quinlanmw Posted December 4, 2008 Author Share Posted December 4, 2008 Continued... Another shot. I included this because it's one of the few photos where my lousy photography accurately represents how evenly the finish came out between the bass bin front and the dges of the plates... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
quinlanmw Posted December 4, 2008 Author Share Posted December 4, 2008 Continued... Here you can see I've attached the brackets and the hangar bolts by which the bottom plate is secured to the bass bin. Milestone: this bottom plate would not be moved again! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bill H. Posted December 4, 2008 Share Posted December 4, 2008 WOW.............you are Amazing ! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
quinlanmw Posted December 4, 2008 Author Share Posted December 4, 2008 I waited until relatively late in the process to trim the back of the bottom plate to align it flush with the tailboard. Greg Roberts provided very detailed measurements in another thread (thanks again, Greg) of the different dimensions of the plates and their relationship to each other, and I carefully tried to replicate them, but there was always a chance that an error here and there of 1/16" or less could compound to negatively affect the final appearance once everything went together. The back of the bottom plate was coming off anyway, so I waited until the plate was fitted and hangar bolts and brackets were located to trim it where it would align flush with the tailboard. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
quinlanmw Posted December 4, 2008 Author Share Posted December 4, 2008 Continued... Time for another big step--application of the grill cloth. I have zero experience in working with fabric or upholstering, but wasn't overly concerned about figuring it out. Greg addressed it in some detail on his site, with great photos. I'm a bit of a tool freak and thought, great, an excuse for getting some new tools! Greg has recommended this fabric strething tool, and I've seen Norm on New Yankee workshop use it in upholstering, so I convinced myself I needed it. Home Depot had a similar one that I guess the duct work guys use to bend sheet metal but even I wasn't going to pay 40 bucks for a funny looking pair of pliers, even if it was a nice stainless steel with vinyl covered handles. I found this one online at an artists supply house, it's used for stretching canvas. about 15 bucks. This tool definitely helped, but it also set me up for perhaps my biggest mistake in the whole project. More on that later. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
quinlanmw Posted December 4, 2008 Author Share Posted December 4, 2008 Continued... For some reason I slacked off in photographing the whole grill cloth process. In this shot I have covered both motorboards and the first side grill frame (as mentioned earlier, you can see that the angle brackets are not on yet). Both speaker tops in the background are just loose fit, but finishing the motorboards with the grill cloth was definitely deserving of another admiration session over a beer. You may also notice that I used an air powered stapler, a fact I'm a little reluctant to disclose and maybe even a bit ashamed of. For crying out loud, Greg does these professionally and even he uses a hand stapler! But I already had the compressor (I've been doing a slow interior renovation in our home, with lots of trim work)...and this stapler was only $89, so...OK, I'm a big tool freak..somebody stop me..I need help. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Groomlakearea51 Posted December 4, 2008 Share Posted December 4, 2008 Outstanding!!! They are "eye candy"!! PS: Don't beat yourself up about using a powered stapler!!! I learned the hard way with a hand stapler!!! Found out that I had to be smarter than the tool I was working with!!! Never agin!!! [] Besides they use an air stapler at the factory... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
quinlanmw Posted December 4, 2008 Author Share Posted December 4, 2008 Continued... I mentioned that the fabric stretcher set me up for a mistake...(yeah, that's it, it's the tool's fault), but I had it in my head that the fabric had to be stretched as tightly as possible (like your rack in boot camp..the ability to bounce a dime off of it). Of course I knew that fabric stretched too loosely would look terrible, but I way overestimated how tightly it needed to be stretched on my first attempt, and I underestimated just how much "stretchability" the fabric has. On the first motorboard I stretched and stapled on the sides first..so far, so good I thought, but this is where I had overstretched and distorted the pattern. The real crime is that I didn't notice the mistake and proceeded to staple the top and bottom as well...hundreds of staples..hey, you can really roll with an air powered stapler. When complete I stood back and admired my work, from all angles, and..hey, what happened here? I cursed myself for a good long time on this one while I contemplated the fun of removing all those staples and starting over. Then, I decided to loose fit the speaker assembly and called the wife out to find the major mistake I had made in the grill cloth. She couldn't see it. I decided to leave it as is, and to place this speaker in the corner where this had the least chance of being noticed. If I had the level of workmanship some of you are giving me credit for, or if these were someone else's speakers I was being paid to restore, there is no question I'd have torn it off and started over. All this was to emphasize the lesson learned (learning curve, again!): the fabric stretcher is a definite help but this grill cloth has enough inherent stiffness to it that it doesn't need to be stretched that tightly to prevent wrinkles. Of paramount importance in the grill cloth application is remaining cognizant of how the linear patterns of the cloth aligned with the straight portions of the piece being covered, whether it's the motorboard or the side frame. Once I figured this out it was pretty much smooth sailing from there. Here it is.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
meagain Posted December 4, 2008 Share Posted December 4, 2008 They look brand new. Very very nice! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bill H. Posted December 4, 2008 Share Posted December 4, 2008 Great Job............... Where did you find the Fabric? Others here will want to Know Iam sure........................ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
