Install for a client with all his own newly purchased gear, including mount. 150 lb. TV with an Omni Mount Plasma CL (articulating so the plasma would be flush with the front lines of the entertainment cabinetry) rated for 150 lbs. Initial thought: Omni, obviously wanting to stay clear of any courtrooms, will have engineered this mount for MORE than 150 lbs. to be on the safe side.

As the install progressed and I continually adjusted the up/down tilt to get the TV parallel to the front faces of the cabinet, I began to doubt my initial thought. When finally in the right place, the plate had to be tilted "up" about 10 degrees unloaded, meaning with the TV hung, it was sagging that much. Plus, the friction fit of the tilt mechanism required tightening mercilessly to keep the tilt from drifting... I fear weakening the little weeny hex screws there.

Finally recommended *in writing* to the client that they change to a sturdier mount and spoke separately to the wife and husband my concerns of the safety of the mount.

The nicest articulating mount I've used was a Sanus with a really decent tilt adj with plasma in place (as opposed to pulling the plasma off the mount, adjust, check ad nauseum). The 200 lb version has two articulating arms - that would make me feel a lot better.

Any comments on the Plasma CL mount?

yeah, the way the omnimount is designed with the horizontal rod sandwiched between two plates is pretty cr@py. The Peerless PLA series is pretty stout, they may not be as pretty but they will definately give you peace of mind.

I only use Sanus and quote the biggest, baddest one I can for the TV and have never been disappointed.

Personally I hate articulating mounts and go to all lenths to discourage them and, while I think of it, will include a legal disclaimer in our next install quote. In retro's, I won't install them, period, unless we open the wall and install new framing behind it otherwise who knows what's behind there.

To give you one example, a phone call something like this..."Hey that mount you installed is real sturdy, my kid extended it out and I caught him swinging on it." ...is better than... "That mount isn't real sturdy, can you come by and help me lift the 150lb plasma off my 3 year old."

Better make sure it's on securely!!!

Chief Dual Swing-Arm mounts... Super solid, easy to mount (or at least as easy as can be expected considering how fleeking HEAVY they are...)

Used an Omnimount Articulating once. Finished installing it on Fri nite at 8:30. Got a call Sat. morning at 8:30. Allen head screws snapped, and 50" Fujitsu was leaning inside a $ 15,000 custom cabinet.

I just put up 2 Samsung 63" and 40" LCD and used all Chief mounts. They are more expensive but trust me with a 61" I would never use anything else!

http://www.chiefmfg.com/

I third the recomendation of the Chief mounts. We will not use anything else on 61s. The Omni mounts are (IMO) an accident waiting to happen. I have installed two of them, wound up replacing both of them.

Whoa, this is interesting. I had to hang a 26" LCD yesterday and quick ordered an Omni articulating mount for it - worked fine, light TV, etc.

The amazing thing is it was the identical mount as the 61" used except instead of two bolts top and bottom to the stud, the 150 lb. version used a plate that would allow 6 bolts across two studs.

So the wall plate was the only thing different between a mount that would hold a 50 lb TV and a 150 lb TV.

Never again for the Omni articulating mount on a plasma.

Side note: The U3F and U3T Omnis for plasmas (flat and tilting versions) are just fine. They are quick and sturdy.

The Omni looked like a really cool idea the first time I saw it. In what, the 1980s?

Then I found that, to follow the instructions and mount it right side up to hold a ten pound speaker, I could not tighten it enough with the supplied wrench. I could use a ratchet, but that would not fit under the mount with the speaker in place, so I got a 14" extension for 1/4" ratchet drive. That told me that they do not quite have reality on their side.

Crunching a plate with bumps down onto a plastic ball sounds like a great idea, but I have never seen it work without sagging. It just occurred to me: adjust the mount, get the arm JUST where you want it, then take the speaker off (don't ask me how). Heat the mount with a torch so that the metal bumps melt into the plastic ball, then tighten two more turns. THAT should hold it!

I would not use an Omni for a plasma. Ever.

Chief is about as overbuilt as you can get. I would expect a Chief to hold a locomotive out at three feet. I have seen one sag the tiniest bit, but it would take some convincing for me to want a different mount.

Any hints on distributors for Chief? Would you rather I asked at IP?

Well, to its credit, the Omni articulating mount was good for a full month without a hitch. For safety's sake, we put in a dual arm Sanus today, model VMDDB, and it is super solid. I'd use it again.

With the Omni, we must have pulled the monitor off the mount over a dozen times to adjust that pivot point and retry. No way to adjust tilt with all the weight on it. My knee has been bothering me ever since.

With the Sanus, we just hung the pup. Loosen two allens to level it, 60 seconds later that's done. Two knobs tweak the tension for adjusting the tilt. We hung it once, adjusted, and were done.

All thumbs up on the Sanus. Meltdown on the Omni. Hope client can get his money back from GG.

I still haven't had any problems with my Chief Mounts either but I still always have in the back of my mind...is that thing really going to stay up there? Even as good a mount as the chiefs are the repeated articulation of such a heavy plasma will take some toll and at the very least need readjustment. It hasn't ever happened yet but I think the customers end up leaving it in one position because of not wanting to deal with clicking it back in place!

AVAD

I though that we do not post the names of distributors in this public forum.

Old thread but news for some of you. My new DVD came in the mail a couple days ago from....Omni Mount! How to modify FP-CL, Plasma CL, and Plasma UCL mounts, with parts and instructions included. There was a series of them shipped during 2004 and 2005 that had a short screw installed in the *vertical* pin that could loosen, come out, and cause PI/PD. All mounts sold during this period should be modified.

"We believe that, with a little assistance, you can easily and safely install the Safety Upgrade Kit. However, if you are uncomfortable, for any reason, installing the Saftey upgrade Kit, please contact Omni Mount and we will arrange to have it installed at no charge to you." 800-668-6848

A dealer presumably takes the plasma off the mount and installs this new pin setup at no charge to the client. If we do it on our own, it's at our expense? Perhaps Omni would reimburse us if the client calls?

HOWEVER, take note that this is not in fact the issue that we had with this mount - it was the HORIZONTAL pin that slipped and sagged with heavy PDPs.

FYI.

[Link: omnimount.com]