My 2ax project. Finished at last! (thanks to CSP)

[JKent]

Finally finished!

Here’s the saga:

I bought these from CSP member George (toastedalmond). They looked nice—he got them from the original owner, who took care of them. These were early 2ax’s with the big ol’ cast aluminum woofers with cloth surrounds. I would not have to refoam them, like my first pair That first pair was posted here:
http://www.classicspeakerpages.net/IP.Boar...amp;#entry59728

Then the letdown. Unbeknownst to George, the tweeters had “popped their corks.” Replacements from ABT would be about $120 or so, and they would still not be authentic. I decided to cut my losses and “part them out.” Well, the mids went, as did the woofers but the buyer of the woofers told me they were no good! Not true, but I was not going to call him a liar for 50 bucks, so I sent a refund. In the end I had broken even, but I still had the cabinets, which I hated to throw away.

RoyC to the rescue! He sold me some drivers, including later-version 2ax tweeters and beautiful cast aluminum woofers (still kicking myself over the ones I let go!). He also provided TONS of guidance.

Although I had cleaned up the pots in my first 2ax pair, I decided to go with L-pads on these. Replaced the caps with some mylars and Dayton polys I had on hand. Roy recommended a resistor across the mid terminals to compensate for differences in the L-pads vs original pots. I had even pulled the xovers from these, destroying the masonite back plates in the process, but I had a pair of xovers I’d bought on ebay a while back. Turns out they don’t exactly match—one lacks the arrows on the outside. Big deal. Also got a lot of help from John (johnieo) with many issues, including replacing the fiberglass stuffing (I had thrown that away, too).

The cabinets required very little work. 2 minor corner dings on the bottom back were filled. I no longer sand these old cabinets—instead Howard’s Restor-a finish, followed by Watco Oil or Minwax Antique Oil on the radios for a slight sheen.

The finishing touches include Irish Linen from 1-2-3 Stitch on original frames (thanks Tom Tyson and others for setting me straight on my “improved” frames), some cheap vintage-looking knobs from Rat Shack on the L-pad shafts, and Vintage AR’s excellent logo plate reproductions. I have the original plates, but they are tarnished and, unlike the later AR2ax plates are NOT engraved. I bought Larry’s reproductions for these speakers and my 4ax’s. They’re really nice! (edit, shameless self-promotion: I now use solid brass engraved reproduction logos that I buy in quantity from an engraver. PM me if you need any).

Well, that’s my story. The first AR2ax project speakers are for sale at the local electronics shop on consignment. THESE are keepers. Thanks again to all involved.
Kent

 

[RoyC]

Very pretty, Kent...You gave those old drivers a worthy home!

Roy

[Diamonds&Rust]

Finally finished!

Finely refinished, I'd say.

Even if they sounded bad (which I'm sure they don't) they'd be pretty.

Good show.

And a real team effort, it seems! That's always the most fun part.

Bret

[ToastedAlmond]

Boy, you sure did a nice job on those Kent. I'm glad I could play a small, small part in a plan that ended up with you KEEPING them. The general and his wife would also approve I'm sure.

[JKent]

Thanks for the kind words. Positive reinforcement is a good thing!

On to the 2 pair of AR4x's I've been putting off.

For those who may be interested--the serial numbers on these 2ax's are 41070 & 40214. Here's a pic of the back, with the small Rat Shack vintage-look knobs (under $4 for 4) and the mismatched xo panels (bottom speaker lacks the "increase/decrease" lettering)

Kent

[Jess]

Fantastic job, Kent. Those are beautiful indeed!

Jess

[dynaco_dan]

Fantastic job, Kent. Those are beautiful indeed!

Jess

Hi Kent;

It is possible that the adhesive that attaches the surround to the frame or the spider to the frame gave out and this may be what the buyer was looking at.

I've now seen several partial separations as well.

They can be re-centered and re-glued if this was his problem.

Shipping can really shake things up.

[Pete B]

Hi Kent,

Nice work!

I'm starting to restore my old pair of 2ax's and was wondering if they were ever

varnished from the factory. I've seen the AR writeup covering how to maintain

and reoil them but these seem to have a shiny finish that looks like

varnish - anybody know?

Looks like you repainted the baffle board Kent, does anyone know what brand/type

of paint was used at the factory?

