# Klipsch Heresy II project



## rcarlton

*Klipsch Heresy I & II project*

I have a pair of LaScala's that are black. I find them to be boring looking and wanted to jazz them up some. Saw the wonderful thread on the Bubinga LaScala's on Klipsch Forum and was hooked. But...I had not done any veneering at all...read everything I could...and decided to take the plunge. But not with the LaScala's but a pair of 1989 Heresy II's. They were also black, very minor blemishes and not being used. Terrific set to practice on. Even though they were consecutive serial numbers they did not exactly match. One had very easily seen wood grain while the other appeared smooth. Always bugged me.


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## rcarlton

I stripped the paint off using 60 and 100 sandpaper with an orbital sander. Fixed the corner with plastic wood filler. Drilled some 1/16" holes, stuck some tooth picks in the holes, then the filler. Sanded.


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## rcarlton

Sanded down the second speaker. Guess what? It started life as a Walnut veneer! Now I know where the grain came from! 3 hours into the project now.


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## rcarlton

What to cover them with? How about Waterfall Bubinga!:bigsmile:


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## rcarlton

To be continued...


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## kano32

Wow great job. You've got to love bubinga! Where did you get the veneer?


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## kano32

What kind of glue/contact cement are you going to use?

I tried this stuff called Flex-Pro Adhesive. You roller it on, let it sit for a few, place on veneer and use a j-roller to adhere and then dead stack for an hour. It works great and there's no fumes. This glue is what I used to veneer these:


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## Wayne A. Pflughaupt

Looking good Ron. (This is basically a “do-nothing” post so I can follow this thread via e-mail notifications. ) 

Regards,
Wayne


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## Exocer

Very nice! another do nothing post :bigsmile:


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## rcarlton

Have been home sick with a cold. Felt a little better today and cut some veneer to get a feel for it. Looks like it will take me only 4 sheets to complete the job. That'll leave me with 8 left...:duh:

BTW I use an MDF board to cut the veneer on. The speaker is sitting on it in the pictures.


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## Sonnie

I can't wait to see the finished product... very cool.


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## rcarlton

Cut out front edging. Will need to glue down and trim 1/4" off. *Don't use the non-flammable contact cement in the picture. It caused problems with cracking later.*


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## rcarlton

Started gluing the edges down. 

First dry fit, tape in place.

Second, stir the glue...sure doesn't look like contact cement you buy in glass bottles.

Third, brush on the glue. Notice the edge banding curls, as it dries it flattens back out. *I could have sprayed the other side with a thin mist of water to flatten it.*


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## rcarlton

Now glue the top edges down. Had to be real careful to get the corners to fit tight.


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## rcarlton

Once all glued down, I used a 6" board in which I rounded an edge on to push it tightly together. After drying a few hours I used my knife to trim the excess, some 220 sandpaper to smooth the edges. Stuck the grill in the speaker to see how it will look!:bigsmile: The tops and sides are all mirror images of each other.

BTW I picked up another pair of Heresy I's off of Craigslist. Will also veneer them in Bubinga.


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## rcarlton

Only 1 picture tonight. Thought about how the edge veneer curled up when glued. What's to keep the side/top/bottom veneers from doing the same thing:scratch: ? Nothing! My solution...tape the end grain, and tape to a flat surface. Worked like a charm...no curling:bigsmile: . Both sides are done, tomorrow the top and bottom.

*In retrospect it would have been better if I had sprayed water on the other side to keep the veneer flat.*


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## rcarlton

Finished gluing the sides, tops and bottoms. Have only done light sanding on the edges. Will use an oil finish.


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## Sonnie

Remarkable job Ron... :T


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## rcarlton

I should have better pictures soon. I use a video camera with still photo capability, no flash...just room light. They kind of give an idea of what the speaker looks like.

Quite the come down for a guy who has an 8x10 and 2 4X5 view cameras. My everyday camera is a Rolleiflex.


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## kano32

I can't wait to see these with a finish.


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## rcarlton

Major disaster:holycow: ! We had a cold front come through yesterday. Closed the door after I finished up last night. Suspect the temperature got into the low 60's in the room. The veneer started to split along the grain:hissyfit: . Oh, well. Instructions say to keep the temperature at 65 and above for 72 hours after gluing. Only thing lost is some of my time and 2 sheets of veneer. Got 10 more left. Probably have this speaker done by the weekend. Veneer on Saturday, sand and finish Sunday:whew: .


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## Sonnie

Ah man... what a bummer! At least it's re-doable... :huh: Things happen, huh.


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## rcarlton

Tried again on Saturday to finish the job. Filled all the cracks with filler, sanded. Waited 72 hours for glue to cure. Glued and placed another sheet of veneer on the speaker...cracks started almost instantly. Temperatures were in the 60's outside, 70 in the work area. I'm going to put a hold on the project until the weather is warmer...still not sure why the cracks.

*Turns out the non-flammable contact cement is water based. The veneer would swell and curl. Once flattened it would shrink and crack.*

Did finish sanding the walnut Heresy, 1 coat of Tung oil so far. Very nice looking.


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## rcarlton

Heresy II after 6 coats of Tung oil. Hand rubbed between each coat.


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## Sonnie

I really like the walnut... you did a great job Ron... excellent... :T


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## Prof.

Very nicely crafted...Looks like a new one...


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## Wayne A. Pflughaupt

Yup, great job, Ron!












