How do you move HEAVY speakers with sharp spikes without lifting?
I have large (175 pounds each) speakers with sharp spikes placed on carpet. I would like to be able to move them a few feet by myself to tweak their positions but lifting them is obviously not an option (I can't even lift half their weight).
I currently use a convoluted method involving tilting them over about 30 degrees, slide a board under spikes on one side, and then repeat on the other side. The speakers almost toppled over the other day which would damage them.
I'm aware there are non-spike alternatives but do not have the money to spend on these options. Any clever moving methods out there?
The method to move such speakers (which works provided they are not the very tall, thin and fragile spikes) is to "walk" the speaker. You lift three spikes off the ground and pivot around the remaining spike, moving only a few inches at a time, repeat until you are where you want. This works fine on carpet but will leave marks on wooden floors if that bothers you
Alternatively invest in some furniture gliders from a hardware store to put under each spike and move it then tilt to remove the gliders
I bought some Herbie’s Gliders to go under the spikes and protect my wood floors. They aren’t expensive and work well. http://herbiesaudiolab.net/spkrfeet.htm Go to the middle of the page and look for:
Cone/Spike Decoupling Glider
B
Yup...I had to do that with mine. Go to Home Depot and get "SuperSliders"... they come in a package of 4. There is one kind for hardwood flooring, and another for carpet. Put these under the spikes of the speaker....I would put protection between the spike and the slider. Move the speakers slowly and carefully, but you will be amazed and how easily this is accomplished....(a little grunt, but very doable)
" How do you move HEAVY speakers with sharp spikes without lifting? " Very carefully ! I typically find the best spot ( within an inch or two ) for the speakers, use painters tape to mark the carpet ( in this case ), and go from there. With that weight, get a buddy to help ? Enjoy ! MrD.
Use books that are slightly thicker I.e., taller than the spikes to shim the speakers, then slide the speakers on the books. Have a second person hold the speaker whilst inserting the books. Problem solved.
Take out the spikes, I don’t know any speakers that have their spikes permanently attached to the base. I also use supersliders for my 160 speakers. IMO, if you move your speakers, wouldn’t you want the spikes out to fine tune each speaker before putting the spikes back on
Have you considered using a hand truck? You know, one of those moving thingies with a pair of wheels and a nose plate to slide under whatever you want to move? You would not have to buy one (although I admit it was so effective for a variety of thing I did get one) - you can usually rent one from a local hone improvement store (Home Depot, Lowes, etc.) for $15 or less. I've found them very easy to use and they can be very precise to deliver their load to a particular spot. Just measure the space between the spikes and make sure the nose plate is narrow enough to fit there.
I tried the lift three spikes and pivot method and spun the spikes so tight, that one stiped the female end and the spike fell off! I had to get some really good epoxy to fix the issue, but will never do that again!
I have moved my heavy speakers by putting a sleeping bag to the side of them and very carefully tipping them over on their side onto the sleeping bag and then pulling the sleeping bag and speaker to where you want them and reversing the process.
I used (and still have) a dolly or "hand-truck" to move around my big Thiel 3.7 speakers. As I had to move them often enough, this got old pretty fast.
It was necessary to get them from one room to another. But if I were only moving them about, tweaking their position, in the same room the glider solution was much more preferable. IMO.
I tried the sliders but didn't work for me. I used 4 inch round plastic sliders and cut a 1x2x1/8 inch strip of heavy steel to provide support and placed steel between slider and spike. Sliders bent too much under the weight due to carpet pad being too thick causing the speaker to be unstable. I think would have worked with lighter speakers or thinner carpet. I also can't lay speakers on their side due to their shape.
Book insert/shimmy to add/remove spikes is a good idea - will try that but installing/uninstalling my spikes is a pain.
What kind of worked was my original method but it's still not ideal. I cut a piece of 3/4 inch thick plywood to cover just over half the area under the base (i.e. to support 2 of the 4 spikes) and have wood extend a few inches out beyond the bottom of speaker. Cut a second piece to cover the other half of base. Tilt speakers about 25 degrees onto 2 of the 4 spikes and have a second person slide one of the wood pieces under the 2 spikes which are in the air. Lower the speaker onto the wood and tilt the other direction, slide the second piece of wood under the other 2 spikes. Now two pieces of wood under the speaker with 2 spikes per piece of wood. Can now slide entire speaker on spikes a few inches with some effort.
A couple inches makes a huge difference with my omni speakers. Thanks for the help.
I first disagreed with the response of cd318 because I have always heard improvements using spikes or Tiptoes under floorstanders, especially on carpet. Then I remembered the OPs post stating they were 175 lbs each. With that much weight, they probably are completely stable without spikes, even on carpet.
I've bought ordinary tiles and glued felt on the bottom. Then I've eased the speakers onto the tiles and slid the speakers. My speakers are about 100 lb. each. I'm able to adjust toe in and positioning by moving the speakers carefully so they don't slip off the tiles.
You can try replacing the spikes with carriage bolts (round headed, make sure they are then same thread). I use them with my Sound Anchor stands so I can move my speakers Harbeth P3esr) into the room for better sound. Of course, I'm not dealing with 175 pounds (with that mass, I suspect the carriage bolts would work, but the speakers will still be challenging to move). Cheap experiment.
I use a four 18"-long 2 x 2s to move my Vandersteen Treo CTs (≅ 65 lb each). I rock each speaker back enough to slide one 2 x 2 under the front, and forward enough to slide another under the back. You move them by (very carefully) pulling each pair of 2 x 2s in the intended direction. This has worked for me on a rug and an bare floors.
+1 Herbies gliders. My speakers are 220lb.s apiece w/spikes and i move them anytime no problem ....on wood floors.He can tell you if they will work on wood floors.
Use ceramic tiles, tip the speaker over just enough to insert one tile underneath the two lifted spikes, repeat the procedure for the other two spikes, and the speaker can be moved on top of ceramic tiles to make the -fine- adjustments. After that just remove the ceramic tiles by reversing the procedure.
Here is the real question is why you would want to?
Normal setup protocall is to move the speakers without spikes, you can use carpet sliders or felt pads to slide the speakers on carpet or hardwood.
Then once you have located the correct position, apply blue painters tape to outline the speakers flnal position, then carefully lower the speaker on its side and reinstall the spikes, level and done.
I use an air bladder bought from Amazon that I pump up (squeeze bulb) to lift a corner, then either remove the spike and put furniture sliders underneath or install the Herbies gliders under the spike.
For heavier speakers and alot of moving I would remove the spikes and use the furniture gliders until you find the spot and reinstall the spikes again with lifting them up with the air bladder.
You will need to lift all for corners separately with the air bladder, but it works very well.
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