Beginning my foray into Klipsch with a restoration

[wayneair]

Hi, These were my father-in-law's Klipsch KG 5.2s.  They're quite sentimental to my wife as he passed a few years ago. My 20 yr old Bose 701 series IIs’ finally died, and as a woodworker, refinishing these was a no-brainer.  They’ll be replacing the 701s in our living room HT system. 
 

They're the oiled walnut veneer, so I took it easy getting them down to fresh wood, removing decades old sun bleaching, scuffs, and water stains. But as I did, I became unsure if they were walnut as they became white. But after applying Rubio Monocoat , the walnut came back to life.  Rubio adds a great deal of protection as it was originally designed for hardwood flooring. The pic doesn’t do it justice, as LED lighting is too harsh for capturing true wood tones.  

 

I was going to surprise her with them, but it's kinda impossible to hide two huge 54 lb speakers anywhere in our house. She was in tears.

 

Now, as far as restoration goes, are there any particular internal components I should address: wiring, soldering, speaker seals, cabinet sealing, etc.?

Edited November 22, 2023 by wayneair

[Marvel]

Walnut is pretty light. It's being used for a lot of acoustic guitars now and without a darker stain looks really nice. I've been thinking of using the Rubio on some cabinets I have but already have too many projects started and not finished.

 

Did you just use s single coat?

 

If you can get a pic or two in daylight... would love to see them.

 

[wayneair]

57 minutes ago, Marvel said:

Walnut is pretty light. It's being used for a lot of acoustic guitars now and without a darker stain looks really nice. I've been thinking of using the Rubio on some cabinets I have but already have too many projects started and not finished.

 

Did you just use s single coat?

 

If you can get a pic or two in daylight... would love to see them.

 

 Yeah, walnut can be pretty light, especially when unfinished. This is some of the lightest unfinished I’ve worked with.  There are a lot of variables from the individual tree genetics to how long it’s been cut and dried.  This is why I try to complete a project with wood from the same tree if at all possible. I’ve cut some green walnut logs that were literally green with very little brown fresh off the sawmill.  My dad built the house I grew up in, and was trimmed out with walnut, all cut from family land, and was a deep auburn/brown.
 

I’m in the planning stage of building a set of 3-way towers and will be using 1” walnut for the top, bottom, and sides; and maple front & back. It’s beneficial that I’ve already got all the wood I need at the shop. That’s after I refurbish the crossovers in these, and repair whatever reveals itself when I open them up. And like you said, too many projects..

 

I’ve done a bit of experimenting with Rubio colors for various projects.  Even had a client request Rubio Emerald for a spalted maple countertop right out of the gate. That one hurt a little bit…  What I’ve found is that with Rubio colors on walnut, and due to walnut’s larger pores, the color will show in the pores, not so much across the whole surface.  Since Rubio only requires sanding to 120, I’ve found that if sand up to 180 or 220, which closes the pores, I can kinda control the color saturation in the wood.  It’s more apparent in woods like walnut and oak, where the color essentially accentuates the grain patterns without taking away from or adding to the natural wood colors and tones, which was my goal here. Being that Rubio is a hardwax oil, it’s still ‘oiled walnut’.
 

I’ve always used just one coat. I know some will suggest 2 coats,  but what I’ve found is that it’ll slightly improve appearance and performance.  So 1 coat is more than adequate for most furniture. I would definitely use 2 coats on something like a family dining table for the added durability.  
 

I’m wiring in our new receiver today (my old one couldn’t push these), it’ll be a good chance to set one up for some good pics, as the other is already in place.

 

 

 

[wayneair]

12 hours ago, Marvel said:

If you can get a pic or two in daylight... would love to see them.

 

1. In it's place

2. Direct sunlight

3&4. Direct sunlight, slightly different angles.

 

 

 

[Marvel]

Thanks... there's some interesting grain on those cabinets..

[OO1]

@wayneair   you can get a much better finish on these speakers if you buy a bottle of ... TRADE SECRET  ...dark formula , sold on Amazon

 

 

[wayneair]

2 hours ago, Marvel said:

Thanks... there's some interesting grain on those cabinets..

It has some nice figuring.  I can’t get a good enough pic with my phone to give a good representation.   The way the pores in the denser grain were catching the  light wasn’t ideal. It’s hard to catch the shimmer that walnut has when it’s prepped and finished well.  It can really stand out when finished with a matte/satin product like Rubio. There’s a glimpse of it in the video. 

