Can someone give me a source for correct dope for the purpose of application on kevlar cones? I'm in the midst of an experiment increasing a pair of JBL 2245 to 30". I have the kevlar, drivers and all the parts for the baskets cut by water jet. I will turn wooden molds on a lathe but I'm not sure about doping material. Would that used for model airplanes work? Thank you for your help🙂
My immediate response was the south side of Chicago or the Humboldt Park neighborhood on the north side.
For the surround liquid latex. It comes in black. For adhesive Moyen loudspeaker cement or Loctite 425 (if I remember the number correctly.)
Latex seems a bit heavy. I need to keep it as light as possible. For surrounds I was thinking some kind of fast set polyether I could mold. There's a variety available. Adhesives are not an issue; again, it's the dope I'm after🙂
The material you want to use with the kevlar is epoxy resin. Anything that works good with carbon fiber will work good with kevlar. Polyester resin is widely available and cheaper, but it is formulated to work with glass fibers. Epoxy resin forms an ionic bond with the kevlar fibers, making the composite very strong. Common 2-ton epoxy will work, but there are many products tailored for specific properties and custom cure times available.
For the surround, it is hard to beat rubber impregnated cloth. This article describes how I usually do it:
Make Your Own Speaker Surround...Better Than Foam!!! - Restorations & Customizations - Boomboxery
For the surround, it is hard to beat rubber impregnated cloth. This article describes how I usually do it:
Make Your Own Speaker Surround...Better Than Foam!!! - Restorations & Customizations - Boomboxery
Last edited:
Half of your images are missing... fyi.
Also, what do you do to get rid of the starch that you use to shape the surround? That extra stiffness is not going to be the same depending on moisture content during the life of the DIY surround... wondering if that is an issue??
Not my article, just a benchtop way to make a surround that works. I have had good success with t-shirts and cotton duck fabric (curtain lining), feel free to spend more on something more exotic. As always, feel free to improvise to get the results that fit the specific job. With the task the OP has taken on, the surround fabrication should be much easier than laying up a few 30 inch kevlar speaker frustrum extension rings.
I have seen the rubberizing done with rubber cement instead of plasti-dip. I wonder if the new flex-seal stuff would work? If you have concerns about the starch, it could be rinsed or steamed out once the rubberizing agent has cured.
I have seen the rubberizing done with rubber cement instead of plasti-dip. I wonder if the new flex-seal stuff would work? If you have concerns about the starch, it could be rinsed or steamed out once the rubberizing agent has cured.
Hmm, the 2245 was coated with Aquaplas IIRC, though no clue which formulation was used.
GM
Thanks for the responses, guys.
Jeff5may, my experience with epoxy is that it's quite heavy. My research into early versions of kevlar cones references dope as the stiffening medium. Not sure whether the term is used as a verb or a noun, though.
GM, I have a source, actually 'the' JBL source for aquaplas.
Jeff5may, my experience with epoxy is that it's quite heavy. My research into early versions of kevlar cones references dope as the stiffening medium. Not sure whether the term is used as a verb or a noun, though.
GM, I have a source, actually 'the' JBL source for aquaplas.
I will do my best to find it. But I'm not the only one. I wrote it down on a post it note during a discussion over at LH a number of years ago. I contacted the manufacturer here in Toronto. They sell it by the 5gal pail. So if I can't find it, it's over at LH in a post somewhere. One of the main gang will probably remember or know where to look.
- Status
- Not open for further replies.