Yikes! :raped: Analog receiver, cassette deck, Technics (I think) turntable – did I fall asleep and wake up in 1982?

Regards,
Wayne


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## rcarlton

C'mon. The Cambridge Audio Azur 640C is newer than that:holycow: . The Technics SL-1200 M3D replaces my old 1982 vintage Technics SL-D205.

Sacrificed another piece of veneer. This time I used the cheaper and flammable contact cement. No cracks so far:whistling: .


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## rcarlton

Finished putting the skin on the Heresy. One coat of Tung oil. Noticed several flaws...small chips and some more work needs to be done on some edges. Pretty satisfied so far.


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## eddthompson

super!

edd


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## rcarlton

Here are some more shots. Switched to boiled linseed oil. Dries quicker than Tung Oil and should be finished in about 3-4 days.

Switched back to the Tung oil. Seems to give it a tougher and very glossy finish. Turns out it is quicker to work with than the BLO.


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## rcarlton

*Re: Klipsch Heresy I & II project*

Finished gluing the veneer to all of the speakers. Figured I would pass on some hints and tips I learned as I went on. 

Sharp blades. Don't be stingy. Will save time in the long run with smooth cuts. Use a 1/2" MDF board as a cutting surface. It does not have a grain to catch the blade while you are cutting.

A block of wood with one edge rounded. Provides great control when pressing the veneer down. I found it more useful than a "J" roller.


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## rcarlton

*Re: Klipsch Heresy II project (cont.)*

As I cut out the veneer I labeled each piece. Here is an example of an edge piece. Large arrow indicates up, small arrow the side I cut from the main sheet of veneer, the number for the first sheet of veneer (took two sheets to complete a speaker). This made laying down the veneer easier for me.


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## rcarlton

In order to cut the edge pieces I made a 45 degree cut, laid it on the speaker, measured, cut, laid another piece out, marked it, cut, and so forth.


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## rcarlton

End result is a nice 45 degree cut that fits tightraying: .


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## rcarlton

Laid out the veneer for gluing.

Used release paper for a dry mount press, (wax paper should work fine), to pre-position the veneer and lightly press down with my finger tips.


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## rcarlton

Pressed down with the wood block. Trimmed. Lightly sanded. This is how one of the corners came out.

The order in which I laid out the veneer is:

Long sides. Right and left. Mirror images of each other.
Top and bottom. Mirror images of each other.
Edges. Continuation of grain pattern from sides and tops. Kind of like wrapping a Christmas present.


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## rcarlton

Will do some final sanding tomorrow. Leaning toward using Tung oil again. Leaves a nice shiny surface, and really makes the grain pop out.

Monday should have new capacitors to update the crossover networks. These babies will sound like they did when they left Hope, Arkansas 23 years ago!:jiggy:


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## Sonnie

You have really done a very good job on these Ron... Klipsh should hire you to custom finish some of there speaker cabinets.


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## rcarlton

*Re: Klipsch Heresy I & II project*

I was using a 1/4 sheet orbital sander by Dewalt. Decided to switch to a Dewalt random orbital sander (round discs). Huge difference, edges and corners look professional. In fact I liked the looks so much I re-sanded the Heresy II. Now I have 3 cabinets in the living room, all with one coat of Tung oil. Will allow them to dry 24 hours before adding another coat.


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## rcarlton

Finished. Sound terrific. Used the Chesky demo CD to test them. A-B comparison with Cornwall's...they hold their own well. Man, they sound good:bigsmile: .


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## Sonnie

Excellent!


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## wig

Good job man.I like them because they look so different than most of the stuff I see.


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## rcarlton

Learning a new skill leads to looking for other projects. A friend gave me a McIntosh MAC-1700 cabinet that was trashed. A little Bubinga....


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## Otto

Good work, Ron; quite impressive. Veeners are something that I have not worked with. I generally get frustrated with finish work because it just won't look good enough for me when I DIY. When the time comes for me to veneer something, I'll refer back to this thread and your work...

Thanks!


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## Prof.

Otto said:


> Good work, Ron; quite impressive. Veeners are something that I have not worked with. I generally get frustrated with finish work because it just won't look good enough for me when I DIY. When the time comes for me to veneer something, I'll refer back to this thread and your work...
> 
> Thanks!


Ditto!!...Very nice work Ron..


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## rcarlton

*Off topic-MAC-1700 Cabinet*

Finished the cabinet.


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## kano32

Hubba Hubba! Great Job!


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## rcarlton

Bubinga cabinet in action.


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## rcarlton

More Bubinga Heresy I.


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## kano32

I love that veneer. I may have to come steal those just for the veneer.


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## Prof.

rcarlton said:


> Bubinga cabinet in action.


Man...that takes me back!
I remember when Receivers use to come in timber cabinets..Nice job..


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## FlashJim

Beautiful veneer job!!


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## rcarlton

A couple of more things I learned as I went along:

Wait at least a week before applying an oil finish. The oil can react to the glue. (Read this in a book on veneering, didn't cause me a problem yet. I might have been lucky. Hate learning new things after the fact.)
Bubbles can form in the veneer. Don't worry...use a hairdryer and your finger. Heat it up to reactivate the glue and flatten with your finger or roller. With really large bubbles you can make a cut with your knife with the grain to allow the gases out, heat with hairdryer and press down.


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## rcarlton

Back of the speaker. _Faux_ label.


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## Guest

Very cool, and looks great.
http://www.hometheaterinsider.net


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