Doug's Abbey build (with veneer)

[gedlee]

Originally Posted by SamL

Hi Doug,

Got your email. Can see everything clearly now. It is a beauty you got there. Think if I am getting the Abbey (working hard on it, cooking nice dinner, take rubbish out etc), I'll veneer it like you. Not sure if I'll be able to get the veneer and baffle join look as nicely as yours. It look tricky to me.
As for the foam plug, I actually prefer the bulge look. I am sure the 3D look do add to the 3D sound.
You mention that you would avoid using shellac based sealer the next time. Will oil base prime be a good alternative if brush priming it?

Thanks for sharing.
Sam

The best primer that I have found is the epoxy. I use water based, but once its dried you can paint anything over it. Its very hard and sand well. Shellac, Bins, are good, but not suitable under some top coats.

Doug did a trick at the edge which I had thought of. Cut a thin grove all along the joint between the baffle and the sides. Then you paint this and trim the veneer to it. That makes a nice joint.

[SamL]

Hi Earl,
Good tips..
Don't mind if I ask a few more question. What is the roundover router bits size, is it 1/2" or bigger? Well, other than the top and bottom panel, the side panel that join the top/bottom need to be routed as well?

Thanks

[gedlee]

Originally Posted by SamL

Hi Earl,
Good tips..
Don't mind if I ask a few more question. What is the roundover router bits size, is it 1/2" or bigger? Well, other than the top and bottom panel, the side panel that join the top/bottom need to be routed as well?

Thanks

I use 1". The Abbey is routed on all sides, while the Harper just the front and its 3/4" The Nathan doesn't do the bottom. The front baffle is essential, the sides less so.

[DougSmith]

Originally Posted by SamL

Hi Doug,

Got your email. Can see everything clearly now. It is a beauty you got there. Think if I am getting the Abbey (working hard on it, cooking nice dinner, take rubbish out etc), I'll veneer it like you. Not sure if I'll be able to get the veneer and baffle join look as nicely as yours. It look tricky to me.
As for the foam plug, I actually prefer the bulge look. I am sure the 3D look do add to the 3D sound.
You mention that you would avoid using shellac based sealer the next time. Will oil base prime be a good alternative if brush priming it?

Thanks for sharing.
Sam

Making the groove at the join between the baffle and sides allows a nice clean trim of the veneer edge, as Earl also mentioned. If I were going to do it without grill cloth, I would fill the groove after trimming the veneer and applying 2-3 coats of finish to it (you do have to be very careful at the trimming stage - I used a single edge razor blade to do the trimming). To fill the groove, I would mask off the veneer edge with painter's tape, glue in a filler strip (you might also want to make the groove narrower than I did) and fill the cracks with some wood putty or maybe a synthetic filler.

I would not prime or finish the baffle before veneering and filling the groove. That way you should be able to sand everything flush and get a nice clean line between the baffle and sides (you will probably have apply new tape after sanding the edge - maybe even more than once). If you happen to cut though the finish at the veneer edge it shouldn't matter since you will have to apply additional coats of finish anyway. Once you have a few coats of finish on the veneer it should be easy to get a nice clean mask line with the tape (just press really hard at the edge). Alternatively, you could fill the groove with a contrasting hardwood, or even a metal strip - something I considered - but this might be more challenging than the masking approach.

The main issue I had with my finishing approach was leaching out of the water-soluble dyes I used for staining with the shellac undercoats. If I did it again I would just use multiple coats of a good polyurethane finish (I like the General Finishes stuff) instead of shellac + poly. I did this on the stands I made and they came out very nicely, using the same stain. I was probably conservative in my choice of woods as well. With practice it would probably be possible to bend a wider variety of woods around those corners. You could practice using some 2" PVC pipe. Veneer softener may help although I found I didn't need it.

Hope that helps -

- Doug

[SamL]

Originally Posted by gedlee

I use 1". The Abbey is routed on all sides.

Um... what thickness MDF are you using on Abbey? I though you are using 3/4" but obviousness the 1" roundover router bits will be too big for 3/4" MDF.

[badman]

1" is the radius, not the max cutting depth.

[gedlee]

Originally Posted by SamL

Um... what thickness MDF are you using on Abbey? I though you are using 3/4" but obviousness the 1" roundover router bits will be too big for 3/4" MDF.

Therin lies the problem. 3/4" thick boards with a 1" radius cut to 1" depth. It works if you do it right.

[PB2]

Those look fantastic Doug,

Did you consider screwing in the back from the inside working through the woofer hole so that the screws don't show?

Pete B.

[DougSmith]

No I didn't, but it's an interesting idea... probably not possible though because of the size of the waveguide (impossible to reach the screws at the top). Also, there might not be enough to hold on to since the back panel is only 1/2" thick at the edges. The way it is now, the screws are holding onto ~3/4" if solid oak.

-Doug

[PB2]

Flat head machine screws epoxied in before veneering the back might work as studs - I would worry about stress on the veneer when tightening though. Then threaded spacers on the inside to make it easy to get a grip on them with an open end or socket wrench.

No big deal - just a thought.

Pete B.