[wayneair]

3 hours ago, OO1 said:

@wayneair   you can get a much better finish on these speakers if you buy a bottle of ... TRADE SECRET  ...dark formula , sold on Amazon

 

 

They were in almost decent shape.  Had a couple of spots where the veneer was punctured/gouged that I had to use Mohawk Fil-Stik. There were multiple dings, dents, scratches, nicks, staining, and sun bleaching.  I was able to blend out the bleaching and completely remove the stains.  I didn’t want to use oxalic acid unless I absolutely had to. There are indentations that would’ve looked horrendous if filled with wax, and I couldn’t have sanded enough to get them out, so all I could do was feather them to at least somewhat blend them in.  All of the work needed was not realistically achievable, all the work that was able to be done, was done.  Some scratch hider and a polish wasn’t gonna do anything for these.  I did the best I could do with what I had to work with.  I wasn’t trying to create an archival specimen…not like these could’ve been elevated to this level anyway.  Rubio is the simplest, most durable, and most easily maintained finish I could’ve done, and leaves a nice smooth matte finish that I actually prefer.

[Iteachstem]

Nice job!

 

I'm a big fan of washing the speaker grills.  I am finishing up a refinish on a set of KG4's and I'm always amazed at how much dirt I get out when I wash them.  I put them in the tub and use laundry detergent and a gentle scrub brush and give them a good wash and rinse.  The grill frames are plastic, so you don't have to worry about anything warping.

 

You can always tinker around with adding side to side bracing inside, but I've never heard any real difference in the actual sound of the speaker, only when you tap on the cabinet with your knuckle.

[OO1]

 I tried  

[wayneair]

6 hours ago, Iteachstem said:

Nice job!

 

I'm a big fan of washing the speaker grills.  I am finishing up a refinish on a set of KG4's and I'm always amazed at how much dirt I get out when I wash them.  I put them in the tub and use laundry detergent and a gentle scrub brush and give them a good wash and rinse.  The grill frames are plastic, so you don't have to worry about anything warping.

 

You can always tinker around with adding side to side bracing inside, but I've never heard any real difference in the actual sound of the speaker, only when you tap on the cabinet with your knuckle.

Thanks man.  I 100% agree.  These were loaded with dust and mold and God knows what else.  I’ve doused them with a fabric/upholstery cleaner and let soak, and rinsed with hot water with a shower wand.  I was hesitant to do any agitating because I was afraid of ending up with fuzzy grills. Meguire’s trim restorer worked well to dress up the frames.   The cones need some cleaning too but I’m paranoid I’ll do something irreparable.   I’ve ordered the components to rebuild the crossovers.  The internal deadening foam was in great shape.  Is there an advantage to adding more or using a different material?

[wayneair]

1 hour ago, OO1 said:

 I tried  

Trade secret is a polish, not a finish.  The original finish was trash, I had no choice but to take them down to bare wood.  There was no finish left to polish.  Polishing bare wood is temporary at best and offers virtually zero protection. I’ll agree that polish is essential to maintaining a finish, especially with less durable finishes, like natural oils and shellac.  I had to apply a finish.  Rubio is simple, durable, low maintenance finish; it’s original use was for hardwood floors.  I thought I might be cool to do a French polish or ebonize with iron acetate before I did the finish, but I just don’t have the time to do all that.   I had literally no reason to not use Rubio.  If you’ve tried Rubio and it didn’t turn out right, I’d be more than happy to offer some suggestions.  

[OO1]

I was talking of the Trade Secret   https://www.tradesecret.ca/scratch-removers-for-wood/   dark bottle for Walnut  , it works on raw veneer , it's  dark oil  

[Iteachstem]

15 hours ago, wayneair said:

The cones need some cleaning too but I’m paranoid I’ll do something irreparable.

The cones are hard to damage with just gentle cleaning. (Poly cones and rubber surrounds) I have always just misted a little "SPARKLE" window cleaner on a microfiber rag and just gently wiped them down.

[Iteachstem]

16 hours ago, wayneair said:

The internal deadening foam was in great shape.  Is there an advantage to adding more or using a different material?

