Brookfield Tube Audio · lift the deck (pedals and all) to wire it — never flip it onto its face again
BUILT INWhat the clamshell does
The deck is hinged at the back edge and held open by a stay. Release the front latch and tilt the whole top up — pedals stay bolted on, upright, untouched.
- No flipping → zero weight on the pedal faces, knobs or switches
- Full reach to the cavity, the loom and the back of every pedal at once
- It can't tip over — the base stays flat on the bench
- Bonus: the bottom can now stay fully closed (clean, protective) since you service from the top
- The closed bottom is the brace (full box = stiff) — no middle rib needed; PSU & set-and-forget gear mount straight to the floor
- Quick one-pedal fixes mid-session; easy cable dressing; locks down solid for transport
What to design around
It's very buildable — ply deck + walls laser-cut, with a bought-in hinge, a lid stay and a positive front latch.
- The hinge carries the deck + pedals weight — use a piano hinge or two solid butts
- The front latch must hold the playing surface rock-solid when shut
- Route the loom to the back, by the hinge — points near the hinge barely move when the lid lifts, so almost no cable slack is needed
- For gig abuse, borrow road-case hardware: a piano hinge (continuous steel, no friction surface to wear out) + a cheap folding/locking stay for the hold-open — the most durable and cheapest combo, and it's what flight cases use
- Build it to be repaired: all hardware surface-mounted with machine screws into brass threaded inserts (not bare wood screws, which strip) — any hinge, stay or latch swaps out with a screwdriver using commodity parts. Repairable = a selling point for an heirloom timber board
- A friction/torque hinge is neat (lift + hold in one part) but cheap ones lose grip over thousands of cycles — OK here since the lid's opened seldom and the latch, not the hinge, takes the playing & transport loads. Hinge + stays run outboard so the middle stays clear for gear
Or: a universal service stand
A separate cradle — a "pedalboard vise". Two end-brackets on a pivot; any board clamps in and rotates to any angle, locking inverted with the pedals hanging in free air.
- Fits other brands → a sellable accessory in its own right
- Brookfield boards get built-in pivot points that drop straight into it
Cheaper fallbacks
- Fold-out prop legs — stand it tilted on its back edge for bottom access; cheap, but you still work around the pedals
- Tall bumper rail — a perimeter rail higher than the knobs so a flip rests on the rail, not the pedals; insurance, not a fix