Cheetah Mounts Plasma LCD Flat Screen TV Articulating Full Motion Dual Arm Wall Mount Bracket For 32-65" Displays Up To 165LBS Black With 10' High Speed HDMI Cable With Ethernet Fits Up To 24" Studs
by Cheetah Mounts LLC
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Digital Cameras Photo Reviews of Cheetah Mounts Plasma LCD Flat Screen TV Articulating Full Motion Dual Arm Wall Mount Bracket For 32-65" Displays Up To 165LBS Black With 10' High Speed HDMI Cable With Ethernet Fits Up To 24" Studs
Customer Review: Strong mount, articulating arm nice. I'd buy it again
Summary: 4 Stars
My review focuses on how I mounted a 58" Panasonic to a custom cabinet without wall studs. However, I have included adjustments for mounting on wall studs.
I have a Panasonic TC-P58V10 - 58" which weighs 110 lbs. The TV is mounted to a custom entertainment center that has 3/4" cabinet grade plywood back. The supplied hardware fasteners were not of any use to me (specifically the lag bolts) since the back wall of the entertainment center doesn't have a wall stud to mount. The quality of the remaining hardware wasn't up to my standards, so I bought new fasteners.
Pros: The wall mount looks nice, construction is solid, no TV sag, can't beat the price. I paid $89. This would easily run over $200 in your typical box stores.
Cons: Instructions are mediocre. I'd echo Brent Neimann Raleigh NC's (thanks for your review!)comment that illustrations would be helpful. Hardware fasteners are okay, but I don't trust the quality. Spend $25 and buy good fasteners. Tilt mechanism is weak. It's difficult to torque the center bolt hard enough to hold the desired angle.
I was concerned about the quality of the fasteners supplied with the kit. The lock washers were way to thin and the machining of the finished screws were rough, so I purchased my own high quality hardware for peace of mind. Here's what I bought at Lowe's for about $25 (List includes variation four mounting to a wall stud):
- Four 5/16" x 1.5", grade 8.8 Hex screw(I couldn't find M8s, but 5/16 is close enough). There are different grades of bolts. Grade 8 is the highest grade, ensuring that the tensile strength of the bolt will hold the combined weight of the bracket and TV. I believe the bolts supplied with the kit is 5, which is probably enough, but I can't be assured that bolts are actually Grade 5. Grade 8 can be identified by the Stamp "8.x" on the head, or by six lines aligned in a radial pattern, stamped in the head.
(If fastening to a wall stud, buy 5/16" x 3" lag bolts instead of the hex screws. All other fasteners, listed below, still apply.)
- Eight lock washers. Lock washers will prevent the the nuts from loosening. I used four for the mount and four to mount the arms to the TV.
- Eight flat washers (Grade 8). Washers are used to distribute the load across the surface.
- Four 5/16" x 1.5" fender washers. The fender washers went behind the cabinet wall. The larger surface area of the washer distributes the load across a larger surface.
- Four 5/16" nuts. These are used to fasten the bolts to the cabinet
- Four M8 x 30mm, 1.25 course threaded machine screws (1.0 threads don't fit Panasonic). M designates the screw as being metric as opposed to SAE. I used longer screws to accommodate the additional thickness of the washer and lock nut that I added.
I took the M8 x 30mm screws, slipped on the lock washer, the flat washer and then finger tightened the mounting arms to the TV. I had to make sure that all my measurements were spot on so that the TV wouldn't be misaligned in the cabinet space, which is why I didn't tighten the screws.
The mounting arms (on the TV) have a 'slot', in the shape of a upside-down U, where it will eventually be hung over the lip of the wall mount (the slot will slide onto the mounting plate). I measured the top of the TV to the top of slot on the mounting arm. I used this to figure out where to mark the top holes for the wall mount in the cabinet so the TV would sit vertically centered. I have to admit, I did this about seven times to make absolutely sure that I had the measurement correct.
I removed the arms and repositioned mounting holes a few times until I got it right. I then tightened the screws. Don't over tighten or you will strip the threads in the TV. I suggest that you tighten the nuts with the ratchet so that it is firmly snug (don't muscle it). Then do a quarter turn to lock it down.
