Pipe-clamp cabinet jacks

I remodel apartments and mostly work alone. I recently needed to install some wall cabinets in a kitchen, a job that requires several hands at once. So I threw together a quick and dirty stand that allowed me to raise the cabinets into position easily with enough adjustability to get them just right.

As shown in the drawing , the rig consists of two 5-ft. pieces of 3/4-in. iron pipe (I was working off the floor, so they could have been even longer). These pipes are attached to a 2x4 frame by way of threaded pipe flanges. The movable part of a pipe clamp rides on each pipe, working side up, to support the arm assemblies (see detail).

To use the rig, I placed the frame on the floor, butted it up to a wall and slid a cabinet onto the arms. Then I raised the cabinet either by grabbing the clamps and pulling upward while standing on the frame or by raising the cabinet by hand and holding it up with one arm while raising the clamps one at a time. This may sound a little awkward, but it's not in practice. The cabinets do move against the wall as they are raised, but this didn't result in any scratches. I made final adjustments with shims.

Roy L. Samuelson, Alameda, CA