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Forte II oak clear


dtr20

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There is a pair of forte II speakers for sale locally to me. The finish is oak clear and looks extremely light from what I'm used to klipsch oak speakers looking like. Also the seller claims the grills are green, not black. I asked if the grills might be black and just really dirty, he said no, definitely green. 

 

Just curious on what your thoughts are in these. Is that a desirable finish? Did klipsch make green grills for the forte II? Thanks

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4 minutes ago, dtr20 said:

Just curious on what your thoughts are in these.

I can't help you with the green grills as I've never heard of them but I am not the Forte II guy.

 

I don't want to publicly discuss price because you had an upgraded pair for sale back in Feb 2017 and I don't know if they sold.  I don't want to poo poo on your deal.

 

If you need the Heritage Prices spreadsheet let me know and I'll send it to you.

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24 minutes ago, wvu80 said:

I can't help you with the green grills as I've never heard of them but I am not the Forte II guy.

 

I don't want to publicly discuss price because you had an upgraded pair for sale back in Feb 2017 and I don't know if they sold.  I don't want to poo poo on your deal.

 

If you need the Heritage Prices spreadsheet let me know and I'll send it to you.

Thanks, I have an idea on basic price/worth. Yes, my fortes sold awhile back. Just curious if anybody knows about the grills and people's thoughts on the finish (if it was rare or something).

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clear oak is rare compared to oak oiled.  I prefer the clear oak to the oiled oak but that just an opinion(my chorus ii are clear oak and all my other klipsch are oiled oak).  the grills were available only in black.  I'm guessing that they're green because of severe fading due to uv damage (they look grey or blue to me when uv damaged but not everyone sees the same colors).  You can see for yourself when/if you go see them.

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Yeah, I'm not happy with the finish on these. Plus the "dent" in a very noticeable place that was varnished over smooth. Plus the varnish is a very soft varnish that scratches if you look at it wrong.  I bought a RC-64II at the same time in cherry. I have my tv on it. Have moved the tv several times on top of the center with no marks left behind. 

 

Talked to a guy at Klipsch about how I was unhappy about the finish. He didn't seem to care.

 

Very happy with the sound though....

IMG_0021.JPG

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Natural (unstained) cherry always looks like that until it ages. It WILL darken. I love cherry. I wish my RF7-II were natural. The stain Klipsch used on them just makes them look like some stained plywood. But if there is a flaw or they are damaged @RTR and you're not happy and you're not getting any help, bark louder. Go up the chain. Brand new speakers should be flawless.

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The bass bins I built was Red Oak plywood, I stained it with Red Oak stain and later oiled them.

 

I just stained something for the same room and sprayed it with polyurethane , it's made out of Baltic birch (I think), I somewhat wanted it close to the bass bins. I tested a spot on the back and it was really dark and more red. I thinned the stain by 33% with mineral spirits and it looked OK,  It still turned out a few shades darker. 

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8 hours ago, babadono said:

Natural (unstained) cherry always looks like that until it ages. It WILL darken. I love cherry.

^This^ 

Whoever has Cherry, be mindful of the sunlight: It will DARKEN the sides that are exposed to the light. If a Cherry board is placed in the sun for a week with an area shaded (another something placed on the board), it is easy to see the non shaded area will be darker - tan lines.

 

Cherry will darken due to sunlight

Walnut will bleach (lighten) due to sunlight

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11 hours ago, dtr20 said:

Did klipsch make green grills for the forte II?

I'm not sure if it is stock. I have some Chorus II with 'Olive Green' grills. I have seen a few pair of Forte and Forte II with the same grill color. Since there are so many of  that color, I would guess that it was a stock color, one that I'm glad they stopped using. 

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8 hours ago, babadono said:

 But if there is a flaw or they are damaged @RTR and you're not happy and you're not getting any help, bark louder. Go up the chain. Brand new speakers should be flawless.

I started up the chain as far as I could go. We exchanged emails.

 

i am more upset about the "softness" of the varnish than anything else. If you look at the picture of the dent on the front, you see a light spot on the right of the mark. That's where I ran my finger over the mark to see if I could feel an indentation. My fingernail caught the varnish and made that mark. I've heard thru the grapevine there was another complaint from someone who said their finish on the cherry was "peeling" The dent looks worse in person when you can see depth of the mark.

 

Once I move, I'll decide if I want to attempt to refinish these. I'm not a particular person, but the softness of this varnish or poly is driving me nuts. Seriously, I'm almost afraid to wipe the dust off these.  I would be complaining if I bought furniture or kitchen cabinets with this finish. As I said, I bought a RC-64II at the same time and place my 65" tv on top and nary a mark.

 

The finish has gotten darker already in the time I've had them. Maybe a shade. All my furniture is dark Cherry. My Heresy's matched perfectly.

 

I do love the way these speakers sound.

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