Speaker Cabinet Refurb

[steviej233]

I am thinking of refurbishing my speakers cabinets and was wondering what tips you chaps may have, as far as i can tell the are chipboard with a veneer and over the years they have picked up some damage. I want to make them look a little bit more modern and freshen them up. Over to you! :)

[realysm42]

Perhaps some pictures of how they look right now might help guide the direction?

[Mothman]

Depends on the amount of damage that they have. If its light marks or cup rings ect then a rub down with medium to fine abrasive paper working with progressively finer grades will usually do the trick. I then apply around 3 coats of danish oil, I find Wilkinsons own brand is cheap and works just fine. This is pretty thin stuff, easy to apply and can be wiped on with a cloth with no need to rub down between coats. After that I leave the danish oil to cure for a few days and then polish with beeswax to get a nice matt finish (unless of course you prefer the satin finish of the danish oil). If at all possible drivers should be removed before starting, if not then carefully wrap them in plastic bags.

You are unlikely to be able to sand deep scratches out unless your speakers have a really thick veneer (unlikely) in which case you have to fill these with a suitably colored filler or just make the best of them. As already mentioned photos would aid more targeted advice :cool:

[walpurgis]

Yes, photos needed!

I've tackled some pretty grotty looking speakers with scratches, knocks and chunks of veneer missing and got them looking quite reasonable.

If you provide some piccies, I may have some useful suggestions.

Sorry to disagree with Rich, but I've said this before on AOS, I would not recommend using any kind of oil on veneered wood, as it may cause the veneer adhesive to dissolve, causing the veneer to lift off. It depends on the adhesive type obviously. Also, oiling makes it more difficult to make further repairs at a later date, as the oil stops adhesives and fillers binding properly.

[Mothman]

Geoff , I've never experienced a problem with the veneer lifting but maybe I've just been lucky. The Wilko Danish Oil I use is more like thin varnish, agreed it has more solvent in it, but you apply it in thin light coats and it dries off quickly and so I think you would have to saturate the veneer to risk effecting the adhesive. Any roads I've had very pleasing results using it but each to his own as they say :)