The supplied level isn't really accurate, as the lines on either side of the bubble have too much space, leaving a chance that you can be a few degrees off of alignment. This will result in a tilted TV. I used my own laser level (your own bubble level is probably better than the one supplied) to align the top two holes of the wall bracket. I used a awl to mark the holes, creating an indentation in the wood to ensure that the drill bit wouldn't stray off mark. After drilling the top two holes (using 5/16 drill bit), I mounted the bracket (I did it myself, but two people would have been better), then center-marked and drilled the two bottom holes, using the wall bracket as my template.
I drilled the two bottom holes and then mounted the wall bracket taking the 5/16" bolts and slipping on the lock washer and flat washer. I then mounted the wall bracket and inserted the first screw to secure the bracket, followed by the rest of the screws. I then slipped on the fender washer in the back of the cabinet then screwed on the nut. I had to use two ratchets to tighten the fasteners.
I used one knee raised up to prop the bracket, while balancing on the ladder. Let me tell you it's darn heavy when you're doing it yourself! I don't advise doing this and I wouldn't do it again if I had to...really stupid. Fortunately, my wife wasn't around while I did it. Otherwise, I would have never heard the end of it.
I tested the wall bracket by hanging off of it for a minute. It reminded me of Jr high watching the girls do the hang instead of a pull up. The bracket held up my 167 lb frame, although I'm embarrassed to say that I'm out of shape. One minute of hanging killed me. I guess it does take a bit of strength to just hang there!
Next, I set up a series of three steps, each increasing in height, below the wall bracket (my wife's great idea), to allow us do a series of lifts instead of one big lift. Doing so allowed my wife and I to safely hang the TV. I then inserted the safety bar (This securely fastens the bottom of the arm bracket to the wall bracket. Make sure the bar is behind the lip of the wall bracket. Otherwise, the TV will be swinging free on the bottom! Next I horizontally centered the TV by sliding the TV left/right. I tightened some of the bolts in the wall mount hinges as they were a little loose. Don't over tighten otherwise you will find that the hinges will bind and won't move.
The last step was to adjust the tilt. Unlike other reviewers that I read, the knob for the center bolt was strong an didn't break. However, I found that I wasn't able to generate enough torque to tighten the bolt to hold the TV in place. I some how managed to crank it to lock it in position. I hope it stays in place. If not, I'll have to use Joseph from IL's tip to use some Cleve pins to lock it in place.
Stepping back, I was admiring the centering and perfectly level position of the TV. Good thing I spent all that time measuring the vertical alignment! The measuring was what took the most time in the installation. The mount held up, with no noticeable sag from holding up my 110 lb. plasma.
I've added two pictures so you can see the finished job and a behind the TV mounting plate shot.
Legalese info: The information contained herein is provided as a public service with the understanding that I make no warranties, either expressed or implied, concerning the accuracy, completeness, reliability, or suitability of the information.
Customer Review: Solid and Versatile Mount
Summary: 4 Stars
General Info:
I ordered the Cheetah APDAM2B mount from Amazon and overall I am very pleased with it. After much research, I determined that it would be the best mount for my situation. I have a 40" HDTV weighing approximately 40 pounds which I wanted to mount over our fireplace into a brick wall. I wanted a mount that would allow the TV to swivel to provide optimum viewing in our large family room. Since I intended to mount the TV high on the wall, I wanted to be able to tilt the TV downward to accommodate the best viewing angle. The Cheetah mount supports all of these requirements.
First Impressions:
The product was promptly delivered and met my expectations as to form, fit, and function (except as described below). The Cheetah mount is solid. It is well constructed of heavy gauge materials. I had no concerns about it supporting my expensive electronics right out of the box. It is well designed and should be adjustable for almost any situation. I must agree with prior reviewers who indicated that the fastener hardware is substandard. I did not trust the plastic inserts provided for use with masonry installations and the fasteners that attach the mounting rail (the outer most part that receives the brackets attached to the TV) to the mounting arm assembly are very poor. The wing nuts supplied disintegrated when I tried to loosen them. No way I was going to trust my expensive TV to these fasteners. The fastener issues were addressed by a quick trip to the hardware store where I purchased lead inserts and new lag bolts to attach the mount to my brick fireplace and new carriage bolts with jam juts to attach the rail to the mounting bracket.
