Hey guys, I found a great deal on spandex replacement grill cloth instead of the stock burlap grill cloth. I visited this fabric store and gave the saleslady the speaker dimensions. For 1+1's and 2+2's you need a total of 6 sq. yards. The Sale price is $8.99 sq. yard color is black. This spandex isn't the really thin ultra shear it is a tightly woven medium grade spandex. Very transparent. Nice strechability if that is a word. Then the lady at the fabric store recommended a seamstress. I stopped by her shop and showed her the spandex fabric and a picture of the 2+2 frames and ask her to make me 2 giant socks with the seam in the back. She gave me a price of $25 each. 2 weeks turn around time. The sale is running for the next week till May 15th then goes back to $11.99 a sq. yard. If anyone wants to take advantage of this sale you can email me place an order and I will make the sewing arrangements then I can ship to you. $105 plus shipping. I think a pretty good deal. Let me know. Blair
P.S. She will have the socks a few inches longer in length so you can staple the ends then trim the access.
P.S. She will have the socks a few inches longer in length so you can staple the ends then trim the access.
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I stitched my own with sewing machine, but have decided to use picture frames so I don't have to sow, that was the hardest part, the yarn kept breaking. Stopped using mylar for the small diaphragms. Use large prints now, you can use any picture, to keep the wife happy!!
This is great news. I do have one suggestion. Since the fabric is stretchy, it might be worth it to have your seamstress make a small sample 'tube' of fabric to make sure that it will fit snugly around the speaker. In other words, if the sock is made to the exact dimensions of the frame, it may not stretch enough and it may be difficult to avoid wrinkles and sags. So it may turn out that you want the sock slightly undersized so that you get good tension after it's installed. The original Acoustat grille socks were made slightly undersized for this very reason, but the amount of undersize will depend on the stretchy-ness of your new fabric.
I would also recommend allowing at least 6" extra top AND bottom so that you have plenty of fabric to grab while you stretch the cloth over the length of the speaker. The original Acoustat socks were made over-length by about that much.
If you find that the light-colored wood frame shows through the fabric too much, you could always paint the frames flat black.
One more suggestion...
When it comes time to make holes in the fabric for the screws that pass through the cloth, I suggest poking holes using a hot soldering iron, or a heated poker. If you merely use a pointed object to poke the holes, you risk making a 'run' in the fabric.
By melting a hole in the fabric, you will seal the fibers around the hole, greatly reducing the possibility of a run in the fabric.
This was the method used by Acoustat, and it worked very well on the original polyester fabric. Your fabric may behave differently, so I suggest trying this on a scrap piece of fabric first.
When it comes time to make holes in the fabric for the screws that pass through the cloth, I suggest poking holes using a hot soldering iron, or a heated poker. If you merely use a pointed object to poke the holes, you risk making a 'run' in the fabric.
By melting a hole in the fabric, you will seal the fibers around the hole, greatly reducing the possibility of a run in the fabric.
This was the method used by Acoustat, and it worked very well on the original polyester fabric. Your fabric may behave differently, so I suggest trying this on a scrap piece of fabric first.
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