• expired

Mechpro 4 Shelf Unit $9.99 EA @ Repco

921

50kg capacity. 710 x 300 x 1370mm. (WxDxH). (MPGS450). 50KG LOAD CAPACITY PER SHELF
Starts 18 Dec - Ends 24 Dec

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Repco

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  • +20

    Just a word of warning - these are a pain in the $%#%# to assemble. The wafer thin tin on these cuts through skin easily! Great price though - I think I paid $15 a while back for a similar shoddy brand.

    • +5

      Agreed. Everytime I put together one of these I wonder why I didn't pay a little more for the tool-less version. But I never learn.

      • +8

        Because there's an ozbargainer in you! :P

      • -5

        Biggest pieces of ### ever! Advise against buying altogether.

        • +4

          and a cheap alternative is?

        • +4

          The shelves are good for what they are. This is a bargain price, your neg is unjustified.

        • @figarow:

          True OZBargainers look out for one another.

          I would rather see a fellow OZBargainer save their coin and invest in a real bargain.

          I bought a fair few of these back when I first built my house thinking I would deck out the garage, boy was I wrong!

        • +3

          I bought 6, put them side by side all bolted and had no problem in assembly. This was the cheapest shelving by far as opposed to say buying 'boltless' for around $50+ each!

        • +1

          @figarow: 2stroksmokr doesn't think they're worth the price so he/she is entitled to a neg.

          The punters need to know what they're getting. A bargain is not a bargain if it's useless to you. Buy nice or buy twice.

        • @morini: hmmm buy twice x 2.5? hehehe

        • +3

          @2stroksmokr: I am surrounded by 3 of them here in my office. I like them. I can't afford anything fancy. This is a bargain. If you don't like them just say you don't like them. To neg the deal because you don't like them is foolish.

        • +2

          I have to agree… I think they're pretty ordinary too. But for $10, this is still a bargain (compared to Bunnings $14.50) for someone that just wants a cheap shelving unit.

        • +2

          Would you like to explain your position? Do they not do their job? Do they not stand in place and hold stuff?

    • I was just about to post the same thing.

      Bought one, never again.

    • +4

      the shelf is really flimsy and sharp.

      The last time I put one together, I recevied a deep cut from it.

    • +3

      Sliced my finger open putting one together myself.

      • +2

        Assembled mine relatively unscathed, but 6 months later, barely brushed one of the (knife-like) legs and ended up with a few stitches.

        • +26

          Great gift for someone you don't like.

        • +30

          Tell me about it. I was planning to use it for a shoe rack. But I ended up cutting both my legs off trying to assemble this flimsy and sharp shelf. Now I longer have any use for shoes.

          But hey, I'm happy I saved $$$

  • +20

    50kg…… what's that in Eneloops?

    • +1

      Don't forget to times it by four.

    • not enough to hold all your eneloops

    • +21

      4166 12g AAA Eneloops
      or
      1923 26g AA Eneloops

      You asked.

      • hah nice

      • +1

        Eneloop: the universal unit of measurement. It can be used to measure mass, distance/length, volume, electric charge, voltage, resistance ,energy, work, power, and even cost and colour!

  • +3

    Great bargain!! more shelves to store all the "bargain" from ozbargain that I don't need!

    • +2

      You know your doing well when you have to get bargains to handle all the bargains your getting :D

  • +1

    I have a spare one of these from Bunnings I paid $14 for.

    Great things, one is holding up my air conditioning in one of my windows. Works great as the height is adjustable. You could also technically make a super high one by joining two together.

    • +4

      Actually I'd advise against the "super high" idea, unless you stuck to a total of 200 kg maximum, for the entire unit; because that's what the side thingies ("legs") are built to support. If you went much over what the legs are rated to hold up, the thin strips of folded metal touching the ground (i.e. holding the whole lot up) might buckle over/crumple, bringing the whole lot down.

      • +1

        "bringing the whole lot down" and slicing the owner up into little bits by the sound of it.

        • "… slicing the owner up into little bits by the sound of it."