Installation:
As I said earlier, the mount is very heavy. Plan on having two sets of strong hands to get this thing in place and secured. I was able to get it installed with the help of my teenage sons. We located and drilled the upper left hole first. This allowed us to loosely attach the upper left corner to the wall. We then rotated the mounting plate up to level, marked the remaining holes, and then rotated the plate out of the way to drill the remaining three holes. Installation of the mounting plate was a breeze from there. Once the mount was installed, I extended it fully from the wall and pulled down on it aggressively to ensure it would support my TV. It did not budge. We actually needed three people to get the TV mounted to the rail. One to hold the TV, one to guide the brackets (mounted to the back of the TV) onto the rail, and one to hold the assembly steady so it would not push away from the brackets while we were sliding them onto the rail. Once mounted, the TV moved smoothly into position against the wall. It stands off the wall about 6" when fully retracted. It can be extended about 20" and articulated about 150 degrees when fully extended. I did not experience any problem with the tilt feature. We tilted the TV to the desired angle and tightened the set knobs without difficulty.
One previous reviewer indicated a problem with the mounting rail (the part that holds the TV) not being square to the mounting plate (the part you bolt to the wall). This is not an issue because the rail is fully adjustable. You can loosen the fasteners (the above mentioned wing nuts which I replaced with jam nuts)that hold the rail to the assembly and tilt the rail to level it. I used a rubber mallet to tap it into the correct level and then tightened the rail securely using my new jam nuts. This adjustment will allow about +/- ten degrees of angle change so you should be able to level the TV even if you did not get the mounting plate absolutely level (a great design feature if you are challenged by installing things level as I am).
The Bottom Line:
The Cheetah mount is a solid, cleverly designed, well constructed product that should serve almost any flat panel TV mounting need. I am very pleased with my purchase (especially at the Amazon price). The only weakness I could find (and it was significant) was the fasteners provided by Cheetah. It baffles me that this great product is packaged with such substandard fastener hardware. Who would gamble the fate of their expensive electronics on these fasteners? The hardware (and the requisite trip to the hardware store to replace it) is the only thing holding me back from a five star rating on this product.
Customer Review: Nice and solid.
Summary: 5 Stars
This mount is almost as heavy as the TV! Okay, maybe I'm exagerating, but it's a big heavy solid mount. To make it easier to work with during installation, I completely disassembled it first. On the one hand, this worked out well. It was indeed easier to work with (and not too difficult to reassemble as I went along), and I was also able to correct a problem where two of the arm extensions were restricted in their movement due to being screwed into the coupler one turn too many. On the other hand, disassembling the unit caused me to screw up my measurements... i.e. I didn't even think that the plate on which the TV hangs might not be the same height as the plate mounted to the wall (duh)! So in the end, the TV was mounted 1.5" lower than I had intended. Really ticked me off because I was meticulous in my measurements, but I measured the wrong thing (and it took me quite awhile to figure out where I had gone wrong). I've got noone else to blame but myself, and this is not a "hit" against the mount (although the instructions could include a diagram or something that shows the measurements between various points of the mount). I'm only mentioning my blunder in case someone else decides to disassemble the mount during installation also. Learn from my mistake. Also, be aware (unlike me again) that when the TV is tilted downward, it hangs lower. Anyway, I was able to regain some of the lost height by repositioning the brackets on the TV, but not much. [Of course, I could have filled in the holes and just hung the mount higher on the wall if I had really NEEDED more height, but I didn't.]
There is a bubble level attached to the wall plate which helps tremendously during installation; and there is also a very small magnetic torpedo level included with the mount. Both were helpful, but in the end I pulled out my own level to be extra cautious; but I gotta admit that there was zero discrepency between the included levels and my own.
