meagain Posted April 15, 2006 Author Share Posted April 15, 2006 3dzapper - Re the faceplate stain... No, they are pristine LaScalas, that spot is just the natural staining one would find in paint grade, lower quality birch. The other speaker's faceplate is clear. It's like it has a black eye. I'd love to veneer them (they scream for it), but it would take a years worth of practice before tackling. Yes, I feel painting would be an improvement and they sure as heck wouldn't be painted black! I keep wondering if I could bleach these defects out. Here's another gem: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SilverSport Posted April 15, 2006 Share Posted April 15, 2006 meagain, If you're going to use Watco Danish...there is something you do to the wood BEFORE you apply the Watco if you are using raw Birch...when I refinished my Birch Raw Klipschorn's that were abused by their previous owner I did not know this was required for an even stain finish...mine turned out pretty nice...MUCH better than the "orange stain" look they had but they still possess that "blotchy in spots" look that Birch and some other hardwoods get when staining...Bill Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mungkiman Posted April 15, 2006 Share Posted April 15, 2006 Ah, the inherent beauty of natural wood. You could always wrap them in a "wood grain" vinyl...JK Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
J.4knee Posted April 15, 2006 Share Posted April 15, 2006 OK Re: your grain stain issue. La Scala's in raw Birch were never intended to be the focal point of your decor. However re-veneering them may not be as bad a task as you may think. Is the dog house relatively clean and void of this problem? If so you can re-veneer the out side panels, and top, then reface the HF section add grills and get away without having to deal with the dog house which is a real PITA to work in. Lastly add some edge banding and stain or lacquer and bada-bing the look much better. You can buy veneer that is still birch yet more aesthetically matching and pleasing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
edwinr Posted April 15, 2006 Share Posted April 15, 2006 If both speakers feature the same figuring, or staining, in the veneer, I would leave them well enough alone and finish them in a clear lacquer. If the speakers feature staining that is substantially different from each other, you could consider bleaching. I understand that furniture shops use bleaching on a regular basis. See the attached link for ideas. http://www.fpl.fs.fed.us/documnts/fplrn/fplrn165.pdf It's a pdf file, so you'll need to give it time to load. After bleaching, you could finish the speakers in clear lacquer, which looks great, or maybe with BLO. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pmsummer Posted April 15, 2006 Share Posted April 15, 2006 Would you REALLY paint a Klipsch speaker, PAINT? Absolutely! Heretic! :-) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pmsummer Posted April 15, 2006 Share Posted April 15, 2006 To each his/her own, and that's just fine. My FAVORITE Klipch finish is Raw Birch. My most lusted after Klipsch are RB LS. To me, they look like a piece of Donald Judd's sculpture (esoterica). http://www.tsha.utexas.edu/handbook/online/articles/JJ/fjuyq.html But then, I like minimalism and the bauhaus. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Xover Posted April 15, 2006 Share Posted April 15, 2006 OK life's a birch then ya dye.....or just bleach, bleach, bleach. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
steamer Posted April 15, 2006 Share Posted April 15, 2006 3dzapper - Re the faceplate stain... No, they are pristine LaScalas, that spot is just the natural staining one would find in paint grade, lower quality birch. The other speaker's faceplate is clear. It's like it has a black eye. I'd love to veneer them (they scream for it), but it would take a years worth of practice before tackling. Yes, I feel painting would be an improvement and they sure as heck wouldn't be painted black! I keep wondering if I could bleach these defects out. Here's another gem: LOL,thats not a black eye,its called Character!!!! Whats wrong with Black? gotta be better than a black eye! Greg Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
J M O N Posted April 16, 2006 Share Posted April 16, 2006 Birch: the Rodney Dangerfield of Heritage veneers.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
johnyholiday Posted April 16, 2006 Share Posted April 16, 2006 Tweed tolex Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fini Posted April 16, 2006 Share Posted April 16, 2006 3dzapper - Re the faceplate stain... No, they are pristine LaScalas, that spot is just the natural staining one would find in paint grade, lower quality birch. The other speaker's faceplate is clear. It's like it has a black eye. I'd love to veneer them (they scream for it), but it would take a years worth of practice before tackling. Yes, I feel painting would be an improvement and they sure as heck wouldn't be painted black! I keep wondering if I could bleach these defects out. Here's another gem: Am I the only one who sees the Virgin Mary in this grain? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jorjen Posted April 16, 2006 Share Posted April 16, 2006 Atta boy Gregg, it's about time![] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marvel Posted April 16, 2006 Share Posted April 16, 2006 3dzapper - Re the faceplate stain... No, they are pristine LaScalas, that spot is just the natural staining one would find in paint grade, lower quality birch. The other speaker's faceplate is clear. It's like it has a black eye. I'd love to veneer them (they scream for it), but it would take a years worth of practice before tackling. Yes, I feel painting would be an improvement and they sure as heck wouldn't be painted black! I keep wondering if I could bleach these defects out. Here's another gem: Am I the only one who sees the Virgin Mary in this grain? She loves you too. She loves all of us. JMON, That Birch is beautiful! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
meagain Posted April 16, 2006 Author Share Posted April 16, 2006 I'd get more money for these if she was crying. It's not enough just to see the image these days. Gotta have the tear thing happening. I better move the LaScalas away from the Khorns as the Khorns have a pattern much like two pairs of old women's boobs. You know.... National Geographic stuff. Probably not appropriate for Mary to be around. Especially on Easter. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CaptnBob Posted April 21, 2006 Share Posted April 21, 2006 You're lucky. When I bought my decorator Cornwalls in 1974, the catalog assured me they were "ready for finishing." I was so thrilled to get them it took me several days to notice they were made out of fir plywood - I'm guessing B-C grade - as there were a few football shaped plugs on the surface. Not exactly furniture class wood. The birch looks much better, even under paint. Mine started out with orange grill cloths (Hey, it was the seventies.) Then I stained them something my great aunt recommended called "fruitwood." Actually not a bad stain, but that plywood still didn't look too good. Then I covered them with black glue on plastic sheets that were supposed to look like slate (Hey, it was still the seventies) and put grills from a pair of JBL L-200s on them. That actually looked pretty nice until the foam decomposed and fell off onto the floor. Then the plastic began to get chipped and flake off. So I stripped the plastic off, sanded everything down, primed them, painted them semi-gloss black and put a grill over the woofers. Whew! So after all that, I'm not too unhappy with birch plywood. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kev313 Posted April 21, 2006 Share Posted April 21, 2006 I think that looks nice...like every pocket door in my 1954 ranch. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
meagain Posted April 21, 2006 Author Share Posted April 21, 2006 I painted the pockets of my '58 ranch. They were beat up though. They were nice clear pretty birch though... till the previous owners messed them up. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fini Posted April 21, 2006 Share Posted April 21, 2006 Wasn't "Birch in Pocket" a Pretenders song back in the 80's? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
codhead Posted April 21, 2006 Share Posted April 21, 2006 Birch speakers show who wears the pants in the family. If you're prohibited from sitting on a certain piece of furniture, entering the house with your shoes on, or using the toilet while standing, you have no business owning birch speakers. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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