          Chuckle, not really; given all the comments about cuts occurring during construction, it's worth noting that all the sides and the bottom edges of every shelf are actually turned in/folded; there is no sharp edge at all exposed, on any of the shelves. That is assuming that these ones are churned out of the same machine that made the ones I have (I'm sure they are/ they look identical). So the likelihood of cuts occurring during the course of normal use is minimal, IMHO. They are a bit fiddly to put together though, so if you decide to get some, do heed the warnings above about potential cuts during construction though. Be particularly careful when handling/manipulating the long edge bits. If it's an option, build it with the help of a friend rather than by yourself; that will help to minimise the risk of cuts.

        • @GnarlyKnuckles: Thanks for the tips. I would also wear work gloves. Going to pass on these but seems like a good cheap price.

  • +4

    I have 3 of these (officeworks and bunnings sell them too), no way could they hold 50kg per shelf.

    My advice is to build the thing while watching tv, and hand tighten only. Once you've got it all together then go around tightening everything with a screw driver

    • +7

      I was just about to post the same thing but you beat me to it!

      They're not great but they're good for light-duty stuff. I bought ten of an almost identical model from OfficeWorks for $8 each when they were clearing them out, and after putting three together wondered what I got myself into. But as you said, just do it while watching TV or something, and you don't really notice the time go by.

      If you tighten all the screws up before leveling the shelves, you'll just have to go around loosening them again to straighten the shelves and legs afterwards. If you, as Davo suggests, hand-tighten them and leave them with some give, then you can stand the whole thing up after it's completed, and once it's stable, tighten everything with a socket and spanner.

      I recommend also putting it together on a solid, flat surface, then using a spirit level to make sure it's standing perfectly straight. Put something fairly heavy on the top shelf before tightening everything, so it won't move about while you're moving around tightening all the bolts. When I tried to tighten everything while it was free-standing, it was flapping about like a flag in the wind and always ended up wonky. A heavy weight kept it in check, and after most of the bolts were tightened, it stands up fairly well on its own.

      Don't get these if you have kids running around pulling on stuff. The bottom legs are REALLY flimsy, so even stubbing your toe on one leg could bring the entire shelf down. You could minimise this risk by placing the lowest shelf as low as possible, but I put it higher up so I could slide boxes underneath, effectively giving me another shelf. I just made sure to screw it securely to the wall so it can't topple over.

      Of course more expensive ones will be sturdier, easier to put together and less work, but this is OzBargain! A worthy bargain!

  • +5

    good old cheese grater shelves- at least thats what they do to your hands.

  • I use them as a shoe rack. Perfect.

  • +1

    from all the comments ive read i'd be surprised if anyone buys one.

    • Yeah, I'm out. It's still getting + votes though.

  • +1

    I have many of these, including a bunch that I put up in the roof, to solve a storage crisis. They're fine for the purpose. I've never cut myself while building them, surprised to hear that so many have… maybe a dud batch went out with really sharp edges? I just checked the edges on mine ("Sales Force National" brand, $14 from K-mart), and they're very dull.

    I found building them upside-down was the easiest method, of course on a dead-level surface as suggested above.

    Also, I found using one of those "wimpy" battery operated screwdrivers (BOS) for the initial build saved heaps of time; so you hold the nut in place with a wee socket mounted in a small hand-held thingy, and with the BOS you turn the screw. If your BOS is "the perfect amount of piss-weak", like mine, then the screws will be only finger-tight even if you let the BOS make them as tight as it can. Then you flip the thing over, level it up, and do a final tighten of every screw with a real (manual) screwdriver.

  • +1

    I bought a few of these from Masters for 11 bucks each. yes they do the job but I vowed to never get them again.
    Horrible things to put together

  • Thnx

  • +2

    I got 3 of the Bunnings ones in my garage. Yes, they are a pain to put together but so very useful for the money.

    Great shoe racks!

  • you beat me to it…just saw it in my inbox…Great price!

  • +2

    I use free milk crates and planks of shelving, use the milk crates with open front usually green

    • Where do you get the milk crates?

      • -2

        they give them away for free at back of supermarkets or service stations

        • Cool, thanks!

        • They do … ?

