Monitor 10 tragedy

outlander

Hello,
As some of you may know, I picked up a pair of 10B’s on ebay the other day. The good news is FedEx delivered them yesterday. The bad news is the driver dropped one of them in my garage. Can you believe that, they make it 3000 miles from CA to NH and they get trashed on the way into my garage. The packing job was about as bad you could possibly imagine. Attached is a pic of some of the damage. The pic shows a crack that goes through the front particle board running from one of the 6” drivers to the edge of the cabinet. The sound seems to be fine but I would like to seal the crack if I could, to avoid the chance of resonant effects. Does anyone have any repair suggestions?
Thanks!
O

PolkThug

Can you feel any air coming through the crack when you are rockin out?

outlander

Polkthug,

Good point, I checked it with a lighter and when I push them there's enough air moving through the crack to blow out the lighter. With that said, now I know I have to seal it up. But the question is how? Maybe from the inside would be best?
O

PolkThug

Yeah, definitely from the inside.

outlander

Anyone have a suggestion on how to seal that puppy? I hate to think I paid $242 with shipping for a pair of speakers that belong in the dumpster.
O

F1nut

Something like a silicone sealer (not bathroom stuff) or gasket sealer would do the trick. If you want to spend a bit of money, get some WEST System Marine epoxy, great stuff that will seal it and help prevent further cracking. You'll need to mix in one of the fillers, I'd recommend #406 or 404. Do not breath in the filler dust.

EDIT: If you're anywhere near me, bring it over and I'll epoxy it for you.

bikezappa

Try to squeeze the cracked areas together. If the the cracks get smaller with pressure, use a large clamp, maybe two, to squeeze and hold the wood together. Put expoxy between the cracks before squeezing. Hold wood together over night.

dorokusai

I personally would part them out and try to salvage what I could that way.

outlander

I was afraid I would be told to use them for parts. Man what a shame, such nice speakers reduced to scrap (or should I say crap). I picked up some heavy duty 3M weather seal adhesive that is very thick. I have an experiment going where I ran a bead on a piece of scrap wood and will check in ~24 hrs. I figure if it’s water proof then it should be air proof, so if dries flexible and adheres well to the wood it might work. Man, am I bummed!
O

AsSiMiLaTeD

You are gonna file a claim with FedEx or whoever right?

outlander

I called Fedex today to file a claim and was told that the claim has to be filed by the shipper. Even though I paid for the shipping with my Paypal account when I bought these on ebay only the shipper can file a claim. Finding the guy I bought these off will be a trick. He was selling these because he was moving out of state last week. All the more reason to find a way to fix them.
O

AsSiMiLaTeD

Originally posted by outlander
I called Fedex today to file a claim and was told that the claim has to be filed by the shipper. Even though I paid for the shipping with my Paypal account when I bought these on ebay only the shipper can file a claim. Finding the guy I bought these off will be a trick. He was selling these because he was moving out of state last week. All the more reason to find a way to fix them.
O

wow...that sux ****...

danger boy

you can email the seller thru Ebay and he will get it next time he checks his email.

go to the auction.. and click on his feedback. that will take you to a page whereby you can send him an email. it's worked for me several times after an auction has ended.

Sorry that your monitor 10 got trashed. I hope everything works out for you in the end.

scottnbnj

maybe plastic laminate (like formica or wilsonart) with contact adhesive on the inside of cabinet.

looks like mid/bass driver opening will give you access and enough width to fit the material in.

)

VR3

I use run-of-the-mill caulk to seal my DIY speakers, this would be no different, just open it...

Just make sure you let it dry, etc - the acid odor that is released from the glue can eat away at the materials of the driver... - so let it have plenty of time to let out the odor - etc etc...

outlander

Vr3MxStyler2k3,
Good point about the fumes causing damage to the drivers, I hadn’t thought of that one. I’ll make sure I let the adhesive cure before I install the driver. I have to hold off on the repair until I finish my dealings with FedEx. But I think I may just drop the claim (no pun intended) and just fix the damn things. I have to say even with the crack they sound great and would hate to see FedEx send them to the crusher. Before this I was using JBL L80-T3’s then changed over to a pair of Celestion D12’s, diven with a Adcom 555II. I guess you can tell I like the vintage stuff. The D12’s sound good but the Polk’s have a better sound stage and clearer mid-range.
Thank you to everyone that made suggestions I really appreciate it. Hope I can return the favor sometime.
O

VR3

The white outter seams from the crack, carefully place perm. marker will cover that up and yall never see it again unless you like being close to your speakers, then we gotta wonder about your intentions...

Good luck! It's an easy fix - no use for trashing great speakers...!!

Rock on!

I HAVE NEVER** thrown out a pair of speakers that I have picked up or found that were worth fixing or could have a use. And those Polks are alot better than the speakers I have picked up/restored...

So - you get the drift...

Willow

I agree with Vr3MxStyler2k3 if you can repair them try if it doesn't work as least you can say you tried.

sowen010599

Or maybe you could get Sid to make you some custom spray-painted, carpeted, grill cloth covered, 1" pine, pieced together from scrap, cabinets.

VR3

Thats right...

