Jensen 1071 Build

[Steve Manning]

Thanks guys ..... but your making me blush ops: Not quite up to Troels level but I'm fairly pleased with how they turned out. Oh Jon may rates are pretty cheap

[Steve Manning]

Can you see me now?

Well I'm done putting the finish on the bubinga trim pieces. I tried the technique that I posted in the woodworking advice section http://wnwoodworkingschool.com/make-...ed-wood-putty/ and I was able to blend things in pretty well. The first picture of the back has six nail holes filled in. It was a little tough to get the right color due to the variations in grain color, but over all the technique seems to work well. The other two pictures are just some beauty shots as it were.

[JonMarsh]

Looking very nice, Steve. How's things look now for getting the painting done?

[Steve Manning]

Thanks Jon ...... The painters brother has just finished up radiation treatment and is some what stable at the moment so we are tentatively looking at next week if things remain calm over the weekend. Of course with a prognosis of "any day now" for the last couple of months it's tough for the family to make any sort of long term plans. So I'm keeping my fingers crossed because I'd really like to get these things shot with some paint and get them finished.

[Steve Manning]

Can you say paint time?

Well it's finally here ...... time for paint. Things are more or less stable for the painters brother so he is getting the cabinets shot over the next week. I passed inspection this afternoon on the prep. work so we got the cabinets loaded up, Jon you should like the chariot of choice , and they are going over to his place tomorrow during lunch.

[JonMarsh]

Elemental, my dear Watson, er, Steven, Elemental. Definitely a hardware mover of choice, though my rear seats haven't been in mine since the the second month after I got it in March 2008! Glad to hear things are moving forward.

[Mark_1042]

Elemental, my dear Watson, er, Steven, Elemental. Definitely a hardware mover of choice, though my rear seats haven't been in mine since the the second month after I got it in March 2008! Glad to hear things are moving forward.

Haha, nice.

Glad to see they're on their way to being done, will be waiting to see them/hear your thoughts.

[Steve Manning]

Sooo Close .....

Went to pick up the speakers today from paint and the mission was scrubbed .... man was I bummed. Discovered a few spots that need a do over. I felt bad for Mike my painter, after the major pain these things were to get sealed with primer (something like soaking up paint like a black hole absorbing light ......) and now having to go get more color for the fixes. Since he's basically just charging me for materials and not his time, plus he's painting in his garage so he's also fighting the dust bunnies in the finish, not sure we're going to get completely around that either, I think he's more then ready have these done, and this picky SOB (that would be me) out of his hair.

I will say this though, the color choice is bang on, a nice contrast between a black and light silver, apparently a lot of pearls in the paint, looks very nice. With the wood trim they should look pretty good when their done

[JonMarsh]

Went to pick up the speakers today from paint and the mission was scrubbed .... man was I bummed. Discovered a few spots that need a do over. I felt bad for Mike my painter, after the major pain these things were to get sealed with primer (something like soaking up paint like a black hole absorbing light ......) and now having to go get more color for the fixes. Since he's basically just charging me for materials and not his time, plus he's painting in his garage so he's also fighting the dust bunnies in the finish, not sure we're going to get completely around that either, I think he's more then ready have these done, and this picky SOB (that would be me) out of his hair.

I will say this though, the color choice is bang on, a nice contrast between a black and light silver, apparently a lot of pearls in the paint, looks very nice. With the wood trim they should look pretty good when their done

From our side, the suspense is definitely building- no pictures yet! :W

[Steve Manning]

From our side, the suspense is definitely building- no pictures yet! :W

Nope no pictures .... he sent a couple of shots with his cell phone but it's hard to see much detail in those. Looks like we will all be waiting a little while longer ...... I hate waiting!

[JonMarsh]

Nope no pictures .... he sent a couple of shots with his cell phone but it's hard to see much detail in those. Looks like we will all be waiting a little while longer ...... I hate waiting!

Me too! Yesterday I finally picked up a used Line 6 HD100 guitar amp head from Guitar center that I'd paid for almost a month ago, but the have to process the SN'a for used gear through local law enforcement for 30 days after they acquire it before releasing it to a customer (me!) in a sale.