        • +3

          "they give them away for free at back of supermarkets or service stations"

          Erm, I got the joke Yaps, but I think perhaps some here are taking you seriously. Just to set the record straight, you are NOT allowed to take (i.e. steal) milk crates from the back of supermarkets/service-stations etc. They are the property of the deliverers, who pick up the empty ones when they make each new delivery of full ones, and re-use them; as long as they haven't been nicked by Yaps and his dastardly MC gang! Chuckle…

        • @GnarlyKnuckles:

          Technically they're the property of the milk manufacturers (like dairy farmers), not the delivery people

        • @Davo1111:
          Ok yeppers, I guess I'm "harking back" to years gone by, when said entities were one and the same. Thanks for clarifying though. That aside, I'm glad we agree that milk crates are not actually some sort of "miraculously free-yet-functional urban rustic indoor-redecorating resource" …
          Sadly, universally affordable 24-hour CCTV surveillance/data-logging has put an end to all that.
          ;-P

        • trust me they are more then happy for you to take them. You can ask the service stations and they will give them away for free.

        • +2

          @yappyyap:
          Erm, surely Yaps you realise that it makes no sense that any company would be happy to give away their milk crates for free?
          Are you actually saying that when you "ask/ inform" a lowly servo' counter attendant that you intend to take some crates from behind the premises they are working in, that they do not try and stop you?
          Or are you saying that you politely ask them if they are free to take, and they tell you yes, they are free, you are welcome to take them?
          If you genuinely believe that these crates are free to take (which I doubt you actually believe), I'm very curious about your understanding of who makes/ distributes them, and under what sort of agreement, etc
          Surely you realise it would not make sense for any company to deliver a few bottles of milk (worth under $10), to make profit of at most a couple of bucks, in a robust/stackable hard plastic crate that costs more than that to make, which they then "abandon"/ are happy for you to take?
          Sheesh… it ain't rocket science…

  • +4

    Secret Santa sorted!

  • +1

    Looks like this one from Bunnings.

    http://www.bunnings.com.au/shelving-nut-blt-handy-storage-13…

    Possibly rebranded but from the same factory.

  • +1

    These rae great if you have something timber to screw them into. I have 4 or 5 in my garage (an '80 prefab thing with timber supports) and when screwed into the wall, these things are suprisingly sturdy (ive kicked my toe on it enough times to know)

  • +1

    bought about eight boxes of the Bunnings' for garage,
    my 2 cents -
    1. must wore gloves when installed
    2. took an experienced person (ie me) on average 45min to install one.
    3. buy extra nuts and bolt (right size) to screw two shelves side by side, or screw to a timber wall.
    4. can stalk up as well.
    5. use a spanner to hold the nut and an electric screwdriver to screw will help.
    6. it is a cheap solution so compare apple to apple on quality.

    • +1

      Not certain what you mean by #4 hombre, but assuming that you are suggesting that one unit could potentially be STACKED (bolted) on top of another, as discussed above I would advise against this; unless specific precautions are taken to avoid too much load being inadvertently applied to the bottom supports (the small amount of metal supporting the entire unit).

      • Agreed. Should not stack though it technically can, Seen it done - by putting less number of shelves, not too high, but a way to increase the spaces between shelves and not overload. Common sense required …which every household requirement can be different.

    • +1
      1. use a spanner to hold the nut and an electric screwdriver to screw will help

      Pro tip, use some pliers rather than a spanner! I agree with the electric screwdriver though

      • +2

        My advice (as suggested at the start of this thread) is not to use a spanner OR pliers; use a wee "socket", mounted at the end of a hand-held screwdriver thingy. Much easier to hold in place/ keep steady, while operating the electronic (battery-powered) screwdriver.

    • When shelves are side by side and bolted together to increase strength; adjusted the width in between shelves so they are zig zag , like the pattern of a brick wall. 1. Help to accommodate boxes with bigger size. 2. Stronger.

      Also bolt to the wall or use metal wire to tie to the wall, so present shelves falling over.

      For people haven't seen the shelves, the Bunnings one is like sheet metals put together. Have bought worse quality online - shelves are smaller and weaker than expected.

  • +2

    Yeah, I had 3 in my little shed out back sitting side by side. I actually bolted them together for extra stability. And I have to agree with everyone about the razor sharp tin edges and the flexibility of the shelving itself. Luckily these are now my tenants issue as I left them in there for them to use and bought several boltless ones for my new garage!
    I think the 50kg per shelf could be a bit of a stretch though. I just about destroyed one shelf with a 20kg bag of rapid set. Maybe if you very carefully distributed it out more evenly across the entire span of the shelf!

    • +1

      As you said, the bag of rapid set should be spread out evenly over the shelf. If moisture gets to it, well you've got a stronger shelf!