It is not mentioned in the product description, but in addition to tilt & swivel operation, this unit also has a rotational feature. In the event that the TV isn't perfectly level after mounting, the plate on which the TV hangs can be rotated a few degrees in either direction to compensate. Thankfully, I didn't need to use this feature, but I think it's an important one that deserves mentioning. The only drawback is that the TV has to be dismounted in order to have access to the locking nuts.
Speaking of swivel, the mount gives us about 45 degrees in either direction with a 50" TV; smaller units will get more out of it, of course.
Other reviewers suggested swapping out the lag bolts for higher quality ones. While I'm not going to argue that it's always better to improve quality when you can, I personally didn't deem it necessary. They're 2" bolts and they're screwed into the wall studs pretty securely; but remember, as I said before, this is a heavy mount. It supports up to 165lbs, plus the weight of the mount itself, all being secured by a measly four screws in the wall. It'll be interesting when the first decent sized earthquake hits. So do whatever you feel most comfortable doing.
I really like this mounting unit, and I'm extremely happy with my purchase (and the price!). The only bad thing I can say about it, besides the weight, is that after you hook the TV brackets onto the mount plate, the bottom portion of the brackets do not "lock" into place. This mount uses set screws to secure the bottom portion of the brackets instead of a latching system; but even that one drawback has its advantages... namely that the TV won't slide laterally along the mount plate unless you want it to, and if necessary only one person is needed to dismount the TV (it is debatable whether that last one is "really" an advantage since it encourages unsafe practices, but for the record I mounted a 50" plasma TV completely solo). Oh, and one other complaint... the instructions are poorly written, and in particular they do not describe how to properly assemble the locking knobs for the tilt feature to the TV brackets. It's easy to figure out with even the slightest mechanical aptitude, however (or put another way, if I can do it...). The included hardware is mislabelled and a little disorganized, too.
Bottom line, great mount! Well deserving of its 5-star rating.
Customer Review: Nice TV mount/bracket
Summary: 4 Stars
I have a 46 inch Sanyo LCD TV that weighs a little under 60 pounds that I bought about 2 years or so ago. So it is well within the limits stated by the manufacturer for this bracket.
That being said - this is overall a very solid TV mount/bracket. I will try to post pictures later, but I am hoping my solutions to some of the problems will help others.
First, I am in a newer house. So the studs are the normal 16 inches apart. My problem is I wanted to mount it on a wall that is between two closet doors. And once I started looking for the studs, it just so happens that there is a stub smack in the middle of that space. The space was about 30.5 inches wide of wall. So the next studs over were where the actual door frame was for each closet. I searched around the internet and found others that a similar problem. So what I did was (my friend's husband came up with this) I cut a piece of 3/4 inch plywood to the size of the bracket part that was supposed to mount to the 2 studs. I spray painted it to match the black bracket. Then we screwed the bracket to the plywood in about 6 different places and then took three extra long bolts (may 2.5 or 3 inches?) and bolted the plywood to the stud. That thing is not going anywhere unless the entire stud comes down. It is VERY solidly attached to the wall. So that is how I solved the "one stud" problem.
The next issues I came across was that one arm on the mount moved fairly easily. It took some force, but I was glad it wasn't too loose or that may be a problem. However, the other arm was so tight that I stood on one side and tried to pull it out with both hands. It would not mave. My friend had to try 2 or 3 times with all of his strength to loosen the bolt. Once he finally managed to do that, it was fine. But good grief. It felt like someone had used some kind of pneumatic wrench to tighten that thing!
The last issue I had/have is that once we got everything on the wall and connected, etc., I looked behind the TV at the bracket. Before we mounted it, the entire bracket (the arms) could be pushed all the way back and the bracket would lay pretty flat. Once the TV was on it, you could see the arms leaning a bit at the top. It isn't noticeable when you watch the TV. And if it was, you could compensate by adjusting the tilt of the TV. But I would think that since my TV is less than 60 pounds and this bracket/mount is solid and weighs about 30 pounds itself, it shouldn't show any "sag" (for lack of a better word). So that is concerning because I wonder if it will sag more over time and with use?
And what others say about the built in bubble level... VERY true. It is way off. Do not trust it for sure. I had two levels of my own and the built in level. My two levels were dead on - both showed really close to perfectly level, where-as the bubble in the built in level was way over to one side.
