[DSK]

I'm considering the finish for a pair of high quality standmount speakers I'm building. Dark rosewood or walnut veneer would be great in our room but I can't find any suppliers for veneer sheets that are greater than 30cm wide, most are only approx 20cm wide.

Does anyone know of any suppliers in Oz (preferably Victoria)?

I guess I could run 2 sheets side by side, but I don't know how difficult it would be to get an invisible join. Any advice?

Also, is there any difference in quality between the iron-on veneer sheets and the normal sheets that you have to adhere yourself with contact adhesive?

Finally, what is the tightest corner radius on a speaker box that would not cause cracking of the veneer?

Thanks for any advice you can offer.

[jules]

C'mon Darren, cat out of the bag here   . What speakers are you building here if I might ask? Are you at the planning stage or well into it?

edit: ah .. see what you're up to. Should be good and I reckon the 1" MDF is a great idea. Sorry, can't help you with the veneer though

jules

[DSK]

C'mon Darren, cat out of the bag here   . What speakers are you building here if I might ask? Are you at the planning stage or well into it?

jules

   Hi Jules ...see http://www.audiocircle.com/index.php?topic=26800.msg250818#250818

The last post is an update of where I'm up to. Earlier posts in that thread explain my rationale (somewhat different to what we spoke about some time back).

[jules]

Darren,

I notice you're going to use a heap of stainless screws. I'm a great fan of stainless I have to admit and did use some ss bolts for the removable fronts of my cabintes. All the same, do you think you need them? After much thought I finished up making my boxes screwless because I simply can't see any gain to be had from using them. Particularly when you use 1" MDF the things stand up by themselves and the glued area is HUGE.

jules

[jules]

hmmm .... on second thoughts, probably depends on the design of the internal baffles which happened to work in my case but might not suit for yours.

jules

[Christof]

I'm considering the finish for a pair of high quality standmount speakers I'm building. Dark rosewood or walnut veneer would be great in our room but I can't find any suppliers for veneer sheets that are greater than 30cm wide, most are only approx 20cm wide.

Does anyone know of any suppliers in Oz (preferably Victoria)?

I guess I could run 2 sheets side by side, but I don't know how difficult it would be to get an invisible join. Any advice?

Also, is there any difference in quality between the iro ...

Rosewood is not for beginners, it can be very tricky to finish.  Walnut would be much easier but I would recommend you stay away from highly figured pieces or burls as they can be tricky to apply/bend.  IMHO you will be much better off, if you have never veneered before, using a single large piece rather than trying to edge join veneer.  You might make a 3/4" bend if you wet the veneer with water as you make the bend.  Forget making a bend with burl or highly figured veneer.  

There are many tutorial on the net which are specific to veneering speaker cabs, have a day.

-c

[DSK]

Darren,

I notice you're going to use a heap of stainless screws. I'm a great fan of stainless I have to admit and did use some ss bolts for the removable fronts of my cabintes. All the same, do you think you need them? After much thought I finished up making my boxes screwless because I simply can't see any gain to be had from using them. Particularly when you use 1" MDF the things stand up by themselves and the glued area is HUGE.

jules

No, I only use stainless screws near the XO (ie. 2 or 3 screws joining the internal floor to the bottom of the shelf brace, the 10 screws that hold the XO trapdoor to the speaker box bottom, the 5 screws that mount the XO board onto the inside of the XO trapdoor, and the 4 or 6 screws that secure the binding post trapdoor to the speaker rear panel.

I always 'over-engineer' everything so there is no risk of failure. Plus, the screws ensure that every panel is glued in exactly the right place and eliminates the need for clamps (which I don't have) when gluing. I'm sure it seems like using a jackhammer to crack a walnut and carpentry purists would probably vomite at the thought of it, but the screws are all countersunk, filled and (hopefully) veneered over so ...why not?

[DSK]

Rosewood is not for beginners, it can be very tricky to finish.  Walnut would be much easier but I would recommend you stay away from highly figured pieces or burls as they can be tricky to apply/bend.  IMHO you will be much better off, if you have never veneered before, using a single large piece rather than trying to edge join veneer.  You might make a 3/4" bend if you wet the veneer with water as you make the bend.  Forget making a bend with burl or highly figured veneer.-c

Hmmm, I was afraid of that. OK, Plan B! I'll roundover the edges of the baffle, paint the baffle and possibly veneer the flat parts from the edge of the roundovers back toward the rear. Still need to find veneer sheets at least 12.5" (31.75cm) wide.

This will work fine as there are no screws visible on the baffle. The screws go through a 1" baffle, are countersunk, filled, then a 1/4" outer baffle (with cutouts for the drivers' flanges) is glued onto the 1" baffle to recess the drivers and cover the screws.

[Watson]

I'm considering the finish for a pair of high quality standmount speakers I'm building. Dark rosewood or walnut veneer would be great in our room but I can't find any suppliers for veneer sheets that are greater than 30cm wide, most are only approx 20cm wide.

You should be able to find a supplier.  Ask local cabinetmakers or building contractors where they get their veneers.  I don't live in Australia, but I do live in the middle of nowhere and the local wood supply shop can get in pre-taped veneer rolls in large widths.  I have to drive a bit to find a place that stocks 4x8 sheets of paper-backed veneer, however.

I guess I could run 2 sheets side by side, but I don't know how difficult it would be to get an invisible join. Any advice?

It's not that difficult; it just requires practice.  You cut a straight edge, line the veneer pieces up, tape them together, apply to the surface, then sand off the tape.  This is a decent tutorial on veneer splicing:
http://www.audiodiycentral.com/nt_vensplice.shtml

It is a bit fiddly though.  I find the extra cost for a paper-backed 4x8 veneer sheet worth it to avoid the hassle.

Also, is there any difference in quality between the iron-on veneer sheets and the normal sheets that you have to adhere yourself with contact adhesive?

I've never used sheets with iron-on glue, but paper backed sheets are typically thinner.  They'll more easily telegraph imperfections on the underlying surface, but if you've done a decent job of sanding and preparation, that's a non-issue.  You do get a very thin black line on the edges unless you opt for more expensive NBL veneer, but for speakers this is mostly a non-issue since you're not sitting up close.

Finally, what is the tightest corner radius on a speaker box that would not cause cracking of the veneer?

3/4 inch for most woods, curling with the grain.

[rabbitz]

The easiest veneer to use is the iron on Consolidated Edging available at Bunnings or Nover. The only problem is that it's 305mm wide and the joins are always noticeable. Try and make the join a feature as I did on the little Fostex speaker in the pic. I got down to a 20mm radius on that speaker using Rock Maple without a problem but with the harder species you need at least a 30mm radius.

If you need larger sizes, then the veneered MDF is the way to go but does resistrict you on radii on corners etc.