lakecat

Rob....it makes no sense to leave them as is. I used a tiny, tiny flat screwdriver to get under the staple and pop up a little, and then removed with needle nose pliers on a pair of 2x's. Then slowly worked several three inch drywall knives under the grill to pop glue seams. Cleaned the grills and they came out nice. The value is having them work correctly.

Suggestions....magazine size book or bigger with lots of pics. 150 pages seems enough to have it broken down into beginnings, the rise to the top, the battles within and competition, the lines of speakers that were introduced and why, the marketing that worked and what didn't, then the fade to selling the company. I tell people that come here and see and hear these great speakers...that this was the last of the great era of US manufacturing and the great minds that were involved in changing the way music was heard....and seen.

No expert here on sound but have had roughly about thirty pairs of assorted AR's go thru here over the last seven or eight years. I love bass so the 3 and 3a have been my favs....but some ten inch woofer models that have surprised me is the AR12 and the latest possession...an early model 2ax. This alnico ax is all untouched original and the musicality that comes out of it is jaw dropping. I have tried to like the 5's but the bass just isn't there for me so gone. Later version ax's...also gone. 2a's I had...gone. But....this ax....just something about that melts my butter. Now I have to bring the 12's down here and compare them.

Finally got a pair so search in over.....:)

Okay....got the picture thing worked out and wanted to show how they came out. Second one was easier to do once I got a system down. Speaker looks brand new.......:)

Okay...got one done and this is what I did. I glued wood from thin paint sticks into grooves on back to have a glue surface. The grill material already had some bend in it from being on the previous grills I made and discarded. I used glue dots every several inches on back and then then a stream of E-6000 and pressed one side at a time into place and then clamped it. I waited for around fifteen minutes for then 6000 to set up a little and then used my old grills for a straight edge to even out the grill material on back and then clamped again. After an hour, I removed clamps and removed old grill to see if it was sticking to glue. I rubbed a little wax on old grill so it wouldn't stick and reapplied the old grill to back of new grill and laid a weight on it for overnight. The next day, I did the other side and repeated the steps. Yes, it took four days to do one grill but only about a half hour of time each day. Just wanted the glue to set completely before doing another side. After all four sides were done, I trimmed the excess with a razor blade and melted corners together with a screw driver heated up a little. So....I did manage to bend this material and being set in the glue, I don't think it will ever unravel....:) Hmm....won't let me put in any pics. Says...."You are only allowed to upload 931.84kb"....anyone know why? Not enough for even one pic.

Hi Roy. I was originally going to do that but I want to wrap material so it doesn't fray. I ended up getting a roll of glue dots and decided to try the E-6000 despite the fear of being messy with it. I stood in the JoAnne's fabric store for an hour looking at glues and tapes and fasteners...lol. I worked on one yesterday and got sides done. Top and bottom today...then see how it looks. So far...so good...:) Using clamps and weight also.

I may head there and get that tape and try it. First glance I thought it was red....but see it is clear.

Dang!....thanks Kent for the warning....sigh. It seemed a perfect adhesive for this.

Thanks for thoughts on the different approaches. I thought about hot glue but worry about age with it....especially with the flexing of removing and installing. The tape looks interesting but wanted something not seen such as a glue. Finally, I worry about the tacky glue not holding the AR3 material. It is not a cloth but is almost a plastic and stiff to work with. I talked with a craftsman today and he recoo'd E6000 and am going to try it. Has many of the qualities I am looking for. I may use spots of hot glue to hold material till this glue sets up. Video here is anyone is interested......

I have the AR3's that I have refinished but when I got them there wasn't any grills. I made up some grills with 3/16" Masonite and added 1/8" paint sticks to this Masonite cut to size for top and sides so the 1/4" staple would not come thru the front when applying the grill material. I found out that after applying the grill material, the grills were very difficult to install and was just a tad too thick to slide into slots easily. So I spent a lot of time carefully removing ALL the staples to save the hard to get matching 3's material....and pitching the Masonite grills. I found a pair of OEM plastic grills for the 3's and got them. I don't want to staple the material to this plastic so looking at contact or sticky glues that I could use for this plastic. I noticed that a lot of material on these AR3 grills were not fastened on sides but I want to. I cut thin pieces of wood paint sticks and glued them into the slots on sides of grills to give a flat spot on sides for the glue. Now....I am looking for a decent glue that would work for plastic and grill material to adhere together. I have some spray contact cement that I use for other projects but wonder if that would work long term. I am picturing a tacky glue but have not found anything. Any suggestions?

I applaud your efforts and yes......you deserve to be compensated for your efforts. It will help to preserve these great speakers.

Hi Peeps....just a shot but if anyone has or knows anyone that might have the Heathkit speaker badge, I would be interested in buying the pair. Have a pair of Heathkit AS-103"s without them and would like to have to finish them off nice. Thanks! Pic shows it and don't if this same badge was on their other items but hope so.......

Maybe try heat to soften glue to remove surround. Hair dryer might work or heat gun on gentle. Then use the solvents to clean residue.

I kept this saved as his experience was so similar to mine.......from 2008 even......:)

I had asked Roy about that and he said that it doesn't make a difference. I had put AR 11 drivers in a Heathkit AS-103 cab (same size as 3a cab) which is deeper than an AR 11 cab....thinking the bigger cab would give it more "kick".

Nice job on the rehab. I think they are one of AR's best kept secrets. I only discovered these gems when I saw a pair here locally for $25 and was curious enough to investigate them. That mid is one of the best I think and makes the speaker very musical and crisp. I think that 10" woofer goes lower than the 10" on the AR5's and sounds better with those drivers on the 12. Acoustical music is very nice on my pair. I can't really imagine why these only sold for a year or so....crazy. Mine are staying.....and already have a spare mid ready to go...just in case.