[mono-tubeleosis]

I just wanted to share these photos with you guys.  Long story but I only did one speaker so far and I'm now in the process of doing the other one.  I posted these shots on the GR Research circle two days ago.

They are the OB-5's.







The beautiful garage scene is extra of course.

Thanks

[Bob in St. Louis]

Very Nice!
I love the hidden wiring.
What kind of coating/paint is that?

Bob

[mono-tubeleosis]

Very Nice!
I love the hidden wiring.
What kind of coating/paint is that?

Bob

Thanks.  Textured bedliner for pick-up trucks.  7.99 a can

[Bob in St. Louis]

Textured bedliner for pick-up trucks .... 7.99 a can

  WOW, cool idea!  aa

Very Nice

Bob

[tberd]

 I must say the finish looks great in your pictures . Shouldn't chip off either while moving . I just wonder why some cabinet manufactures charge $1500+ for cabinets . MDF is cheap per sheet . You did it for $7.99 a can . Well done !!


tberd

[Daygloworange]

I just wonder why some cabinet manufactures charge $1500+ for cabinets . MDF is cheap per sheet . You did it for $7.99 a can .

MDF is not the deciding factor in speaker cabinet price. MDF is cheap. Labour is not. Veneer can run hundreds of dollars for a pair of boxes. Time is money. The amount of work involved in achieving a smooth as a baby's bottom type finish is high. It's very laborious.

High performance finish materials are not cheap. The stains we use are in the order of $90.00 per gallon. Finishes are $40.00 per gallon. Then there are dyes, toners, reducers (fast and slow), catalyst, retarders, flow enhancers, wax remover/cleaner, gun wash, strainers, that you must stock, and often use. Guns need to be disassembled and cleaned numerous times during a spray job, No load sandpaper to sand in between coats is expensive and gets used up quickly.

Then there is the hourly rate you must pay a seasoned professional to get a great spray job.

The equipment and infrastructure, insurance premiums, (legal storage of explosive materials) needed to achieve professional results, and to do it legally (as it is heavily regulated for health and safety) is very costly. We're talking tens of thousands of dollars.

When you add up all these factors. It adds up real fast. 

Cheers

[Christof]

I 2nd that Daygloworange, most folks have no idea what kind of wages we actually realize after a woodworking project is complete.  $1500 for a pair of cabs won't keep our lights burning too bright.

Nice work Mono-tubeleosis.  Someone once told me they clean their textured cabinets with low sheen Armor-All and it worked very well.

[Watson]

Thanks for the pictures.  I really love the contrast between the greyish-pewter baffles and the black drivers.  When you move your speakers out of the garage and into your room, could you post a couple more pics?

[Bill Baker]

I agree totally. Woodworking and finishing is not an easy job and is very tedious work. I applaud all the speaker manufacturers here on the Circle that take the time to make their cabinets look like a work of art.

 The truck bed liner is a great idea and there are a few tricks for the kit builders that plan on going this route. The key is to have your edges as smooth as possible to start with and DO NOT sand the smooth surfaces of MDF. You will only make more work for yourself in the long run.

 Go over all the smooth surfaces with a rag damped with alcohol (about $2 a quart) and let dry.

 Now on to the bed liner.

BE SURE TO DO THIS IN A WELL VENTALATED AREA AWAY FROM ANY FLAMES OR SPARKS.

The first step here is to do a quick, medium coat over all the cut and machined edges. Let this dry thoroughly and then sand. I use a 150 grit paper here. This first coat seals the cut and/or machined edges of MDF nicely. If you still see some fibers or "hairs" after sanding, apply another coat and sand once dry.

 Now you are ready to do a complete coat of the bed liner. If done right, only one medium, even coat is needed.

 This finish can actually look very nice and provide a rugged, durable finish. It also helps to dampen the cabinet.

[mcgsxr]

I have used truck bed liner numerous times as my finish (cause I suck at anything universally accepted as good!), and Bill's tips are excellent.

My only addition would be to be careful about the distance from the can to the item - too far away and you create a sandy finish, too close, and you run the risk of "runs" as more likely.

Great work by the way, on those OB speakers!

[mono-tubeleosis]

I must say the finish looks great in your pictures . Shouldn't chip off either while moving . I just wonder why some cabinet manufactures charge $1500+ for cabinets . MDF is cheap per sheet . You did it for $7.99 a can . Well done !!


tberd

Thanks.  I agree that cabinet prices may seem high but as an owner of a printing company I can certainly vouch for what the cabinet manufacturers here are saying about the cost of labor etc.  I manufacture plexiglass prints for slot machines and the actual cost of those finished parts cost me about 10 dollars for materials but by the time I pay for overhead, equipment, and labor I have to sell that part for 50 dollars.  And trust me even at those prices the margins are pretty thin.

Plus what I did was fairly simple with just a little practice.  But If I were to get into trying what Dayglow and the other cabinet manufacturers did I would need quite a bit of expensive equipment and still not get as good of results.  I still wouldn't have their expertise to take it that extra mile.  Hard to put a price on that.  If you want to do what I did and get about 90% to what the pros can get to, then my way is a good alternative.  But if I were to try and paint these and get that automotive finish to them I wouldn't be able to get that out of a spray can.  I know.  I've tried it.
 

[mono-tubeleosis]

I have used truck bed liner numerous times as my finish (cause I suck at anything universally accepted as good!), and Bill's tips are excellent.

My only addition would be to be careful about the distance from the can to the item - too far away and you create a sandy finish, too close, and you run the risk of "runs" as more likely.

Great work by the way, on those OB speakers!

Funny you would mention that.  I must have been a little too far away then on the back side.  It did create a sandy feel to it.  I just sanded it down and re-applied another coat and it came out fine.

I'll get the finished pics up soon.  Can't wait to break these babies in!

[Midnite Mick]

Awesome job!  Those look great.

Mike