http://www.garymkatz.com/ChartsDrawings/pivot_bookcase.html
Uses SketchUp I think..good details.


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## mboehl (Mar 3, 2009)

This is something I've wanted to do as well but haven't had the time yet. 

Here are a couple of links that may give you some ideas.

To me the first one is the most creative. Even uses a Sherlock Holmes book as the trigger for the passageway.

http://blog.simonshea.com/2005/09/holly-shelf-unit-batman.html

http://hiddenpassages.com/gallery.htm

http://www.hideadoor.com/index.html


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## ScottyB (Mar 1, 2009)

First, don't post on a public forum how you want to hide from the government. :laughing:


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## woodnthings (Jan 24, 2009)

*GOVT Has my number*



ScottyB said:


> First, don't post on a public forum how you want to hide from the government. :laughing:


I knew that would get someone's attention....you work for guvmnt?
I'm already on their list, and proud of it!:thumbsup: bill


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## woodnthings (Jan 24, 2009)

*First post from mboehl!*



mboehl said:


> This is something I've wanted to do as well but haven't had the time yet.
> 
> Here are a couple of links that may give you some ideas.
> 
> ...


And he hits one otta the park, nice work, great sites!:yes: Thanks. I'm looking for construction methods for hinging or pivoting or sliding or what ever means to make it work. The first post showed a little of that, still not clear why he need a 20mm full length dowel. Didn't seem like the middle portion was doin anything? I'm guessing the weight was supported on casters? I have carpet so I don't want to leave any wheel tracks. The problem I see is that the far -opposite corner is the swing radius. If the movable unit swings out into the non-secret room, the trim has to be wide enough to cover the gap and move with the unit. Maybe it could be divided between the units equally? I'm still workin this out on paper guys. Thanks, bill:thumbsup:


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## YouNGwOOd (Apr 21, 2008)

Hey woodnthings. Cool Idea. I did one of these for a close friend about six months ago. I will post some pics of the cabinet with some details on how I did it. The one that I did is inset into a wall and completely opens like a door. You just need the right hardware to make it work right. I love building hidden or secret stash spots. I'm gonna visit my friend this weekend and i'll take some close pictures of the design etc.


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## woodnthings (Jan 24, 2009)

*This is the idea I have in mind:*

Hope I can post this Sketchup file Sorry about he drawing it's my 2nd attempt at using Sketchup. It has a few Hiccups!
The lenght is 94 1/2"
The height is 87" 
The depth is 11" or so.
The problem is the swing radius is greater than the actual width of the moving section...unless I create wide vertical panels between the units and make them all less wide. This is probably the norm al way to construct it. Maybe there is another approach that will break the laws of physics just for me?:laughing: bill


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## ScottyB (Mar 1, 2009)

woodnthings said:


> I knew that would get someone's attention....you work for guvmnt?
> I'm already on their list, and proud of it!:thumbsup: bill


No, of course not. You can_ trust _me with all your secrets. I won't tell anyone.








Hello, Homeland Security......


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## woodnthings (Jan 24, 2009)

*Homeland Security=Joke*



ScottyB said:


> No, of course not. You can_ trust _me with all your secrets. I won't tell anyone.
> Hello, Homeland Security......


The head of HS was the governor of AZ. not known for it's tight borders, if you know what I mean. Phoenix = Jaurez for kidnappings.
WE have lost our minds and our country! :thumbdown: Sorry, not very PC. I still want to hide my tools anyway. Any thoughts on hinges or pivots? :thumbsup: bill


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## weirdwilbur (Dec 4, 2009)

*bookcase*

When I built one (4 x 6 feet) I used ordinary door hinges and relieved their strain with skateboard trucks. Nice quiet ones, of course, on carpet. You still have to overcome the moment of the books but the hinges are working much less hard, allowing some design flexibility.


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## ClarkMcGill (Aug 20, 2009)

I actually looked into this as well. From my research it seemed that the best way to hinge a bookcase door like that was to use 2" steel. Weld a simple rectangular frame that will hold your door. At the top and bottom on one side simply weld pins that will fit into a bracket that you can bolt to the ceiling and to the floor. 

It seems that all of the sites I read, said that the weight of the door is often time too much for a standard hing to hold up for a long period of time. 

Once the metal is all put in place, it is just a matter of building the wood around it.


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## BHOFM (Oct 14, 2008)

I grew up in a house that had one of these, upstairs
study with a "door" going to the attic. It was a book
case of course, four feet wide and ten feet tall.
It was on regular hinges, on the outer end, under
the
bottom shelf, behind the kick board was a caster to
support the weight of the thing and made it easy to
open when loaded with books. The sides where angled
just enough to allow it to open with out binding and
the gap was hidden on the hinge side with a molding
that was also hinged to move with the door.
There was no latch, just a indention under one of
the shelves to pull it open.

Over a hundred plus years the caster had marked the
floor and made it a bit obvious. This was not the only way to the attic BTW! 

There was also a narrow stair way from the kitchen
to the back of a hall closet on the second floor and
then continued to the third floor, but had a regular
door in the hall on that level.

My room had a closet with a door in the back that
lead to a larger closet behind.

The house was built in the 1850's. Just a little over
10,000sf. My folks paid $2200 for it in 1958. It had
been vacant for twenty years. It sat on two acres.


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## NathanT (Sep 11, 2009)

Reminds me of a bar in Madison that was part of a complex that burned down about fifteen years ago. The "main" entrance was garden level and made up to look like a 20s era barbershop and a cabinet was mounted over the door. You'd pull the strop to open it.

Of course the whole speakeasy atmosphere was ruined by the fact that there was another street level entrance with normal doors. Still their drink menu was serious.


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## RLHERRON (May 15, 2008)

When I built my workshop I put in a secret room for my tools. The picture attached will show a bookshelf that swings open to a hidden room. I put it in my small office section. When closed it just looks like part of the room.

I keep most of the portable power tools in there.
You can see more of the pictures in "Show me your shop thread".


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## Texas Sawduster (Apr 27, 2009)

*Hhhhmmmm*

Just how big are your houses to put in one of these?


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## Streamwinner (Nov 25, 2008)

NathanT said:


> Reminds me of a bar in Madison that was part of a complex that burned down about fifteen years ago. The "main" entrance was garden level and made up to look like a 20s era barbershop and a cabinet was mounted over the door. You'd pull the strop to open it.
> 
> Of course the whole speakeasy atmosphere was ruined by the fact that there was another street level entrance with normal doors. Still their drink menu was serious.


There's also one in Milwakee. You enter a door down some random alley that has "International Exports" written on it. You go in and there's a small room, with a lever in the corner that says "pull for service." When you pull it, the bookcase opens up and you go into the bar. It's called the "Safehouse," and the inside is a spy motif. The best part is that once you're inside, you can watch people on a TV come into the entry room and try to figure out how to get in.


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## Tangoshoes (Dec 24, 2009)

*weight of books*

You might consider using fake books to lessen the strain this thing would have on your hinges. I know there are several companies that sell these types of fake books for model homes and other such things. You may also consider buying a lot of books from a used bookstore and gluing them into the shelve as I'm sure one day someone will accidentally slam the thing and it would be a pain to pick up all the books. 

Just a few thoughts. Super cool idea though. Wish I had room for something like this in my new house.


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## Nurumkin (Dec 9, 2009)

*re*

Damn you guys. I have a walk in closet in my office that I was debating between a humidor and a library. Now I'm gunna have to make a book shelf across the wall and a secret humidor. The missus isn't going to be happy.


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