[Mark_1042]

Went to pick up the speakers today from paint and the mission was scrubbed .... man was I bummed. Discovered a few spots that need a do over. I felt bad for Mike my painter, after the major pain these things were to get sealed with primer (something like soaking up paint like a black hole absorbing light ......) and now having to go get more color for the fixes. Since he's basically just charging me for materials and not his time, plus he's painting in his garage so he's also fighting the dust bunnies in the finish, not sure we're going to get completely around that either, I think he's more then ready have these done, and this picky SOB (that would be me) out of his hair.

I will say this though, the color choice is bang on, a nice contrast between a black and light silver, apparently a lot of pearls in the paint, looks very nice. With the wood trim they should look pretty good when their done

Man, that is a bummer. At least you know you've got the color right, so I'm sure you'll be happy with them when they're done.

I feel your pain though. I've been itching to get my project done for the past 2 weeks but have been struggling a little bit with getting the finish done to my liking (I'm a picky SOB myself... especially when its something I plan on keeping for a long time).

[Steve Manning]

Man, that is a bummer. At least you know you've got the color right, so I'm sure you'll be happy with them when they're done.

I feel your pain though. I've been itching to get my project done for the past 2 weeks but have been struggling a little bit with getting the finish done to my liking (I'm a picky SOB myself... especially when its something I plan on keeping for a long time).

Yep, both Mike and I have had a learning experience getting this MDF to take paint and get a nice finish. He's used to dealing with a car and how that material behaves and this is just not playing the same game. He's getting there though and if it all clicks these should look pretty nice. I also have to look at the time aspect in perspective as well, I've been working on this project for about a year now, if I include CAD work, so a few more weeks ..... is only a few more weeks (Some times easier said than done with the finish line sooo close).

[dar47]

Steve it's great your showing patents, I rap everything in 1/8" hard board now cause I was tried of spending more on paint product just to get coverage on MDF. I think some times paint can added up to some really nice veneer or solid like your accents.

It will be all worth it in the end though.

[JonMarsh]

I also have to look at the time aspect in perspective as well, I've been working on this project for about a year now, if I include CAD work, so a few more weeks ..... is only a few more weeks (Some times easier said than done with the finish line sooo close).

This is so, so true for this kind of project! Congratulations on continuing to work through the issues the way you do as they come up...

[sdl2112]

Yep, both Mike and I have had a learning experience getting this MDF to take paint and get a nice finish. He's used to dealing with a car and how that material behaves and this is just not playing the same game. He's getting there though and if it all clicks these should look pretty nice. I also have to look at the time aspect in perspective as well, I've been working on this project for about a year now, if I include CAD work, so a few more weeks ..... is only a few more weeks (Some times easier said than done with the finish line sooo close).

I concur...It took me about a year for my brother's project, I keep thinking how I can optimize the process. I can't wait to see yours finished...it will be worth the wait.

[Steve Manning]

Thanks guys ........ Well Mike tells me the speakers are done, they were actually finished the middle of last week, but since I was out of town over the weekend and just got home a couple of hours ago, I did not have a chance to go pick them up. Worked out a little better though, it has given the paint some time to harden up a little which should help in not getting scuffed so easily when they get loaded into the car and then into the house. The plan is to pick them up tomorrow, so hopefully some pictures tomorrow night, I'm looking forward to seeing how they turned out!

[Steve Manning]

problem with pictures

[Steve Manning]

Trying this again having issues with pictures .........

Speakers made it home, so here are some pictures of the now shiny cabinets .......

[Steve Manning]

Here's a few more ........



I laid one of the trim pieces in the last two to get an idea of how they are going to look ....... very happy with the combination.

[Face]

Looks great!

[PMazz]

:agree:

[TEK]

:E wow!

[Steve Manning]

Thanks guys for the kind words. Today was the first chance I've had to get anything done on finishing these puppies up, life just seems to get in the way some times! I had discovered when I got them home on Tuesday that the paint had been built up around the mid & tweeter holes to the point that the drivers would no longer fit, it's also an issue for the label recess on the back. I was hoping this would not be an issue ...... but here we are.

So I had an idea for a sanding jig that seems to be working rather well at this point.