I don't usually mess around with the volume of the dampening materiel that much. Klipsch is pretty good about including sufficient material.   If anything, I add just a tiny bit if they didn't have  at least 3 sides covered (One side wall, the top or bottom and the back)  There is damping material that you can buy, usually at astronomical cost, but I'm guessing you won't get a good return on your investment like you will by updating the crossovers.  If you do a lot of woodworking, try throwing in a brace or two connecting the side walls.

[wayneair]

5 hours ago, Iteachstem said:

I don't usually mess around with the volume of the dampening materiel that much. Klipsch is pretty good about including sufficient material.   If anything, I add just a tiny bit if they didn't have  at least 3 sides covered (One side wall, the top or bottom and the back)  There is damping material that you can buy, usually at astronomical cost, but I'm guessing you won't get a good return on your investment like you will by updating the crossovers.  If you do a lot of woodworking, try throwing in a brace or two connecting the side walls.

There are only two vertical pieces of open cell foam inside in a ‘V’, open towards the front, the full height of the cabinet, about 1.5” thick. 
 

any real advantage in using 14ga wire vs 16ga internally?

[Iteachstem]

30 minutes ago, wayneair said:

any real advantage in using 14ga wire vs 16ga internally?

Nope!  Unless you are planning on running thousands of watts to them.... but I'm pretty sure you know what would happen in that case. 

 

Most often durring "normal" listening levels, we only use several watts of power, so no need for larger wire.  The main reason people change the wire inside is if they have everything apart anyway, and just want to make it look nicer.... but who really spends a lot of time looking at the insides of their speakers?  Or, the other reason is that they think they will hear a difference using larger, more expensive wire.  Those are usually the same people that spend thousands of dollars on pucks to keep their very expensive speaker wires off of the ground.

[Iteachstem]

36 minutes ago, wayneair said:

There are only two vertical pieces of open cell foam inside in a ‘V’, open towards the front, the full height of the cabinet, about 1.5” thick.

You could cut a piece to fit at the bottom of the cabinets while you have them open.  If not, I wouldn't worry about it.

[wayneair]

20 minutes ago, Iteachstem said:

Nope!  Unless you are planning on running thousands of watts to them.... but I'm pretty sure you know what would happen in that case. 

 

Most often durring "normal" listening levels, we only use several watts of power, so no need for larger wire.  The main reason people change the wire inside is if they have everything apart anyway, and just want to make it look nicer.... but who really spends a lot of time looking at the insides of their speakers?  Or, the other reason is that they think they will hear a difference using larger, more expensive wire.  Those are usually the same people that spend thousands of dollars on pucks to keep their very expensive speaker wires off of the ground.

…a pile of ash formerly known as KG 5.2… 🔥

 

Essentially the point of diminishing returns.  Exponential increase in $ to achieve infinitesimally smaller, virtually unnoticeable increases in performance, aka placebo.

Edited November 25, 2023 by wayneair

[wayneair]

21 hours ago, OO1 said:

I was talking of the Trade Secret   https://www.tradesecret.ca/scratch-removers-for-wood/   dark bottle for Walnut  , it works on raw veneer , it's  dark oil  

Ok.  I read “This is a great way to spruce up all of the finished surfaces…” and “Camouflage scratches in finished furniture…” and. “Hides nicks and scratches on finished wood and veneer surfaces”.  I didn’t read anything about raw wood, so I opted to stick with an applicable finish I’m familiar with.  
 

Rubbed oil, especially coconut, finishes typically aren’t as durable or low maintenance as other choices on the market. Fractioned coconut oil is a great food safe finish for kitchen tolls and utensils or as a polish.  I like tung oil on darker wood, not fond of the amber tint on lighter woods, also food safe, but drying time between layers is days, making the process weeks.  Poly is ok for a lot of applications, but I prefer a penetrating finish over a surface coating.  I enjoy shellac if I have the time and patience; doing a French polish puts me kind of a zen-state. Most recently I did a 120+ yr old 64”x44” wormy chestnut dining room table for a client that started out looking more like a pile of firewood. I love shellac friction polish on my woodturning pieces.  But shellac can be temperamental as far as maintenance/touch ups go.  
 

Since I have young short humans running around my house, a hardwax oil like Osmo or Rubio makes the most sense and I can accomplish touch ups relatively quickly and easily without moving the speakers, having to worry about little fingerprints, or fumes in the house.   If the original finish could’ve been kept intact, I definitely would’ve, I’d much rather maintain than go through the whole process of removing then creating a new finish.