It has a terrific sound with that dynamic coupled final audio stage ( 6AE5 coupled to a 25AC5)

Spent most of the time re-capping and taking the chassis down to bare metal.

This time I sealed over the bare metal when I was done to avoid future rust with Krylon Clear Gloss acrylic spray. Actually I had all the tubes out and just sprayed everything top and bottom... tuner coils and all...lol

Works very nice to make stuff come back to a new-like look.

Seems to be just the ticket especially to prevent any future rust..

The 7" PM speaker was fine but I re-coned it anyway with these new cones that I buy for like 50 cents each... the sound is so nicely improved.

Luckily the cabinet wasn't too bad off to start with. First I had to re-glue all the loose laminations in the back top and bottom and the back-sides. Also re-glued the lifting veneer on the top.

I initially just smeared the whole thing with waterless hand cleaner (Goop) to get the worst of the crummy gummy surface grime off.

Then a wipe down with mineral spirits.

Then coarse steel wool over everything and then some 120 grit sand paper. But I never really got down to raw wood anywhere. I think it was old lacquer or something yellowy but pretty tough on there.

Re-stained over it all anyway with Minwax Special Walnut penetrating stain to deal with any deep scratches and what not..... and let sit overnight.
Next day wipe off and light rub with 00 steel wool.

Then 6 coats of Deft gloss spray lacquer rubbing with 0000 steel wool every 2nd coat.

That top surface especially now is like a piano finish. I rubbed it out with 0000 steel wool.. Then rubbing compound.
It looked very smooth but I decided to try a little paste wax, then some polish.. and what not ...lol
...and it looked really good but when I put a topcoat of Magnolia Glayzit on it and that sure did the trick. "like pure glass" now!

That dial lens was pretty yellow but I soaked it overnight in 50/50 bleach water. Then finished it with Brasso.
Looks quite nice and authentic .

After scrubbing those black Bakelite knobs clean I decided to spray them with Krylon Clear acrylic too. Wow!.. what a great solution to make them look new.

Hi Steve:

I used gloss black enamel for the trim. Usually I use flat black on the bare wood and go over it with lacquer... but this time I didn't go down to bare wood so I used it on the top.
I'm looking for black lacquer though because I have had wrinkling problems sometimes with enamel if I put a heavy coat of lacquer over it... so I figure lacquer over lacquer will work.

I didn't replace any of the decals on this one because, although the existing ones were not perfect.. they wern't too too bad and the old ones were way-deep beneath the old surface.... and I didn't sand down that far since otherwise this cabinet didn't require it.

Thanks for the tip on Eastwoods Diamond Clear... do you think it is superior to Krylon for this particular type of low heat application?

_______________________________

Peter: Another outstanding job! You seem to be pumping out about a new radio a week! Spit and polished from chassis to cabinet... amazing. Watson

T.

marv

:Beautiful! You might be better off with lacquer on the chassis, if you can find real lacquer. I find that acrylics tend to turn white and peel with time.
:
:T.

T.

Just a question, if the original speaker was good, why recone? Aren't you afraid about speaker surround rotting in 5 to 10 years from now ?

Thanks Syl:
Well...I don't really know anything about the anticipated "life expectancy" of the outer edge material on these new speakers... Are you familiar with the particular brand I use?
I hadn't mention it but maybe you know of them?
Do you have the manufactures spec on these? I wouldn't even know where to go to get that info either... to be honest.

And quite frankly... the difference in sound makes it so rewarding... that I didn't worry about it... or even know to think about it in fact...lol

It's like the story of the 80 yo guy that married the 20 yo woman... his friend says to him," She's so much younger than you old man...and you know how sex can be a great stress on the body... so aren't you worried about death?"
The old guy replied, "If she dies...she dies!"

The foam can rot out. It often does in about 10 to 20 years, depending on the environment. Still, I have to admit that the cones sound wonderful. I don't use them unless I have to, but when I do, I'm quite pleased with the results.

Should anyone ever come across a cone with rotted foam, they can replace the foam with suede, though it doesn't have quite the same spring characteristics as foam. In my Majestic 180, I used suede. It sounds wonderful. The cone is extremely deep, and in perfect condition. It's quite unique, has a metal ring for joining to the voice coil, and what-not. If you saw it, you'd appreciate it a lot...it's not the kind of cone you want to replace.

T.

