Rebating / Recessing Drivers

[pimpplato]

Hello, I have been mucking around with loudspeaker construction for some time but my woodworking skills still need some work.

I am in the process of designing a subwoofer and centre channel and want to rebate / recess the drivers into the enclosure for a flush finish.

Can I please have some assistance in what tools, techniques to use for this task? I have a decent quality plunge - router.

Many thanks for an assistance!


Plato

[OzMikeH]

Use a circle cutting jig for your router, cut the rebate for the driver before you cut the hole out. if you use a bit with a very slight undercut you can get a snap fit. - not for the faint hearted or fragile surfaces.

test fit the driver face down to check the depth.

[Daveis]

Jasper Circle jig... the big one.

[Saturnus]

Before I had a CNC router to do the job for me, I always made the driver cut out first and then used the driver upside down as a guide for cutting a groove as deep as you can with a stanley knife or scalpel for the rebate. Then mark it up, and carefully rout to get as close as you can to the mark up. Chisel away the remaining bits.

The cut groove is especially helpful if you're using plywood or veneered wood.

[Dave Bullet]

another option....

1. get a piece of mdf / timber the same thickness as your subwoofer flange
2. cut a hole in the new piece the diameter of the driver / flange
3. glue over the baffle (with another hole pre-cut to fit the basket)

Voila - a flush fit driver without needing a rebate / plunge router. Can be done with a jigsaw and hand drawn circle (ie. with a compass / string and pencil etc...) and sanding.

You have to be careful to get yoyur offsets right since you are cutting holes before gluing the laminate piece on the baffle. If you don't perfectly line up the board on the baffle, you can oversize the laminate piece then use a flush trim bit on your plunge router to go around the outside baffle edge and make the laminate the same.

Cheers,
David.

[topher_m]

HI

Pretty easy considering you have a good plunge router already.

- get yourself a jasper circle cutter jig
- drill 1/8" hole in hole center
- route out the recess based on driver dimensions (1/4", 3/16" deep typically). If you have a small diameter bit you may need to do 2 passes, one at the full driver diameter and one slightly smaller to get the whole mounting flange recessed
- using the same center hole, now route out the center hole at the recommended inner diameter. Take your time and don't try to route the full depth out at once - be patient and do several passes - it will be smoother.

get a nice straight cut bit - 1/2" shaft will chatter less on a deep cut

it is really quite easy once you get the feel for the router. but mdf dust from routing is nasty - get a mask if you have to do a lot

[pimpplato]

Thanks for that, I think that will put me on the right track.

Any idea who makes this jig's or where to buy one from?

Thanks again!

[pimpplato]

Excellent :-)

Thanks for all your help

[pimpplato]

Great, I've found an Australian distributor for the jasper 200:

http://www.soundlabsgroup.com.au/p/J...200+Circle+Jig

Looks like I'll go for that and follow the advice provided by everyone here. I'll make a post once with some pictures once I've got the jasper 200 and tried it out.

[AndrewT]

Hi,
you can make a circle jig from a scrap of sheet. 3mm aluminium or 5mm MDF/plywood.

Drill a hole near one end for the router cutter to pass through.
Drill fixing holes around that aperture to bolt the router tight to the sheet.
Drill a hole at the other end @ the radius you require.
You can drill a series of holes at smaller radii for a multiple different circle diameters.
Cost=time + 2/3/4 fixing bolts/screws.