Tip for today

bentknee · « **on:** 30 Jun 2009, 03:53 pm »

I would like to share a cosmetic improvement for VSA owners. I bought a B stock VR4sr cabinet and I wanted to gloss it up a bit. I talked to Albert and he recommended that I use Pledge. I got some Pledge Protection Plus and it made the Ebony wood come alive. It really looks great! If you have an older wood cabinet or would like to spruce up a newer one give it a try. The painted models might also benefit from the treatment because I think they have the same coating, but you may want to ask VSA first.

Blessings, Bob

JackD201 · « **Reply #1 on:** 30 Jun 2009, 04:54 pm »

Hmmmm. I have an Ebony 5SE that needs some sprucing up. Thanks Bob

es347 · « **Reply #2 on:** 30 Jun 2009, 06:19 pm »

Albert also said that Pledge works well on my gloss black finish but I have found that to not be the case. It leaves a film that no level of elbow grease can remove. I use windex, also per Albert's advice, but being a bit of a solvent, spraying that on the gloss black finish makes me nervous. How about some sort of high quality auto wax?

Delacroix · « **Reply #3 on:** 1 Jul 2009, 02:24 pm »

I am not a fan of Pledge but if I were to use it, I'd try spraying it on the cloth and applying from there rather than directly on the wood. Windex has been recommended to me for everything from cleaning LPs (!) to laptops (I've tried it on my Mac without any great problems but never went near vinyl with it) Perhaps one formulated for drinking glass might be more appropriate? The car wax approach might help too as long as it carried no significant odour, but I'd probably recommend a decent guitar polish if you want to be careful - will cost more but how many polishes do you intend to give those babies anyhow? Just tell people to stop caressing that glossy finish

NB_Dude · « **Reply #4 on:** 1 Jul 2009, 03:07 pm »

Would this approach apply to the VR4-jr s as well, I have the dark red cherry veneer ? I am always cautious about applying anything to the cabnets because once upon a time I used windex on some speakers I had (based on advice in manual) and it really made it look filmy....regards

JackD201 · « **Reply #5 on:** 1 Jul 2009, 06:15 pm »

For automotive paint finishes, I still go for those static wipe things that sell on home TV shopping to pull the dust off then a soft damp cloth. I've been contemplating a Rottweiler to keep sticky fingers away too. Then again Rott pee will surely be more damaging than pledge and windex combined!

es347 · « **Reply #6 on:** 1 Jul 2009, 06:38 pm »

Jack,

Be sure and report back on the Rott pee. It just may be the ticket!

bentknee · « **Reply #7 on:** 4 Jul 2009, 10:46 pm »

Hum we need a chemist to explain why one thing works well in one instance and not in another. NB Dude and anyone else that would like to shine up their Von's, I would suggest trying whatever you use on a small area on the top of the bass cabinet for the 2 piece speakers and on the back for the single box speakers. That way you can experiment until you find the formula you like. There are several varieties of Pledge. I used Pledge Protection Plus. I don't know if that would make a difference.

PS I have heard that Pledge works better with tube amps. That explains why it didn't work as well on Gavin's system

.
Bless you all, Bob

srb · « **Reply #8 on:** 4 Jul 2009, 11:04 pm »

I am not familiar with Pledge Protection Plus, but it may contain silicones. While silicones can give a shiny, wet appearance (like Armor-All), they actually prematurely dry out finishes. They also usually leave a somewhat greasy filmy layer.

For wood finishes, I prefer a more natural product such as Howard Feed-N-Wax. it is made from beeswax, carnauba wax and orange oil. It contains no silicones or linseed oil.

For automotive painted finishes, I use Speed Shine from Griot's Garage. It is a liquid combination cleaner/carnauba wax that also contains no silicones.

Steve

bentknee · « **Reply #9 on:** 4 Jul 2009, 11:47 pm »

Thank you for the tip Steve

. Delacroix thanks for your tip I can now use the smileys

runnerlk · « **Reply #10 on:** 14 Jul 2009, 07:33 pm »

I use martin guitar polish on my VR-4jrs cherry finish. since I have used it for years on my '67 D-28, I figured it was worth a try on the VSAs.

es347 · « **Reply #11 on:** 26 Jul 2009, 03:25 pm »

Quote from: es347 on 30 Jun 2009, 06:19 pm

Albert also said that Pledge works well on my gloss black finish but I have found that to not be the case. It leaves a film that no level of elbow grease can remove. I use windex, also per Albert's advice, but being a bit of a solvent, spraying that on the gloss black finish makes me nervous. How about some sort of high quality auto wax?

FOLLOW UP....

I bought a pack of cloth diapers which, by the way, aren't all that plentiful these days of disposables. This morning I sprayed Windex on my gloss black finish, wiping it off with a diaper and it worked better than any thing I've tried to date. Shiny speakers have to sound better right?...just like those big ole power cords.

Delacroix · « **Reply #12 on:** 28 Jul 2009, 01:52 pm »

Quote from: es347 on 26 Jul 2009, 03:25 pm

FOLLOW UP....
I bought a pack of cloth diapers which, by the way, aren't all that plentiful these days of disposables. This morning I sprayed Windex on my gloss black finish, wiping it off with a diaper and it worked better than any thing I've tried to date. Shiny speakers have to sound better right?...just like those big ole power cords.

Maybe you should try Windex on your cords too

es347 · « **Reply #13 on:** 28 Jul 2009, 02:27 pm »

what does a diaper and an audio reviewer have in common? answer: ____________ (fill in the blank)

parnlyp · « **Reply #14 on:** 4 Jan 2011, 09:14 pm »

Zaino for car finishes. It definitely makes my hotrod go faster. Zainobros.com I believe. They have after polishing gloss products as well.

es347 · « **Reply #15 on:** 4 Jan 2011, 09:22 pm »

http://www.virtualrimshot.com/media/rimshot1.mp3

es347 · « **Reply #16 on:** 4 Jan 2011, 09:35 pm »

Quote from: runnerlk on 14 Jul 2009, 07:33 pm

I use martin guitar polish on my VR-4jrs cherry finish. since I have used it for years on my '67 D-28, I figured it was worth a try on the VSAs.

Since this thread was resurrected I reread your message runner...wow you are spot on. I had a bottle of the Martin guitar polish and just used it on my gloss black VR5 Anniversaries. It works great and puts an incredibly slick finish on the painted surface. A belated thanks. BTW that 67 D28 must be worth a fortune.

bartc · « **Reply #17 on:** 15 Jan 2011, 11:04 pm »

Gents, having been raised by master finishers, I eschew stuff like Pledge and most of the commercial household wood polishes. They are usually viscous or waxy. While they may (or may not) look good at first, they actually attract and trap dirt and dust and build up in layers. They will make your stuff look duller after a while.

It's best to simply dust off your wood carefully. And if it's got a wax or lacquer finish, you can sometimes buff it to a bit of a shine with a soft cloth, such as you'd use on good shoes, once you've dusted it.

You can certainly use wax based fillers for scratches and buff that up. We're not talking scratches, I think, but broad surfaces here.

JackD201 · « **Reply #18 on:** 16 Jan 2011, 02:57 am »

Hi Bart,

What's the best way to dust off speakers without the dust causing abrasion? With my cars I hose them down really well before cloth touches paint. Obviously that isn't an option with my speakers. I can't use a vacuum cleaner either because the VR-9s have ribbons. Any suggestions for a gentle duster?

TIA

Jack

es347 · « **Reply #19 on:** 16 Jan 2011, 04:31 pm »

Since I wasn't raised by master finishers but rather, a pack of wolves, my opinion may not carry much weight

....however, I stand by my post regarding the Martin spray polish. I've tried pledge, endust, etc. and also Alberts suggestion to clean with windex...that one has always bothered me since windex is a solvent. I don't know what's in the Martin polish but whatever it is provides an incredibly slick finish that it so slick, dust no longer sticks to the surfaces, even the tops, of my gloss black VR5 Anniversaries. It's all my speakers will ever see again. Over and out

ps...I bought a package of the old cloth diapers to apply...baby butts and gloss black speakers must be handled with extreme care ya know