I also went ahead and threaded two holes on each of the mids and woofer drivers so I could easily lift them in and out of the cabinet. I had been debating on doing this, but with the paint build up issue it seemed like the prudent thing to do.



Once I get this straightened out I can hopefully get these things finished and making some music !!

[cjd]

hey, that's a clever idea! I never thought about threading drivers to help with that.

That's gonna look incredible when you get it done though!

C

[Mark_1042]

Here's a few more ........

[ATTACH=CONFIG]22005[/ATTACH]

I laid one of the trim pieces in the last two to get an idea of how they are going to look ....... very happy with the combination.

[ATTACH=CONFIG]22006[/ATTACH]

[ATTACH=CONFIG]22007[/ATTACH]

Looking awesome there Steve, I really like the wood/paint color combination. :T

And those Scan Speaks sure are some nice looking drivers.

[Steve Manning]

hey, that's a clever idea! I never thought about threading drivers to help with that.

That's gonna look incredible when you get it done though!

C

Thanks cjd ...... I wish I could take credit for the idea but I think I had seen it awhile back on Troel's site and thought it would be a good idea. In already having to take the drivers in and out a few times I can say it's well worth the extra step to do.

[Steve Manning]

Looking awesome there Steve, I really like the wood/paint color combination. :T

And those Scan Speaks sure are some nice looking drivers.

Thanks Mark ....... I agree the Scan Speaks if nothing else do looking pretty, especially the paper sliced one's, hopefully they sound just as good, for what they cost they ought to !!!

[Steve Manning]

Well after much paint scrapping on the label recess on the second cabinet, I called the job done. Pulled the tape off that I had put on to prevent an oops moment and what did I see ....... a piece of paint missing from "keep" side of the line. So I had a :M @$%#$@$#!&$ :M moment anyway !!!!! Found the missing chip stuck to the painters tape and now I'm waiting on the super glue to set to see how bad it looks. Did I mention how much I HATE finish work!!!. Many deep breaths ...... At least it's on the back of the cabinet, because at this point there is no re-do.

[JonMarsh]

Deep breaths, deep breaths Steve- they look so good from the pictures you've posted, and this sounds like one of those things that only you will know about or notice, frustrating as it may be at the moment! Looking fantastic, though... :T

[cjd]

Maybe you need a nice trim ring to match the base wood treatment?

Nothing like a screw-up to lead you to an even better looking result. Maybe.

I read this taking a break yesterday at work after discovering that I had just lost about 5 hours of coding (which is ~2days of work for me - the rest of my time gets used up with so many other things!) and when I was poking around my Macbook froze up completely - when it booted it insisted it was Jan 1 2008... so wasn't in a great mindset at the time... I sat down and found a way to recover it eventually (another plug for Firefox! I had been testing on my server (linux) and the browser had all my code in the debugger! I guess that's where building the very front-end isn't a bad thing!

Anyhow, on to bigger and better things. Like listening to these!

C

P.S. I've resisted the urge to ask when you're going to paint them - the nice grey primer looks nice and all... hehe.

[Steve Manning]

Deep breaths, deep breaths Steve- they look so good from the pictures you've posted, and this sounds like one of those things that only you will know about or notice, frustrating as it may be at the moment! Looking fantastic, though... :T

Thanks Jon ....... your right unless your doing a fine inspection this will go unnoticed. Like our conversion we all had a while back, I'll not point it out when friends come by.

[Steve Manning]

P.S. I've resisted the urge to ask when you're going to paint them - the nice grey primer looks nice and all... hehe.

Your a funny man C ....... and you shouldn't give me any more ideas, my brain has already come up with a couple of possible solutions for trim pieces...... maybe as a last option if it really bothers me.


Glad you got your work recovered ...... I've had issues with my home pc and after 2 complete reloads I believe I have a new pc in my future. I've been procrastinating though, with what I've heard about Windows 8 I think pain lies ahead!!.

