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$200 CORNWALL SAGA - RESCUING ORPHANS


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Very, very nice. Thanks for all the pix and the how to info as well. Just one question and it is not intended to be a dig in any way, just curious. If you are going to go through all that trouble why not use a more exotic wood? Do you already have other speakers to match these up with?

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Just one question and it is not intended to be a dig in any way, just curious. If you are going to go through all that trouble why not use a more exotic wood? Do you already have other speakers to match these up with?

My wife really likes walnut.... and these are in the living room with another pair that are similar in hue. The LR has massive wood above the fireplace (red cedar) and cedar "cathedral" beams. I've looked at cedar, but it contains alot of oil and is a very soft wood; thus the walnut with the stain. The Belles shown in the pictures in the man cave were walnut (until the original owner decided to spray paint them flat black...) They are next on the list and will be restored with the same walnut as the Cornwalls. They too are actually intended for the living room HT system, so everything will match. The man cave actually has another pair of Cornwalls ( The "Dog Lady's Specials") sitting on the Belles which I sorely need to re-do. They are, however, so ugly that I dare not post a picture on this forum... When Fenderbender logs on, he can explain about the Dog Lady CW's (He found those up in Orlando during a search for Klipsch stuff about a year ago).... It's another strange tale of woe, grief and black paint rolled on with a brush by a numnut owner..... Those, however, will be done with black lacquer to match the other stuff in the man cave.

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Very nice work indeed. That wood does look like the Heresy's you did for me a couple years ago. Are the Cornwalls for sale? Do you have another pair that you are going to restore?

Thanks, JC

Yes, that's the same wood as your Heresy's. The next set of Cornwalls my be for sale; not sure yet on the final configuration of the living room. If my wife likes the Belles with Cornwalls stacked on the flanks and a set in the "center", then I'll keep the "dog lady pair" for the man cave. If she does not, or wants a set of Heresy's as the centers, then a pair will be for sale. Call me in May and we'll see what shakes out.

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Marshall,

That is some gorgeous work. I have a question, which I'm sure you've covered in an earlier project documentary. What is your preferred method for trimming veneer?

Randy

It depends.... On Heresy's I will use an handheld edgebanding trimmer as often as not because the amount that needs to be trimmed is not very long. On the Cornwalls.... I generally use a router with a "flush" cut bit that has a "downward" spiral. I currently use a Freud/Diablo 1/2" shanked bit with a DeWalt router. I always lay a piece of painters tape underneath the overhang for the bit bearing to ride on. Reason? It prevents any possible contact by the bit's cutting blades with the piece of veneer underneath the overhang, protects the veneer underneath from the bearing on the bit, and it also cuts it not quite flush. That allows me to carefully blend the edge into the other piece by hand. Hope that explains it.

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Marshall,

That is some gorgeous work. I have a question, which I'm sure you've covered in an earlier project documentary. What is your preferred method for trimming veneer?

Randy

It depends.... On Heresy's I will use an handheld edgebanding trimmer as often as not because the amount that needs to be trimmed is not very long. On the Cornwalls.... I generally use a router with a "flush" cut bit that has a "downward" spiral. I currently use a Freud/Diablo 1/2" shanked bit with a DeWalt router. I always lay a piece of painters tape underneath the overhang for the bit bearing to ride on. Reason? It prevents any possible contact by the bit's cutting blades with the piece of veneer underneath the overhang, protects the veneer underneath from the bearing on the bit, and it also cuts it not quite flush. That allows me to carefully blend the edge into the other piece by hand. Hope that explains it.

Perfect, thanks. Do you have any resources for researching the effect of different stains on different types of wood? Or is it trial and error/experimentation on samples, past experience, etc.?

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Perfect, thanks. Do you have any resources for researching the effect of different stains on different types of wood? Or is it trial and error/experimentation on samples, past experience, etc.?

What I did strarting a couple years ago... (and still do) is when I decide on a basic veneer type and order the wood, I always have excess left. I never throw that away. I now cut many of my "scraps" up into 6" squares and experiment with dyes, stains and oil finishes, etc. When I am thinking about a particular finish or stain, I'll get a small can of it and do several pieces with one, two, or more coats, etc. Sometimes I will arrive at a particular finish with the scraps and then order the piece of veneer that I want to apply. I've had some spectacular results experimenting with plain old birch used to make desks, etc. If you have no veneer and want to look at the "species" before ordering it, you can get a sample book from joewoodworker.com. It contains about 35 or 40 different types in 6" squares.

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Second stain wipe is a 70/30 mix of Minwax "Gunstock" and Minwax "Special Walnut". This combination, when oiled, gives that reddish hue that the older Heritage walnut veneer looks like after 30 years.

How long do you wait to apply the second stain after wiping off the first? With the oil, Watco has three Walnut oils - which do you use?

Randy

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Randy,

When I do the second stain it's a wipe and I do it after about 5-10 minutes, and immediately wipe off any excess. Reason? I don't want the stain to soak in too far. I'd rather do it very gradually. If I stain something and let it dry, then I'm stuck with that hue as the stain tends to fill the pores and seal the wood. I want stains to penetrate, but leave the pores exposed for the oil to penetrate. The oil was Watco medium walnut.

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I am Eye-Gore, Igor was my father, assistant to the Master. I am the pictured helper in the Cornwall saga. Really the first time that I have gotten involved in speaker referbisihing, and I have to say that it was very good work. The pictures really don't give the work and effort that was put into the rescueing of the orphans the justice that it truely deserves. Through enough effort, powertools, and beer, really good beer, they shine now.

Eye-Gore

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  • 9 months later...

Marshall,

How long should one wait between staining and oiling?

Randy

Depends... If you are getting real "finnicky" about the hue, as in need it slightly darker, slightly more "reddish", etc. you want to not wait more than an hour or so before the final staining, etc.

Generally, once the stain is pretty much what you want, let it completely dry for at least 24 hours. I generally will wipe them down liberally with mneral spirits after 24 hours just in case I decide to add some stain; the mineral spirits will "soften" the stain just enough to allow a slight "addition". But, then it's another 24 hours minimum.

The "rule"? .... After 24 hours or so, wipe them off with a clean dry cotton rag. If the rag comes out fairly clean, then they are ready for oiling.

Hope that helps.

[H]

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