The right hand paperwork on the back looks new Kent, is there a scan available so

that a new copy can be printed out?

Regards,

[genek]

I'm starting to restore my old pair of 2ax's and was wondering if they were ever

varnished from the factory. I've seen the AR writeup covering how to maintain

and reoil them but these seem to have a shiny finish that looks like

varnish - anybody know?

AR speakers in certain veneers (walnut, mahogany and I think also birch) could be ordered with a clear lacquer (not varnish) finish.

[Pete B]

AR speakers in certain veneers (walnut, mahogany and I think also birch) could be ordered with a clear lacquer (not varnish) finish.

Thanks, that is probably it.

[JKent]

Hi Pete

I've been away and missed your post. Thanks for the compliment.

Don't know what was originally used to paint the baffles. I had some semi flat black alkyd paint on the shelf so that's what I used.

As you have since learned, some of the AR speakers were indeed lacquered. I have a pair of 2a's awaiting restoration that are finished in a nice lacquered mahogany.

Actually, the paperwork is original. Sorry I don't have a scan, but when I get a chance I will try to get a good copy to post here.

cheers

Kent

[JKent]

The right hand paperwork on the back looks new Kent, is there a scan available so

that a new copy can be printed out?

Regards,

Here's a photo of the label. I removed the serial number in PhotoShop, but it could use a lot more touch-up. Problem is the gray "2ax" disappears if I try to brighten the pic

So here it is. Maybe you can clean it up for your use. Kind of large, so I'll remove it after a while. Maybe Mark will put it in the Library.

Kent

[Robert_S]

Here's a quick revision of the file—it's a bit rough, but may be okay for printed output.

Robert_S

[Horswispr]

How come you don't sand any more? I always sand and then oil with steel wool. But your finish looks great! 1-2-3 Stitch? I'll have to check it out. That looks like fabric that could work on several different speakers.

-----

Finally finished!

Here’s the saga:

I bought these from CSP member George (toastedalmond). They looked nice—he got them from the original owner, who took care of them. These were early 2ax’s with the big ol’ cast aluminum woofers with cloth surrounds. I would not have to refoam them, like my first pair That first pair was posted here:

http://www.classicspeakerpages.net/IP.Boar...amp;#entry59728

Then the letdown. Unbeknownst to George, the tweeters had “popped their corks.” Replacements from ABT would be about $120 or so, and they would still not be authentic. I decided to cut my losses and “part them out.” Well, the mids went, as did the woofers but the buyer of the woofers told me they were no good! Not true, but I was not going to call him a liar for 50 bucks, so I sent a refund. In the end I had broken even, but I still had the cabinets, which I hated to throw away.

RoyC to the rescue! He sold me some drivers, including later-version 2ax tweeters and beautiful cast aluminum woofers (still kicking myself over the ones I let go!). He also provided TONS of guidance.

Although I had cleaned up the pots in my first 2ax pair, I decided to go with L-pads on these. Replaced the caps with some mylars and Dayton polys I had on hand. Roy recommended a resistor across the mid terminals to compensate for differences in the L-pads vs original pots. I had even pulled the xovers from these, destroying the masonite back plates in the process, but I had a pair of xovers I’d bought on ebay a while back. Turns out they don’t exactly match—one lacks the arrows on the outside. Big deal. Also got a lot of help from John (johnieo) with many issues, including replacing the fiberglass stuffing (I had thrown that away, too).

The cabinets required very little work. 2 minor corner dings on the bottom back were filled. I no longer sand these old cabinets—instead Howard’s Restor-a finish, followed by Watco Oil or Minwax Antique Oil on the radios for a slight sheen.

The finishing touches include Irish Linen from 1-2-3 Stitch on original frames (thanks Tom Tyson and others for setting me straight on my “improved” frames), some cheap vintage-looking knobs from Rat Shack on the L-pad shafts, and Vintage AR’s excellent logo plate reproductions. I have the original plates, but they are tarnished and, unlike the later AR2ax plates are NOT engraved. I bought Larry’s reproductions for these speakers and my 4ax’s. They’re really nice!

Well, that’s my story. The first AR2ax project speakers are for sale at the local electronics shop on consignment. THESE are keepers. Thanks again to all involved.

Kent