[kbzx35]

Hi Steve! I've been lurking your thread for a bit =). Really love the look and design of your cabinets! Chipping the paint hurts but glad that if it had to happen it happened in the back. Well I've decided on the 1071s as well and am currently piecing the parts for it. Still need one more 8861 and the crossovers. So definitely subscribed to your thread and can't wait to hear your thoughts on the finished work of art! Hope you don't mind but I may pick at your brain during my build process in the near future. Thanks!

[Mark_1042]

Hi Steve! I've been lurking your thread for a bit =). Really love the look and design of your cabinets! Chipping the paint hurts but glad that if it had to happen it happened in the back.

^^^ Agreed there, at least its on the back so you'll be the only one who knows about it.

When you take a lot of pride in your work (as good craftsman do), its easy to focus on small flaws and mistakes. But on such a well done project, it will probably be something that will be forgotten over time.

[meb46]

Steve, I can share your pain on the minor scrape...!

The downside with DIY is that you always know where the issues and flaws are in your product... but chances are no one will ever notice. Wise words on the forum recently... someone mentioned that one thing with DIY was to never point out your workmanship flaws or issues, chances are they are completely un-noticed. This is one piece of advice that I am taking...

On my project I made a decision to stop sanding and buffing even though I knew it could be better. Under certain light and at the right angle I can see blemishes that I know could be removed... but then I risk a rub-through or making in worse. My wife convinced me it's perfect and she doesn't notice any of the defects until I point them out in detail... then she tells me i'm imagining things... shes very supportive I think my cabinets are now at a point where 99% of people won't notice issues... and hence i'm happy.

The speakers look great, you must be itching to get them together and "makin' noise" Keep up the great work!!

[Steve Manning]

Thanks guys for the great comments and support .....

kbzx35 ..... Just yell I'll offer what help or suggestions I can.

Mark .... you so right about focusing on the faults when you have this perfect picture in your mind. We have to keep in mind what we learn along the way and that perfection, even if it is obtainable, is rather expensive to obtain.

meb46 ..... sounds like you have a nice supportive wife like mine. Your also spot on about the DIY part, if we could all afford a paint setup and support staff like Wilson Audio, we would be all set. But we don't, so we get it as good as we can, and you right most folks will not even notice. Your also right I can't wait to get some music out of these things. I'm hoping for this weekend, but ......... we'll see.

As an FYI ...... after that nasty man gave me the idea, cjd I have talked with one of the machinists at work that has helped me on some of my projects, and he will machine what I came up with ....... think license plate frame that covers the plaque/wood joint and your there. Just need to finish a drawing and if I decide to do it, it's a go.

[sdl2112]

Steve, I had a problem with my build where the plywood veneer had voids and lifted, I didn't notice until I glued it to the cabinet...of coarse I didn't show it to you guys . It really irked me but just became part of the character of the speaker. I admire you for attempting an auto paint finish, probably one of the most difficult. Looks really good to me, can't wait to see the finished product and your thoughts of how they sound. Good luck :T

[Steve Manning]

Made some progress today after getting some chores done ........

Finally got the last of the excess paint removed with the woofer openings ......





Connected the speaker terminals inside of the cabinets and glued the ports into this cabinet. Then started attaching the bubinga trim ...... Used some wax paper to slide things into place to protect the paint and then removed the paper to insert the bolts from inside the crossover compartment, seemed to work pretty well ......

[Steve Manning]

A few shots of the trim secured in place .....






Inserted the name plate ......



This is the non - chipped cabinet ......

[Steve Manning]

Here's a few with the cabinet standing up .......











I'm pretty pleased with the overall look, especially with how the bubinga trim looks with the side cladding.

[cjd]

That really is a stellar combo. Nice stuff!

[craigk]

Steve,

looks great. I can't wait to hear how it sounds. really like the grey and bubinga, nice combo. get those things hooked up and tell us about the sound.

[Steve Manning]

Thanks guys .... Had a very productive day .......


Getting ready to put the brains in ....



All wired up ....



Closing things up after getting the crossovers wired up .....



Making sure the feet screwed into place after painting ....

[Steve Manning]

Continuing on .......

Put some stuffing in the first cabinet and dropped the drivers in place, and the first cabinet is done



Hit the repeat button and a while later I had both cabinets finished ....





The only thing left at that point was to move out the Modula MTM's and hook up the 1071's ....