quinlanmw Posted December 4, 2008 Author Share Posted December 4, 2008 Continued... Once the grill cloth was affixed to the motorboards I could fit and do the final measurement of the solid side panels. Greg Roberts had mentioned there was a slight reveal of the side panel and the top and bottom plate, or in other words the side panel is inset slightly, about 1/16" I think. I studied his photos and they all look awesome, but in other Khorn photos I found there didn't appear to be a reveal here. Also, it seemed like it would be quite a trick for me to establish a consistent reveal while attaching the side panels to the motorboard, which I had decided needed to happen first. I'm not sure if Greg and others have done it in this order but that's what seemed easiest to me. I decided to align the side panels flush with the edge of the mid plate, clamp it as securely as possible, then drill pilot holes and screw the side panels to the motorboard. When this came out satisfactorily I marked for pilot holes in the mid plate and located the hangar bolts. Once that came out satisfactorily I mounted the motorboard, with side panels attached, to the bottom of the top plate. This is why I decided to align the side panels flush to the sides of the mid and top plate, without a reveal..I had a better chance of accurately aligning the top and mid plates flush. Maybe there's another way but that's how I figured it. Once the top plate was attached to the motorboard it was time for the moment of truth...positioning the assembly on to the previously installed hangar bolts on the mid plate. In my mind I knew it should fit and align correctly, but there was definite trepidation as I placed the assembly on, walked ten feet away and then turned to see how it all came together. It came out OK. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Islander Posted December 4, 2008 Share Posted December 4, 2008 Outstanding!!! They are "eye candy"!! PS: Don't beat yourself up about using a powered stapler!!! I learned the hard way with a hand stapler!!! Found out that I had to be smarter than the tool I was working with!!! Never agin!!! Besides they use an air stapler at the factory... I think my La Scalas were put together with a nail gun. There's even an extra nail beside the first one in a couple of spots. Oh well, it is called a "utility finish". Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
quinlanmw Posted December 4, 2008 Author Share Posted December 4, 2008 I obtained the fabric from Wendell Fabrics Company in South Carolina, which is where Greg Roberts had recommended. I sent them an email and referenced Greg's name, they wrote back and gave me the specifics and then I ordered it via phone. Here's a shot from the side of the now complete top assembly (minus horns). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kevinmi Posted December 4, 2008 Share Posted December 4, 2008 Bob Crites carries the grill cloth also. I used it to re-do my sides on my K-horns and it matched perfectly with my top hat with original cloth. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
quinlanmw Posted December 4, 2008 Author Share Posted December 4, 2008 Moving on.. Next, it is time to apply the fabric to the side grill frames. I mentioned earlier that I thought I knew why Greg had recommended not to make the cutouts for baseboard molding...it was a real pain in the ***. The straight and square parts were pretty straight forward, but I just had no intuitive idea of the best way to handle the cutouts. I think I did it differently on all four frames, and if I were doing another I'd probably do that differently as well. Each involved some combination of trimming, folding, snipping...I don't know, maybe I was trying too hard to do a professional looking job. I had a concern from the beginning that folding over the fabric on the leading edge would affect the fit and perhaps prevent the frame from fitting uniformly along its length, but on the back side it really doesn't matter if fabric is bunched on the inside...it won't show. Anyway, they all turned out fine and look good, but my fussiness probably caused these to take way more time than they should have. I did run into an issue when I went to attach the frames. I had taken care to make all the angle spacers identical in accordance with the dimensions that Greg provided, but here is what I got when I attached the second side grill (the first fit perfectly)...you can see a widening gap at the top from the front to the rear of the grill. This was a problem..it meant the side grill was not square to the front plane of the speaker and would be very noticeable--unacceptable. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
quinlanmw Posted December 4, 2008 Author Share Posted December 4, 2008 I found that by shimming the angle spacer the frame came into perfect alignment. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
quinlanmw Posted December 4, 2008 Author Share Posted December 4, 2008 I wasn't going to leave that shim stuck there, so I cut a piece the required thickness and glued it to the back of the angle spacer. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
quinlanmw Posted December 4, 2008 Author Share Posted December 4, 2008 Continued.... I'm just about ready to reinstall the horns and crossover on the first speaker. In this picture they are in a closet where they've been waiting the last three months or so for this moment. I had blown the dust off prior to this shot, but they look OLD. Remember, in the D model all this is open to the outside. Just a few words on the electronics. I mentioned earlier that I chose not to mess with the bass bin connections, although I thought long and hard about it. I even had new connectors in my hand at Radio Shack, ready to go for it. In the end I decided to leave well enough alone...these speakers were still performing brilliantly when I embarked upon this project. I didn't want to deal with the possibility that after all this time and work that these transformed Khorns wouldn't work due to some mistake I made. I didn't want to remove the bass bin panel as I had no clue what was on the other side. I think the image of the manufacturer's label disintegrating to dust in my hand was still fresh in my mind. I had basically the same attitude about the crossover network. I knew this was the perfect time to upgrade these, or at least replace with new ones. I realize the capacitors are near the end of their useful life. But after all this work I wanted these speakers to sound just as they did before when I finally got them hooked up. I also wasn't anxious to add any more expense at this time. I'll wait to upgrade as needed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
quinlanmw Posted December 4, 2008 Author Share Posted December 4, 2008 Horns and crossover installed. The crossover cleaned up pretty nicely with DeOxit and a lot of Q Tips. More later. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bill H. Posted December 5, 2008 Share Posted December 5, 2008 Quin, Any more Fantastic Pictures?...............I love seeing the wood working abilities of You and Greg's projects ! Truly Spellbinding ! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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