GD70

You can get ZPoxy on line. I haven't used the Minwax wood hardnener. A donor speaker will be a perfect source for the veneer repairs.

Hi David, The first thing I would do is to carefully remove some of the swelled MDF/particle board, so you can get the veneer flat with the surrounding areas. Make sure to keep any of those lifted pieces of veneer for reuse. The less new veneer needed for patching the better. Next is to firm up the remaining MDF, which I use ZPoxy for this. It's a very thin epoxy that is absorbed easily and makes the MDF rock hard, giving you a stable structure to continue your repairs on. While the epoxy cures, the surrounding veneer should be weighted down flat. The pieces currently missing will need some harvested Walnut from an old project for splicing in. All the new pieces should be cut as wedges as angled butt joints show less than square perpendicular cuts do. Luckily this is on the bottom area, so it won't be so noticeable. After the epoxy has cured, then carefully sand the finish off to the raw veneer, cut out the shapes where the pieces are missing, match the cutouts with the new veneer and glue in place. Sand smooth to the surrounding original veneer and when satisfied, finish with Oil or whatever you like to use. I use Watcos natural color oil on all my restorations. The red hue in the veneer will come back once the oil is applied, which I do with a piece of old t-shirt or an old sock. Just wipe on a light coat. The veneer will soak it right up. Glenn

Hell of a haul! Congrats! The 9 veneer repair may be a bit tricky. What's your plan to tackle that? Foam on the woofer looks pretty new in the one pic. Let us know how both sound, and compare to each other.

Glad you decided on the 3a's. Once you get them, I'm curious to see if these are the earlier versions with the desirable Alnico cloth surround woofers. I recently restored a pair from 1969 that had these woofers. Excellent sounding when completed. Chris rebuilt the tweeters as one was dead. These will sound great even in smallerish rooms because their sound is so full. At lower volumes you can still feel the bass. Yes, they are great for larger rooms as well, but in the more intimate setting, they will shine as well! Glenn

Very nice, informative write up Tom. Thank you. Glenn

I've cranked these pretty loud, with tracks with deep bass and have yet to bottom out the VC's. Getting these from the original owner, I'd adventure to say he didn't push them much. Glenn

Hi Luigi! Thanks! If I remember correctly, it was a stiff paper or nomex, but I could be dead wrong too! I don't remember it being a metal material though. I'll refer this to Roy C. He may chime in on this one. These were a fun project!

Hi David, Being a one year wonder, I'm not surprised they don't show up in your neck of the woods. They rarely show up here in the states! You're lucky to have a pair! Glenn

Lakecats are beautiful! A nice mix of classic and new!

Hi Lakecat, Yes, they do sound excellent. They have a more modern sound if that's a way to describe them over the 3's. Maybe that's the more forward mids and highs, not that the 3's are lacking, just a different presentation. It is curious why this was a one year only model. Whatever, it makes them all the more unique and special. Glenn

Hi David, Theres a pic of the woofer showing the part numbers. Ra ra posted a list of woofers that were interchangeable so I think you can find a suitable substitute or match from one used in a different model. Glenn

Hi Steve, When I shimmed the cones for the surrounds, I spent a lot of time making sure the VCs were centered in the ferro fluid. They moved easily so I left the fluid alone. With the foam shims under the cones I still kept checking that they were centered. Once the surrounds were glued to the cones, I removed the foam shims and let the cone drop to its natural position, again checking multiple times it was centered before gluing the surrounds to the baskets. Very straight forward, just take your time and keep checking. They sound great, and excursion is minimal, even at volume I really don't see any movement. Glenn

Hi Robert! Thanks for the cudos! I wanted to document this as best as possible for future 12 owners. The LST-2's woofers have the flat dust caps, so it's the same woofers it's the cosmetic dust cap added. Yes, the mids have open backs, which worked out well being able to insert the foam strips to raise the mid cone for reforming, and yes additional leads in the cup to the drivers. Glenn

Hi David! You bet! Photobucket screwed so many people making pics un viewable. I was asked to relink the pics which are a big part of the restoration description. Good luck with yours and look forward to seeing pics of your progress. Glenn

The last pics showing the mid refurb and woofer shimming for the new surrounds. It was odd that there's two dust caps. I assume the domed cap was to modernize the look. I think this pretty much covers the project. Glenn

Thought I'd add a few more reference pics for others that may have a set of these some day. Re-foaming the mids Glenn

I also got the mid surrounds from Speakerworks. Excellent sounding speakers that were a one year only model. I have a thread showing the restoration if you're interested. Nice work on your mids. It brought back memories! Glenn

Thanks again Robert! Any thoughts on attending the next Frankenfest on March 10th? I may bring the 12's, though the 3's with Roys rebuilt mids are spectacular.

Yes, I downloaded the patch but many others still cannot see the pics.

Hi Gents, I finally deleted all the PB links and reloaded the pics. Please let me know if you can see them now. Cheers! Glenn

Hi David! You're one of us lucky enough to have a set of 12's. Yours seem even more unusual being from special order! They were a one year only model, 1977, making them fairly rare. Regarding the woofers, Roy C. Would be the best person to answer compatibility but, he told me most of the AR 10 inch woofers of this era were pretty much the same with minor variations. Please post pics and of the documentation too! Glenn

Here's a little sampling of what the little lowly bottom crawlers can do. These are being powered by a JVC-A-X5 amp @70wpc. The 4x's are totally original. Obviously this is was just for fun, but you get the idea. Glenn

Hey Kent, No question your suggestion is the easier route. I'm just stupid anal about stuff like that! Cheers, Glenn

You basically stole those for 15 bucks! The L710's are highly regarded. Kents suggestions are good, except it will be difficult to match the original finish if you only work on the one surface. You may get it close and be happy, but if these were mine, no question the original finish would be removed, all surfaces sanded and any veneer repairs made if necessary. By starting clean with all surfaces stripped to the veneer, your final finish will be even. It all depends on how much work you want to put into them. I'd love to see more pics showing the complete cabs, drivers and crossovers. I'm surprised the surrounds needed replacing. Being butyl rubber, they usually hold up very well. My 910's from 1977 surrounds are in great shape. Glenn

The only thing I would recommend is sending the mids and tweeters to Richard So, a former ADS employee who bought all the parts inventory when ADS closed its doors. His prices are very reasonable, and they come back like brand new! After 30+ years, they may not sound as new. I did mine on my 910's, mostly for preservation, and peace of mind knowing they are good for another 30 years. Parts will eventually run out! They sounded great before the rebuild, and even better after. Next I will most likely send the mids and tweeters from my L980's. They sound fantastic, but again, for preservation, fresh ferro fluid. How many speaker owners have the option of getting rebuilt drivers with oem parts by an ex employee? Very few. Glenn