3.1 tl repair

SLOCOOKN

On the inside of right speaker the mdf is cracked in all 4 corners about 4 inches long. the top plate is off and 1 brace was knocked loose.

Would it be best to use 8 metal corner brackets. One above and one below the crack and fiberglass over the top or just fiberglass..?? how to affix the top plate?

Any Ideas?

Thanks,
Steve

SLOCOOKN

I went ahead and used 8 corner braces to secure the corners. I then applied an epoxy in the corners and over the corner braces. It turned out very solid. Perhaps not the best approach? That said, I am sure it is very secure now.

Still not sure what is best for top plate...any ideas?

F1nut

By top plate I'm quessing you mean the wood end cap, right?

SLOCOOKN

Correct the lid or top of the speaker.

F1nut

I'm not sure about the 3.1TL's, but with the other TL models the end caps are bolted on. Since it sounds like that is not the case with yours, I'd have to say glue it on. Liquid Nails works well.

SLOCOOKN

I was hoping you would reply.. the top was formerly glued on with 90 degree wooden pieces. no bolts...Oddly though one end cap is solid wood and the other is mdf...kinda strange i thought.

It is to late for this pair...If I should ever have a similar problem what would be the best solution for repair..The crack ran parallel to the corner about 1 inch to two inches from inside corner.

F1nut

Oddly though one end cap is solid wood and the other is mdf...

That is strange. I wonder if the solid wood cap is a replacement someone put on?

I assume the crack was in the MDF, so I'd probably use West System marine epoxy and clamp the hell out of it.

Polk65

Solid wood end caps here and they are glued (pic1).

Check beneath your speakers. Are there four little adjustable feet or screw holes where they might go?

While your are poking around inside have a look at the sides of your speakers. They might be lacking some glue (pic2).

pic1: top
pic2: side

F1nut

Steve, I'm 99% positive that Polk gave up on solid wood caps after the SDA SRS's. Can you see end grain on the edges of the caps?

Polk65

Jesse, You caught me assuming. :rolleyes: The outside edges have banding. These SRS 3.1TL's are the first vintage Polk Audio speakers that I have seen where the inside end caps look like unstained wood. All of the other's I have seen use raw MDF inside. If you look carefully, there are wood shavings in the left corner that I chose to keep.

(photo1) Raife posted an inside photo of SRS 1.2TL end caps with a visible stain. http://www.polkaudio.com/forums/showthread.php?t=26036
(photo2) SRS 3.1TL inside bottom end cap
(photo3) SRS 3.1TL inside bottom end cap close-up

Jim's SRS 3.1TL's are similar.
post #6 http://www.polkaudio.com/forums/showthread.php?t=26506

If it's only wood veneer, these were attached after the sides.

Steve

F1nut

Looks like veneer to me.

SLOCOOKN

Sorry for all the controversy. The end cap is mdf. It has a real wood looking veneer. It looks like real wood...nice and solid. On further inspection it is mdf. These are sda's. My end caps look different than polk65's. If you were to cut a felled tree on a horizontal plane the veneer looks like the same grain pattern...very real looking! Thanks for all the advise..
Steve

DarqueKnight

The end caps of my 1.2TL's are MDF with oak veneer on both sides and edge banding. After removing one of the end caps, I unscrewed one of the retaining bolts to see how thick the veneer was. It appeared to be about 1/8", which is fairly thick for speaker veneer.

Ricardo

Mine are also veneer....but you only get it if you look very closely. Good stuff.

Polk65

Ricardo, did you notice if your end caps are unstained wood veneer inside?

Ricardo

I honestly don't remember.......

SLOCOOKN

Mine are unstained...That's why I thought they were real wood at first.

Ricardo

Unstained veneer. Had to get in there to remove the by-pass caps.