[Captainhemo]

 
figured  as much but  just had to ask   

-jay

[mlundy57]

Garage is a tad bit cold so I am taking a break from the cabinets for a few days. I brought them in the house before the weather turned so I have been able to lay out the grill frames the way I want them but can't do any routing or cutting till the weather warms up.  I lost the fight with the wife about keeping space heaters running in the garage   

Oh well, I need to build the crossovers so I guess I'll get them done while the weather's bad.

Mike

[mlundy57]

I have the crossover networks completed





I made the boards to fit on the rear baffle behind the lower woofer. I also made them extra long so they rest on the brace. I thought this might make them easier to install. I don't know whether wood to wood contact between the crossover board and the brace would be a problem or not but I put a strip of the NoRez damping material (minus the foam) along the edge of the crossover board where it will rest on the brace.



Also since the plans had that section of the rear baffle covered with NoRez I installed the NoRez then removed the foam leaving the damping layer. I plan on attaching the crossovers to this with standoffs.  Any comments as to whether this is a good idea or not?

Mike

[mlundy57]

Time for an update. My progress slowed during December but did not come to a halt.

I first started working on the grills. I used 1/2" Baltic Birch plywood. Since the N3 uses two M130 drivers I cut two circles with a 6.375" outer diameter, a 0.250” deep recess and a 5.5” through hole with the same center spacing as the front baffle. It took 2 passes at the 0.250” depth with a ½” bit to clean out the rabbit between the 6.375” outer diameter and the 5.5” through hole.   



I added an additional 2" to the outer radius of the bottom cutout and used the router to cut a smooth curve on the bottom of the grills.







Then I finished cutting the through holes.



Next I used the table saw to remove the waste







Then I used some double stick carpet tape to put the two grills together. This way I was able to sand both grill frames evenly on the spindle sander and it made putting the 3/8" roundover on the flat sections easier.





Next I clamped the grill frames on the cabinets and drilled pilot holes through the frames and into the cabinets to mark where the neo magnets would go.





Next I cut the recesses for the magnets using Forstner bits. I used the drill press for the frames and a drill guide for the cabinets.





Then I stained the grill frames and epoxied in the magnets



I have covered one of the grill frames with cloth and have one yet to go. Any ideas on how to smooth the cloth out without having multiple layers of it build up, especially near the magnets?

Mike

[Danny Richie]

Looks good.

Be sure to round over the inside edge on the front side.

[mlundy57]

Thanks Danny,

The roundover on the inside edge is there but you can't see it in the last picture because the grill frame is actually upside down. The part you are looking at sits flat against the cabinet then transitions into a 3/8" roundover the full length of the long straight edges.

Mike

[Danny Richie]

Thanks Danny,

The roundover on the inside edge is there but you can't see it in the last picture because the grill frame is actually upside down. The part you are looking at sits flat against the cabinet then transitions into a 3/8" roundover the full length of the long straight edges.

Mike

Perfect.

[mlundy57]

Ok, I realize building grill frames doesn't provide much eye candy so now for a little of that. I have applied South American Rosewood (Rosewood Santos) veneer to the cabinets. I used a veneer with a 22.2 mil laminated backer from Oakwood Veneer Company. I applied it using the iron on technique with Heat Lock glue.

I applied the back pieces first then put on a seal coat of shellack and taped off the edges so I wouldn't get any glue on the veneer when I did the rest of the sides



Next I applied the sides and front as one continuous piece going around the 3/4" roundovers on the front baffle. First you apply glue to both surfaces







Then you align the piece and start ironing it down



Even with veneer as flexible as this you have to be careful, the heat from the iron can dry out the veneer and cause it to crack



A trick for repairing small problems such as this is to make some end grain sawdust out of the same or very similar wood. Then use thin CA (super) glue to make the repair. If the repair is small, like small cracks you can just apply some of the CA glue and use sandpaper to make enough dust to fill in the crack. If the repair is a little larger you can add some of the end grain sawdust with the glue then sand it smooth





To try and prevent the cracking on the edges on the second cabinet I moistened the veneer sheet with veneer softener, wiped it down then let it set overnight before gluing it up.



Then I applied this piece as before



Then I trimmed off the excess veneer and smoothed the edges





Last I applied the tops. I don't have a specific shot of them yet.







Now the hard work of finishing begins. I'm going to use end grain sawdust to fill all the pores in the veneer then apply a French Polish finish using super blonde dewaxed shellack. I'm not going to trim out the openings until after the finish is applied.

But first I had to get an idea what these were going to look like on the stands



And with the grills




Mike

[chip]

Those are coming out very nice....keep up the great work and keep the pictures coming.

[mlundy57]

Thanks Chip. The next stage is going to take awhile. French polishing isn't really hard, just tedious and since I can only work on it in the evenings and some on the weekends it's going to take some time. I hope to have them finished by the end of January.

Mike

[Captainhemo]

Man,  they are going to be gorgeous Mike.  Very  , very  nice.  Can't wait to see them 

-jay

[mlundy57]

You and me both Jay! Plus I really can't wait to hear them, platinum caps and all 

Mike

[Captainhemo]

Like I've said before,  I think  you'll be very impressed

-jay

[bdp24]

Great figuring in the wood! When the polish gets applied it's going to be beautiful.

[nrenter]

To be honest, the bases do not serve the woodwork justice. Any other options under consideration?

[TrungT]

I think those speakers look great on the outrigger stand mount.

[bdp24]

Where does one find those particular outriggers?

[TrungT]

I never shop at Soundocity but they do has those outriggers stand.


Galen Carol Audio (google)

[bdp24]

Great, thanks.

[mlundy57]

To be honest, the bases do not serve the woodwork justice. Any other options under consideration?

No, not really. When I posted asking folks for ideas or suggestions on bases I didn't get any response so that part of the project was left up to my feeble design abilities. I could probably veneer the tops of the bases but with all the curves and roundovers I'm not sure how to go about it.

I had looked at the outriggers that have been mentioned but if I don't use the bases I'll lose 1 1/4" in height even with the longest spikes (2.1") that are available with the outriggers. Then there is the fact that the outriggers cost $300 for a pair of speakers.

Also, I am not sure if the mass of the base plays any part in the sound of the speakers 

On the up side I did design the bases to be bolted on rather than glued and screwed so I can change them out.

Mike