_________________

Thomas: Using suede is a great, but not a novel, idea. Engineers at Stromberg-Carlson felt that carpinchoe leather, the skin of a South American rodent, had the best characteristics (strength, pliability, etc.) for attaching the speaker cone to the frame. Occasionally you may run up on one of these speakers, however organic materials like hides don't hold up well after several decades. As for foam, I had a pair of AR speakers that I just re-foamed after 15 years - but I have a 20+ year old set of Dynaco's I bought at a rummage sale this year for $10 that still sound great. They used a vinyl type surround rather than foam and they are still intact and pliable. Watson

I used the four-piece suede approach for my Majestic speaker, and for my roommate's front car speakers, and for a friend's stereo speaker, and for some other things. Suede works very well, and if oiled with a good grade of leather oil, it should last a very long time. I have seen Stromberg-Carlson speakers from the 30s with the suede in fine condition (not necessarily oiled, but kept in a good environment). Suede will definitely out-last rubber or foam, regarless of its own short-falls. The only problem with suede is that it is organic, and absorbs water. My roommate's car speakers need a slight re-adjustment. In certain kinds of weather they rub. Also, suede does not allow quite the freedom that foam allows, though, as I have experienced from my Majestic, it does a really fine job.

T.

Hi Peter,

Not familiar with that specific brand, but very familiar with "foam" surrounds. Some hold better than others (15 years instead of 5 years...you may hear about someone having a pair of speakers holding up after 25 years...but this is anecdotal.) True, environment conditions play a greater role in the decomposition of the material (sunlight, cigarette smoke etc.). The low frequencies are surely enhanced by a more compliant surround, but the power handling will be inversely proportional to the gain in low frequencies (not exactly, but you get the idea) from the excessive cone excursion. If you play the radio at low volume, there won't be any problem. It will not cause damage per se, just more distortion at higher volume.

I like many others, prefer to restore or preserve the original cones, especially on sets I keep as correct replacement cones may well be unobtainium in 5 or 10 years from now unless it is half missing (use discernment).

New types of cones are also often heavier, so what you gain in bass, you may well loose in mid/high frequencies. Your ears will tell you.

If you expect to sell the radio, then all this is a moot point...[grin]

Keep up the good work.

"SUPOIB" job ! and I assume the shiny sheen on the top portion of that cleaned chassis pan to be mainly attributable to micro fine steel wool, as any fine steel brushes I use, leave micro scratch marks.
OR.. you wouldn't have Brassoed the whole top...would you?..as that would definitely give it an almost chromed effect.

"Well...I don't really know anything about the anticipated "life expectancy" of the outer edge material on these new speakers... Are you familiar with the particular brand I use?.......au Peter"


Since you are initiallly working with those Electronix new cones ...with their convex outer surround..., where you do have ready access to BOTH sides of the cone. Place an inert anti-oxidant on the surround portions inside-outside only. If you will take some Dow Corning Z-5 silicone grease which is comparably, about the identical consistancy as petroleum jelly, and work a thin coating into both sides of the surround only, it should isolate the surround from rotting action and give it a half life of 1 eon.

Just don't overcoat on laterally outward to reach out and contaminate the paper rim, which you have to later cement to the the speaker frame.


I used to laud that products capabilities at NASA to newbies, but IF they anyway suggested it as appearing or otherwise being anyway akin to common petroleum jelly. I would place a healthy blob if at the end of a soldering iron tip and then wait until the iron got up in temp to the point where I could melt a sprig of solder applied just adjacent to it. Then to clinch it ...firing up a propane torch..... and heating the tip AND silicone blob, where they BOTH became a cherry red. That silicone not moving nary a bit from its initial shape. Plus, it works just as well in the negative temperature spectrum environs. Soooo whatever you put that on, it will stay. Its only shortcoming was in arid desert regions where, IF it was openly exposed, to be buffeted by driven dust particles, it would migrate with them and very gradually be carried away with time.BUT you certaily don't have that extreme of a condition.

Just don't happen have access to the military/industrial/space complex supply loop ?......well, I have seen one company repackaging into smaller white clamshell HDPE oz containers and distributes it via ACE hardware affiliates and has it marked as "plumbers silicone grease".


73's de Edd






::This cabinet looks pretty nice on every angle. Good job.
::
::Just a question, if the original speaker was good, why recone? Aren't you afraid about speaker surround rotting in 5 to 10 years from now ?
:
:
:Thanks Syl:
:Well...I don't really know anything about the anticipated "life expectancy" of the outer edge material on these new speakers... Are you familiar with the particular brand I use?
:I hadn't mention it but maybe you know of them?
:Do you have the manufactures spec on these? I wouldn't even know where to go to get that info either... to be honest.
:
:And quite frankly... the difference in sound makes it so rewarding... that I didn't worry about it... or even know to think about it in fact...lol
:
:It's like the story of the 80 yo guy that married the 20 yo woman... his friend says to him," She's so much younger than you old man...and you know how sex can be a great stress on the body... so aren't you worried about death?"
:The old guy replied, "If she dies...she dies!"
: