Mark's Statements Build Thread

[mlammert]

Continued...

Then I began the process of cutting out the openings for the midrange chambers...

I again took measurements from the speakers to be sure I have the openings exactly where they needed to be...

I then transfered those measurements onto the wide 5 inch curves...

Photo one and two show the end results of cutting the midrange opening gaps out of the wide curves...

Once those were all cut out I then began gluing the three layers of curves together - being sure to keep all the parts together for each individual speaker and correctly orienting top and bottom...

The last two pictures show the curves properly glued up and clamped...

Again, the two skinny side strip curves are exactly 1" wide each... And, the middle wide curve is 5" wide... That accounts for the 7" wide rear of the speaker and made cutting out the 5" x 5" midrange opening very easy and straightforward...

Once the glue has finished drying I will drill the holes for the ports and for the binding posts...

I was really nervous about this part because if I messed up badly that would mean rebuilding and entire curve... However, everything went off without a hitch... :T

More to come...

And, again, thanks for all your answers/ideas/suggestions over the past couple of days with my questions...

Mark

[TacoD]

Wow a lot work! Good job.

[David_D]

;x( ;x( ;x( ;x( ;x(

[mlammert]

Thanks for the compliments and encouragement guys!!!

I made tremendous progress today... :B

These pictures show drilling the holes in the rear curves for the ports...

Pictures 1 shows drawing out the centers of each port hole...

Pictures 2 and 3 show drilling the port holes using a 3 1/2" hole saw...

I first drilled a 1/4" hole all the way through the curve because the curves were thick enough to where I had to start the hole saw on one side and finish it on the other... I simply used the center 1/4" hole as an alignment hole for the hole saw... I used lots of scrap wood to shim up the curves to the drill press and be sure that everything was good and flat and parallel so that the hole saw would cut straight through and meet up correctly when drilled from both sides... It worked flawlessly...

Picture 4 shows the completed port hole(s)...

The last picture shows the complete curve resting on the back of the speaker as a mock-up...

More soon!!!

Mark

[mlammert]

Next I added the 1/8" by 1/8" rabbet around the edges of the rear curves... I had discussed doing this as both a visual thing as a way to "hide" the edge of the veneer...

Couple weeks ago I found an awesome deal at Sears... They had a cordless 1/4" trim router out of the box special for $20... It just so happened to use the same batteries as the rest of my tools so I picked it up... :B

I used this to route the rabbet and it worked beautifully...

The two pictures show how I secured the curves and then used the router and a clamp on base jig to make the rabbet...

I see now the camera phone didn't do a good job photographing the rabbet... But, I can attest that it turned out great...

More to come...

Mark

[mlammert]

Next I cut the four 10" by 3" ports and also did another sanding of the rear curves... They are very smooth with no raised edges...

Picture 1 shows both rear curves and their ports... BTW, don't freak out when you see the "misalignment" of the port holes and the mid chamber holes in picture 1... I accidentally turned one upside down when I took their pictures... :P

Picture 2 shows the PVC in the rear curve... I spread a generous amount of wood glue around the end of the PVC before I used a rubber mallet to gently tap them into place... I will also run a bead of liquid nail around the inside of the of the rear curve where the port meets the MDF just for good measure and air-tightness...

You can see that the PVC sticks out slight on the curve due to the curve itself... Once everything dries I will sand that down and then run a 1/2" round over around the opening...

Picture 3 shows the complete curves... On the left curve you can barely make out the 1/8" rabbet...

I cut down the rest of my 3/4" and 1/2" MDF to glue up the front baffles... I over cut them by about 1 1/2" for the time being...

Picture 4 shows what you can do with a ton of paint cans and old computer equipment can do... :P

Wow... Typing all that reminded me of the long day... I am very happy with the progress and so far all is good...

I hope to sand down the ports and do the round over early this coming week... And, my speaker components should arrive from Part Express later this week...

Thanks again guys... :B

Mark

[Hdale85]

I don't see the pictures in your last post.... I'm extremely jealous though as those look incredibly good.

[mlammert]

Hey Dougie, thanks!!!

I think you started replying before I finished uploading the photos...

Mark

[Hdale85]

Yeah I see them now The post was up though? Oh well looking very good though. Those ports look large.

[mlammert]

There are two ports per speaker and each is 3" internal diameter by 10" in length...

Curt helped me with these based on the new larger air volume within my version of the Statements...

You can read more here if you like:

https://www.htguide.com/forum/showpost.php?p=414721&postcount=10

[mlammert]

UPS just delivered my Parts Express order!!! :B

Drivers, crossover components, binding posts, and feet...

Yeah!!! :B

Mark

[mlammert]

Question on Veneering with Heat Lock

Question for any veneering veterans out there...

I am getting ready to order my veneer supplies and I am pretty sure I am going to go with the "iron on" method...

I will be veneering the sides and top of the speakers... I am painting the front and backs black...

My question is, how do I know if the wood species I order requires conditioning/softening???

I have been reading these two pages:

http://www.joewoodworker.com/veneering/iron-on-veneering.htm

http://www.betterbond.com/heatlock/heatlock-FAQ.htm

I am thinking of getting two sheets of this:

http://www.veneersupplies.com/product_info.php?cPath=51_75_54&products_id=1993

Thanks guys!!!

Mark

[Dennis H]

Paper-backed veneer doesn't need any softening unless you are wrapping it around a small radius. The first two links are talking about using raw veneer which is much harder to work with.

[mlammert]

Excellent... Thanks for the quick reply Dennis... Just the info I needed...

Hopefully this will be the last mail order purchase I need to make for the speakers... :P

More progress to come!!!

Mark

[David_D]

Hi Mark,
That Heat-Lok from Joe is the Bomb! Very easy to work with.

[mlammert]

Last night I made great progress on the rear curves...

This first set f pictures shows the completed ports...

Picture 1 and 2 show the ports after I sanded the PVC down flush with the MDF... It looks like there is a shadow but really that is just where the MDF is a different color due to the glue... Believe me it is super sooth...

Pictures 3 and 4 show the ports after I routed it with a 1/2" round-over bit... Safe to say that I was just a LITTLE nervous about this step since it was a one shot deal basically... Lots of test cuts in scrap were done first... After I routed them I just took a sanding block and did a few very slight touch-ups... They look awesome...

The last pictures shows the PVC "feathers" (as my wife called it as she laughed at me) that covered my shop after I did the routing... This stuff was horrible... Not only was it super light so it floated everywhere... It was also full of static so it clung to everything... Ha ha...

I am SUPER happy with the way the ports turned out!!!

Mark

[mlammert]

After the ports were complete I turned my attention to where the binding posts will go...

After laying out some nuts on the curves so that I could kind of mock-up what the binding posts will look like I settled on a spacing pattern...

Picture 1 shows the six 1/4" holes I drilled for the bind posts... Yes, there are six binding posts per speaker because I am going to do external crossovers... After shopping around quite a bit I finally determined that whether I use a fancy multi channel plug or just six separate binding posts - the price was within a $10-15 buck of all the options... So, I though the six silver binding posts would look the coolest... :P

Picture 2 shows the larger holes I drilled in the back of the curves... The bind posts I got from Parts Express are for 1" thick walls... The curves are much thicker than that... So, I took a 1" forester bit and hollowed out the back of the curve till it was approximately 3/4" - 1" thick for the binding post to successfully work...

Here is a link to the binding posts I am using:

http://www.parts-express.com/pe/showdetl.cfm?Partnumber=091-1246

Finally picture 3 simply shows a bead of liquid nail I spread around the inside of the curve for the ports... Figured it couldn't hurt...

I am super happy with the rear curves... In fact I don't think they could be any better... They took a long time but well worth it and I also learned a lot by building them...

Next is cutting out the front baffles... I am hoping that I will be able to do both of them this weekend...

Thanks guys!!!

Mark

[impala454]

Wow Mark that port looks very professional, I cannot wait to see these suckers done!

[mlammert]

Thanks Chuck!!! I appreciate the kind words...

I am VERY happy with them... Once everything is painted black it should look pretty sleek...

And, I am glad David says that the Heat-Lok is so easy to use... I will probably order all that later this week...

If I get the baffles completed this weekend (keeping fingers crossed) then all I will have is finishing and assembly left... :B

Mark

[Hdale85]

Yeah I've heard heat-lok is the best which is why I purchased a gallon

[David_D]

Speaking of the heat-lok.
I don't know if the maple has the same reaction to steam as cherry but, when I used the recommended amount of steam with cherry it raised the grain alot.(Lots of finish sanding) When I do this again I will try it on some scrap with a dry iron. There may not be any difference as the heat of the iron is going to make a certain amount moisture anyway. Just a thought.

By the by: Looking Swweeeet! :T

[mlammert]

Sweet, UPS just delivered my tweeters!!!

[impala454]

Did you end up with the black or silver?

[mlammert]

Thanks for the info and compliment, David...

I just placed the order for the veneer and the supplies...

Ended up going with the Maple paper backed veneer which I will stain some level of reddish/cherry to match our furniture... Should look nice...

More to come soon!!!

Mark

[mlammert]

I went with the black... The majority of people I asked seemed to think the black looked "classier"... And, after much contemplation, I agreed...

They look very sweet...

Mark

[mlammert]

Question on Trimming Front Baffle

Hey guys,

Okay, I have another question:

I am beginning to layout my front baffles (which glued up beautifully by the way)...

However, the fronts of my speakers are not perfectly square... They are out maybe a 1/16" to an 1/8" of an inch... :cry:

So, I know the popular method of dealing with this is to cut the baffles slightly oversized and then trim them with a flush trim router bit...

This is cool and I did cut my baffles oversized...

However, my question is since the footprint of my speakers is not a rectangle I do not have a perpendicular surface to run the flush trim but against...

The footprint of my speakers are more trapezoidal in shape... The front baffles are wider than the rear of the speaker...

So, what do you guys think would be the best way to get the perimeter of the front baffles to match the shape of the speaker cabinet???

Any and all ideas are greatly appreciated!!!

Thanks,
Mark

[Hdale85]

So your saying the baffle should be angled a bit on the side? I don't think it would look bad at all if they weren't. Either that or I'm not sure what you mean

[David_D]

I would say...
Glue the oversized baffle on
Trim a square egde with the flush bit
Knock off the corners with a 3/4" Roundover
Then sand with a block on the sides to blend
You'll take off some of the rear of the round over but, who cares.
That's my vote anyway.

[mlammert]

Hey guys,

Thanks for the quick responses but I don't think I explained myself correctly... Or, maybe I did and I don't understand the answer... :P

Attached is a quick sketch I did...

Notices the sides of the speaker are not perpendicular to the edges of the baffle; so there is no place for the bearing of the flush trim bit to ride in order to give a good profile and trim the baffle correctly...

I hope this makes more sense... Or, maybe I am not thinking this through all the way...

Any ideas???

Thanks,
Mark

[Hdale85]

Yeah you're probably going to have to hit it with a belt sander or do it by hand.

[Jed]

Hey guys,

Thanks for the quick responses but I don't think I explained myself correctly... Or, maybe I did and I don't understand the answer... :P

Attached is a quick sketch I did...

Notices the sides of the speaker are not perpendicular to the edges of the baffle; so there is no place for the bearing of the flush trim bit to ride in order to give a good profile and trim the baffle correctly...

I hope this makes more sense... Or, maybe I am not thinking this through all the way...

Any ideas???

Thanks,
Mark

Create a temporary "wedge" or piece of wood at the angle to make a 90 degree platform to run the router bit against. After you are done routering, remove it. You could use staples to keep the wedge in place and then pry it off later.

[Hdale85]

I'm not sure if he wants the edge to be perfectly flat or angled in with the sides?

[mlammert]

Jed, that is a pretty good idea... I could tack on a very thin strip of wood to have the bearing run down... 8)

Dougie, I want the edge of the baffle to be "flat"...

Attached is a footprint view of the speaker... You can see that the sides of the rear curve and the front baffle are "flat" compared to the "angled" sides of the body of the speaker... Hope that makes sense...

If nobody else has any mind storms, I think I will try Jed's idea...

Thanks guys,
Mark

[Hdale85]

Ah ok I knew it was one way or the other just wasn't clear which. Are the baffles attached already? If not you could just clamp them down to a table or another piece of wood and do it that way to of course then it may not come out as perfect in the end. I think Jed's idea is probably the best.

