Should I return it all and look elsewhere?

[howme127]

To have the holes sized properly for the threaded inserts needing to be pressed into place will cause the wood to split if you ask me, I have seen this a lot with other furniture and things over the years.

The right way is to use a strong epoxy manufactured from the likes of Hilti or Simpson.
These epoxies have unbelievable strength and they don't shrink or expand when curing.
The hole at this point would be correct for the fitting.

IF you get to keep the parts and pieces I would try this.

There is a risk of split, especially being edge drilled. But a properly drilled hole for a properly sized fitting should not split. I am going to try today and will clamp and press-fit just to be safe. But splitting is a legitimate concern being edge drilled. My worry is that I'll be going for a barbed insert again. I personally like to ultra-low split t-nut inserts. Like this:

But you have to have a decently close hole size and the 3/8" hole was going to force me to change the thread size to 5/16-18, which drastically reduces the leveling foot options that are small and can handle the weight. But the mechanical distribution of weight is always nice with that flange on these.

I'm going to try a mixed version though:

The barrel width is wider than some (.3540) ☹, which I'm not looking forward to because of the possible split , but it does give .0210 of play... weeeeeee!

Epoxy can be great! We shy away from it unless it is a necessary evil. With time it becomes brittle, and in this situation, you run the risk of blocking the back of the hole that is needed to recess the leveling foot, or filling in the threads. Both could be overcome by being extremely careful.

 

[howme127]

So the threads on the leveling feet are 6mm. They fooled me because they will fit 1/4-20 fine thread ok but not properly. Also, I’m trying a few options for redoing the inserts.

This is the new barbed option I listed before that fit the 1/4-20 leveling feet:

and this is the one I’m going with I think. It’s a twist-in insert that is sized correctly for a 3/8” hole and has 6mm threads:

 

[MPCReefer]

Great, informative stuff howme! Keeping a close eye on this thread and your ultimate solution/decision. Have my eye on a WB...hoping they are in the process of figuring supplier quality issues out.

 

[AlgaeBarn]

I’d be interested as well, but I’m not impressed with aluminum stands, at least in my work. My coworker has had a lot more success with structural aluminum than I.

I’m curious if there is an acoustic amplification of the tank running from the aluminum. Or the very least a change in the NRC.

The CADE leveling foam is prebonded to the aluminum stand (no more trying to adjust leveling mats to be square). This helps deaden any vibrations while ensuring that the tank is sitting level. They are dead quiet when you are using a good pump; but, I think we should invest in a sound meter to prove this .

If you would like me to take any closeups of the preassembled aluminum stand, let me know. I'm very curious to get your opinion on it, considering your background in furniture design!

 

[Tuffyyyyy]

I appreciate all of your documentation, but my takeaway is that you’re not going to be satisfied until you build your own stand. Obviously wait and see how the latest one comes out, but I think you’re going to be the happiest in the long run with like an SCA tank and a stand you made yourself.