    • You are a nice landlord. Hope the tenants don't get cut and claimed your insurance. Or if it's broken, you may need to fix. For me, less is better.

  • +1

    I put cheap electrical tape along all the edges once assembled.

    Stops kids/family from cutting themselves on the sharp edges.

    They are okay once assembled, but they cannot take much weight at all.

    • +1

      "… but they cannot take much weight at all."

      I'd be interested to know what you are basing this assertion on.

      I've tested the bottom two shelves of one of a different brand (looks identical to these though) with 50 kg each (100 kg total), and there were no problems. Admittedly that was on a dead-level concrete floor, and the weight was "gently placed" onto the shelves.

      Personally I'd be hesitant to "chuck" 50 kg on each shelf, particularly if the surface was anything less than absolutely level and very hard. But anyways, I'm interested to know what you are basing your assertion that they:

      "… can't take much weight at all" on. The fact is that if the claims they make "on the tin" (to use a UK phrase) were demonstrably false, they would have been… erm… demonstrated to be false, by a competitor, long ago. Cheap shelves of this exact type (50 kg per shelf specs) have been on the market for many years now.

      Surely most peeps in the know "get" what I'm saying here?

      • I could help him out here…
        Like I've stated above: "I just about destroyed one shelf with a 20kg bag of rapid set."
        OK, 'destroyed' was a bit strong to use, but the shelf sagged and buckled leaving a crease right across it, including the pissy little doubled over beams front and back of it. Admittedly I probably didn't place it down like it was a porcelain vase, but that's because it isn't!
        There's no way knowing you could get 50kg on this, unless you were to lay it out very carefully and stack the majority of weight towards the uprights. And even then, you'd probably want to have it against a wall or in a corner to stop the whole thing from twisting/buckling!
        I remember picking the things up after assembling them to put into the shed, and if you didn't pick it up from the center the whole thing would twist on a 45 from top to bottom!

  • +1

    are these similar to those selling in Bunnings for 14 something?

    • +1

      If you're talking about this one, then yes!

    • I have two and they are pretty good value.

  • I would advise against putting anything on these shelves that can break. Had one with some cans of paint on it. Wouldn't have been 50 Kg. Legs buckled, tipped over and spilt paint everywhere. Being an oz B I straightened it and braced it with some thick tomato stakes, but too much effort.
    I realize cans of paint don't "break", but some got pierced and the lids came off a couple of others.

  • Is there a better basic alternative that wont cut me or take 1 hour to build?

    • Not at this sort of pricing!
      You're going to pay about $40+ for a decent boltless one.

    • Just live like a slob. Priceless!

    • milk crates and planks of wood or mdf

  • +1

    Kris Kringle at the office sorted!

    • +1

      When you come back from holiday, the guy who has most band aid on fingers has won your kris kringle. Merry Xmas!

  • Perfect for building a little fort.

  • I really need some of these, but don't want to get stitches. Is there a decent boltless one that anyone can recommend? Preferably one that wont buckle under 20-30kg weight.

  • Has anyone used these outside in the rain?

  • I thought the sale will start tomorrow. It seems quite a few Ozbargainers have already got them. Has the sale started already?

    • I think a few of us on here already have them from places like Bunnings, etc.

    • It's a pretty standard price tbh $10-15 range

  • http://www.bunnings.com.au/shelving-nut-blt-handy-storage-13… Is this pretty much exactly the same product at Bunnings? The measurements seem to be the same.

    • +2

      Pretty much, but 12 hours ago Bunnings were selling it for $14.50!

      • +1

        Bunnings motto, crush the competition as they can afford small loses/reduced gains over extended periods of time, then raise prices significantly higher than previously.

      • Maybe folks were buying it 10% cheaper at Bunnings, so they fixed it?

        • Guaranteed to go back up after Repco's sale finishes!

        • +1

          I bet they be able to have different model number/codes so they avoid that little technicality.

        • @Davo93:
          Different brands so it doesn't really matter. They don't have to match it.. But they're just trying to squeeze out the competition! (as you stated earlier!)

  • Bought 22, thanks OP. Suggest anyone in Mt Gambier head to Bunnings instead.

    Now, off to spend 22 hours assembling these things.

    • May not read your comments on OZB for a while then - fingers full off bandages. Have fun!

  • Who would've thought so many comments to do with…shelving.

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