[mlammert]

Assembly Question

Okay, so beyond getting the front baffle edges "flat"; I do have a few assembly/finishing questions that hopefully you guys can help with:

Keep in mind that I will be painting the front baffles and the rear curves black and I will be veneering and staining the sides...

1) I understand I can do pretty much whatever I want, but is it (A) common practice to assemble the whole speaker first and then mask off areas to paint and stain??? Or, should I (B) completely finish the baffles, curves and speaker bodies and then assemble the final finished/painted pieces???

2) If I go with option A above and assemble the whole speaker first, should I (C) veneer the bodies before attaching the front baffles and rear curves??? Or, should I (D) veneer and trim the bodies first and then attach the baffles and curves???

Thanks guys!!!

Mark

[Hdale85]

Well if you have detachable front and rear baffles you can probably do the painting and veneering in pieces. That way you have a less of a chance of contaminating the veneer and what not. Could probably do it either way honestly I think I'd probably do it all while they are in pieces.

[David_D]

Hi Mark,
If you use any kind of glue to attach the baffle pieces. Just make sure none gets of the face of the veneer. Even deep in the grain, it will not take stain properly.
So, in short. Bolt on - finish first
Glue on - finish last
I painted the rear baffle on mine. I painted first then veneered.

[mlammert]

Thanks for the suggestions guys...

Based off of what David was saying, I am planning on gluing the front and backs to the body of the speakers...

So, do you guys give a thumbs-up or a thumbs-down to the following sequence of assembling the speakers:

1) Backs are complete... Go ahead and glue those onto the speaker bodies...

2) Insert stuffing and run speaker wires...

2) Cut driver holes in front baffle and prepare baffles for speaker attachment...

3) Glue front baffle onto speaker body...

4) Trim front baffle using thin strip and trim router bit as suggested by Jed...

5) Paint rear curves... (Being sure to mask speaker body)

6) Paint front baffles... (Being sure to mask speaker body)

I assume at this point if any paint were to get on the body of the speakers I could sand it off to ensure good glue adhesion of the iron-on veneer...

7) Apply iron-on veneer to speaker bodies... (Being sure to mask front and rear of speakers)

Again, I assume at this point if any glue were to get on the front or back of the speakers I could easily wipe it off the paint before it dries...

8) Trim veneer with razor blade... This should be fairly easy since I will have the 1/8" rabbet going around the edges of the front and backs...

9) Stain veneer... (Being sure to mask front and rear of speakers)

10) Polyurethane paint and stained veneer...

11) Install drivers into front baffles...

Sorry if I am starting to get muddied down in the details... I have just come so far I don't want to mess anything up at the very end...

Thanks!!!

Mark

[Ray Collins]

That's the sequence that I use...

Ray

[David_D]

ditto

[impala454]

Mark you forgot:

12) Take tons of pics and post them to this thread ASAP

[mlammert]

Thanks guys, I appreciate the confirmation of my upcoming actions!!! :T

Ha ha... Come on Chuck, you know I'll take pictures...

Haven't I been doing a good job documenting my steps so far?!?

Mark

[BeerParty]

Ha ha... Come on Chuck, you know I'll take pictures...

Haven't I been doing a good job documenting my steps so far?!?

You have been doing an excellent job documenting so far. And the work on the speakers has been phenomenal! ;x( ;x(

[mlammert]

Thanks Chris!!! :B

Well, I ordered my veneer (www.joewoodworker.com - Paperbacked Maple 10 mil with Heat-Lock and a Roller) and speaker wire (www.bluejeanscable.com - Belden White 12 Gauge) the other day... So that should come in early next week...

I just bought the 2" insulation and a couple more odds and ends...

Hopefully (keeping fingers crossed), I can get the driver cutouts routed this weekend and then start final assembly next week/weekend...

I wanted to have the speakers finished by Thanksgiving... I don't think they will be painted or stained by then... But, I do think they should be in a "listenable" state by then...

Hopefully if they are at least veneered the wife will let them be in the living room for when the guests come over... :roll:

Take it easy!!!

Mark

[Hdale85]

I got that Canare 4S8 wire and its very nice I've heard good things about the belden stuff as well though.