Except for him, I might use some truck bed spray for the caps :cool:

and FWIW - I have only pieced together one enclosure from scraps...

dkg999

You need to get a bar clamp that can stretch from top to bottom of your speakers so you can pull the crack together. Then use a polyurethane glue, one of the most popular is Gorilla Glue. These glues expand to fill the joint being glued and are flexible to withstand some movement/vibration in the surfaces being glued. Be careful to not overfill the crack with the glue, as it will expand considerably. The excess that foams up out of the crack can be trimmed off with a razor blade after about 6 hours. Also be sure to pad the bar clamp ends so they don't leave marks in your speaker cabinet. These new glues are pretty amazing in what you can fix. One word of caution, these glues are the most permanent stuff on the planet, so cover anything you don't want glue on, including yourself. Also you may want to pull the driver next to the crack so you don't glue it in. Check after you pull the crack together with the clamp to make sure you aren't making the driver opening too small to get the driver back in.

F1nut

I beg to differ, those polyurethane glues have yet to prove themselves over time and there are a lot of us in the business that refuse to use them, me included. Just because it's new doesn't make it the best. Still the best glue ever made is hide glue, but I wouldn't recommend it for this job. For the best and most permanent stuff on the planet for this kind of repair use two part marine epoxy.

steveinaz

Build some new cabinets for those pups. Use the same dimensions and go for it....While you're at it, upgrade the internal wiring, get some nice binding posts, etc, etc.

dkg999

F1nut - the polyurethane glues have been on the commercial market for over 10 years. I have been using them on such things as butcher block tops for kitchen islands (yes, I actually build the butcher block tops from scratch!) for a number of years and these glues hold up to the acids and moisture from food preparation better than anything else, including the two part exterior adhesives. Real hide glue has a lot of nice properties, such as you can always heat it up and it becomes liquid again, but with age it becomes a very brittle bond that doesn't have a lot of strength. It is very flexible when new though.

F1nut

dkg999,

I can respect your choice of glue for what you do, but as you stated, it's only been around for 10 years (actually I think it's less than that), and that's not long enough to know how it will fair down the road. I still believe marine epoxy would be the best choice for the speaker repair. I restore period antiques for a living and 95% of the time I use hot hide glue (life span approx.75-100 years) as that was the original glue used. I do use yellow glue here and there and every once in awhile I'll use marine epoxy on a basket case with little value left in it.

The right glue for the right job.

dorokusai

Unless those speakers are sentimental, part them out and look for another pair. It's not a "rare" speaker.

They are basically worthless in resale, even after "fixing" and the cabinet would be far below substandard at that point.

I would stop thinking about types of glue....and build this, build that....let them die a natural death. If you want to goop and scrape up a cabinet, and further diminish it's value, aesthetic appeal and possible performance....go crazy.

Answer me this, do you really want to look at that Frankenpolk everyday? and say "It looks like shite, but it sure sounds fantastic!"

It's a waste of time IMO.

When ppl start talking about what "glue" to use....it's time to cash the check.

outlander

dorokusai,
I have no sentimental attachment to these but considering I just paid $242.50 (with shipping) for these things from ebay I figured I’d give it a try. But to your point they will probably never be right. And now after listening to them for a week I can tell that something is not right with the tweeters (I have another post “blown tweeter?”). I’m still working the FedEx return deal considering their the one’s that trashed them. At this point when I factor in the price of new tweeters, I would be happy if I could recover the money I spent and look for another pair. Here’s some advice for you guys: next time your thinking about shipping with FedEx, consider UPS. I wish I did
O

dorokusai

Outlander - I'm sorry that happened to you, but it's the nature of the game we play. FedEx or UPS, it could have happened with either carrier....nothing is 100% unless it's personally delivered in my book.

That's why I don't ship used speakers, or get used speakers shipped........period. There are but a handful of people that I trust to pack and ship a speaker for me....and their names don't start with F or U.

If you can't pick it up, it isn't worth owning.

Polk65

Outlander, in the past year some of my deliveries via ups, usps, and fedex have arrived damaged.

Yours seems to be a truly win-win situation.
The fedex driver dropped them in your garage! Wait for the fedex claim to finish, collect your check from the shipper of record, then re-sell your drivers on ebay. Wait for another pair of speakers to appear on ebay next month and buy them. You should come out ahead.

GOOD LUCK

outlander

Polk65,

That’s what you would think, except for one minor problem. I can’t get the guy I bought them off to file the claim and give FedEx the OK to settle with me. I’ve been trying to work with him for a month and still he won’t cooperate. My only recourse is to write a negative comment under his feedback section. It won’t get my money back but it may keep someone else from getting burnt.

On the up side I’ve repaired the cabinets and replaced the SL2000 tweeters with the silk replacement tweeter and even though they don’t look that great they sure sound good. I have to say I think the replacement tweeter is an obvious step up over the SL2000, to me it sounds much smoother and yet clearer. I know that last statement could start a bit of creative controversy but that’s the way I hear it.
O

danger boy

the seller has nothing to lose but everything to gain by filing the claim with FedEx. What is he reason for not wanting to file a claim? the speakers were insured by him weren't they?

Something just doesn't sounds right about him to me. I'd feel terrible and try and do everything within my power to see it thru.. including filiing a claim.

What is he Ebay feedback like? does he have any negative feedbacks?

good luck.