Otherwise, this is a superb mount! I will try to take pictures soon and post. It works perfectly for what I needed and for the space I had to work with.
And those of you who are thinking "how did she put a 46 inch TV between two doors that are only 30.5 inches apart?" One of the closets is the hot water heater. So that really never gets opened. The other is a game closet. I do open that one often. But because this bracket has the articulating arms and you can swivel it, there is PLENTY of room to just pull the TV out a bit and open the door. It is perfect for me!
If you want to ask questions, please do. And I will try to help or explain what I can. I also put a wall shelf unit for the other TV apparatus like the DVD player, cable box, Nintendo, etc. When I get the chance I will review that unit (because I also bought it off of Amazon) and then post the link in case anyone is interested.
I subtracted a star because of the arm that was almost impossible to loosen and because there is a bit of sag in the bracket now that it is on the wall with the TV on it. I would have given 4.5 stars if that were possible.
Customer Review: Excellent product, poor manual
Summary: 4 Stars
I purchased this slightly over a month ago after price shopping and seeing many positive reviews here. I've had it installed for about 3 weeks.
I have a samsung LNT4665F (46" LCD) that weighs about 50lbs. This was my first time wall mounting an HDTV. My review is focused around installation as i believe this is a great product if installed correctly, but that it takes additional info to do this properly. I would buy this product again, and for prospective buyers who are on the fence about telescoping mounts (like i was) let me just say - it is worth it if for no other reason than it simplifies wiring and adjustment once your set is mounted.
Pros:
* Well built and extremely sturdy. Once attached to the wall it is clearly capable of holding a larger TV with no "play" in the joints
* MANY adjustments - besides the active tilt/swivel/extend once mounted, there are adjustments you can do when mounting to ensure your set is level.
* Included hardware provides many types of screws/fittings for various sets. Even though the screws in my set didn't work with the mount, the mount came with good alternatives that worked well.
Cons:
* The manual is incorrect and incomplete. It mislabels hardware (i.e. it will say use screw B and washer C, when in fact both of these items are in a compartment labeled F. Oops!), and is missing info on many important adjustments you should make when mounting. I am still not 100% comfortable with the leveling on my set.
* The shipping for the product was sub par - the box did not have enough padding, in my opinion, to ensure that the materials were not damaged in transit. Fortunately mine came out ok.
Detail:
It took me about 4 hours to install this mount. I mounted it to a wall that was only finished on one side, so i could more easily locate the studs. I did the installation by myself which i don't recommend.
The most critical part is getting the mounted affixed to the studs. Drywall anchors etc will not give you enough hold for the mount itself (20+ lbs) and whatever set you put in. The included hardware has lag bolts to get into the studs, but it takes some attentiveness to find the studs, drill pilot holes, etc. The manual is sufficiently detailed to help you through this part of the process.
After this is where it gets dodgy. You have to experiment to figure out which bolts and washers are appropriate for mounting, as everything is mislabeled. Just be sure you use the lag bolts and the properly sized washers when mounting to the wall.
Also, when mounting to the wall, you really need one person to hold the mount in place while another person screws in the lag bolts. Even with the pilots set it takes time to get the bolts in place, and you do not want the set hanging on the bolts before they are sufficiently in.
Once the mount is attached to the wall, you need to stop reading the manual for a second and instead focus on leveling the front plate on the mount. The back plate attaches to the wall, the front plate attaches to the set, and the screws holding them together all allow you to tilt and adjust the front plate to ensure it is perfectly level. On my mount, these screws were loose (forming the foundation of many expensive nightmares). Ensure the front plate is level and the screws are tight. Do some testing to ensure nothing movies around or falls out of the wall.
At this point you (with someone else helping) can simply set the TV on the mount and tighten up the bottom screws.
Once the mount is on the wall, the set is in place and level, it's great - no obstructions, easy to swivel around, easy to tilt. Being able to telescope the set away from the wall makes wiring MUCH easier. Everyone who has seen this setup has been impressed and really liked the quality, and the price is less than half some of the options i have seen elsewhere.