Refinishing Walnut-Veneered Speaker

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  • DaveStL
    Established Member
    • Jan 2006
    • 100
    • St Louis, MO, USA.
    • Jet 10: Xacta RT

    Refinishing Walnut-Veneered Speaker

    I just acquired a second set of Advent speakers, and the finish needs a little help. It's a warm walnut w/ low gloss but definitely more than just oil, maybe a varnish. The top of one has some black water stain (looks like a plant sat on top of it) and the bottom of the other had something on it that ate into the finish, and some adhesive like from old packing tape. On that one (the bottom) it was pretty bad, and I used a mild solvent and a fingernail to get rid of the adhesive; about half of it has the finish removed, and although a little of the color came up on the rags, the overall color is still pretty uniform.

    So the question is, where to go from here? I'd like to avoid a complete refinish. I'm thinking about stripper to get rid of the finish on the two bad panels, but how easy is it to keep from going over the edge and messing up the side panels? Any chance of screwing up the veneer itself? Then on the top that has the black water marks, what will get rid of them? The veneer looks pretty thin.

    For a new finish to match what's there, maybe Watco's natural Danish Oil?

    Anybody have experience w/ restoring these speakers?

    Thanks!

    --Dave
  • Tom Slick
    Veteran Member
    • May 2005
    • 2913
    • Paso Robles, Calif, USA.
    • sears BT3 clone

    #2
    This stuff works pretty good and is made for your specific situation
    Antique restoration and fine furniture care products. Full line of the highest quality polishes, waxes, and restorers available. "Restore It - Don't Strip It!" Since 1969


    They sell it at HD and Ace around here.
    Opportunity is missed by most people because it is dressed in overalls and looks like work. - Thomas Edison

    Comment

    • DaveStL
      Established Member
      • Jan 2006
      • 100
      • St Louis, MO, USA.
      • Jet 10: Xacta RT

      #3
      Originally posted by Tom Slick
      This stuff works pretty good and is made for your specific situation
      Antique restoration and fine furniture care products. Full line of the highest quality polishes, waxes, and restorers available. "Restore It - Don't Strip It!" Since 1969
      Thanks, I'll give it a try. I'm thinking the black marks, though, have gotten beyond the finish and might need more extreme measures. Cross your fingers!

      --Dave

      Comment

      • LCHIEN
        Internet Fact Checker
        • Dec 2002
        • 20914
        • Katy, TX, USA.
        • BT3000 vintage 1999

        #4
        Originally posted by DaveStL
        I just acquired a second set of Advent speakers, ...

        Anybody have experience w/ restoring these speakers?

        Thanks!

        --Dave
        before messing withth cabinets, are the woofer surrounds OK and the tweeters good? That's the two most commone problems wih old Advnet speakers. I have four, but they're in the Vinyl-clad unitilty cabinets, nothte walnut veneer.
        Loring in Katy, TX USA
        If your only tool is a hammer, you tend to treat all problems as if they were nails.
        BT3 FAQ - https://www.sawdustzone.org/forum/di...sked-questions

        Comment

        • Knottscott
          Veteran Member
          • Dec 2004
          • 3815
          • Rochester, NY.
          • 2008 Shop Fox W1677

          #5
          Originally posted by LCHIEN
          before messing withth cabinets, are the woofer surrounds OK and the tweeters good? That's the two most commone problems wih old Advnet speakers. I have four, but they're in the Vinyl-clad unitilty cabinets, nothte walnut veneer.
          I was thinking the same thing. The surrounds tend to rot after several years and need replacing. If so, you should be able to find replacement surround kits online....~ $30.
          Happiness is sort of like wetting your pants....everyone can see it, but only you can feel the warmth.

          Comment

          • jhart
            Veteran Member
            • Feb 2004
            • 1715
            • Minneapolis, MN, USA.
            • BT3100

            #6
            Can't offer anything on refinishing them, but good score on the Advents. What a great speaker. Henry Kloss did himself proud when he designed them. I have a pair of walnuts and a pair of the small ones. After 35 + years, they still sound great. Wish I could find another pair of walnuts.

            Good luck on the refinish. Hope they turn out ok.
            Joe
            "All things are difficult before they are easy"

            Comment

            • DaveStL
              Established Member
              • Jan 2006
              • 100
              • St Louis, MO, USA.
              • Jet 10: Xacta RT

              #7
              Originally posted by LCHIEN
              before messing withth cabinets, are the woofer surrounds OK and the tweeters good? That's the two most commone problems wih old Advnet speakers. I have four, but they're in the Vinyl-clad unitilty cabinets, nothte walnut veneer.
              These have new foam and the tweeters are good--hooked them up last night and they sound great. Grills were ugly, but I found a good pair on ebay; should be here shortly. The "new" grills are actually from NLAs but all I needed was the cloth, may leave the newer badging.

              The other pair are 1s, similar woofer but different tweeter and xover, smaller box. I have a pair of the orange tweeters coming--going to stack, and want to see which sounds better in the combination. I found the new-to-me LAs when taking in the woofers for the 1s. I'll try refoaming some junk speakers at some point before doing it on a good pair.

              Did you make any kind of brackets to stack yours? Any cushioning between the top and bottom speakers?

              Originally posted by jhart
              Can't offer anything on refinishing them, but good score on the Advents. What a great speaker. Henry Kloss did himself proud when he designed them. I have a pair of walnuts and a pair of the small ones. After 35 + years, they still sound great. Wish I could find another pair of walnuts.
              I saw some on ebay when looking for the grill cloth. Kind of heavy for shipping....

              --Dave

              Comment

              • JR
                The Full Monte
                • Feb 2004
                • 5633
                • Eugene, OR
                • BT3000

                #8
                I don't think a stripper is going to cut it. Strippers are good for taking off the varnish, but less good for getting at the stain. You will likely get blotchy or intermittently stained results. Then you're into sanding and running the risk of going through the veneer.

                Why not think about applying a new veneer? You'd get a consistent result and a fresh look.

                LOML would love it if I'd re-veneer my walnut Klipsch speakers (sorry, I'm not and Advent guy). I, OTOH, love the walnut. It's a discussioni that may last longer than either she or I.

                JR
                JR

                Comment

                • Uncle Hook
                  Established Member
                  • Apr 2005
                  • 314
                  • Mountain Lakes, New Jersey, USA.

                  #9
                  I have no experiece with the Restore-A- Finish product and I wonder how well it will work where the existing finish is gone. I would be interested to know the results if you try it.

                  Black water marks indicate water has worked its way through the existing finish and has penetrated the bare wood. That normally means the existing finish will need to be removed, so that the black marks can be bleached and then stained to retore the original color.

                  You might try bleaching out the black stains before you remove the existing finish. This will help to isolate the bleech to black stained areas where the finish is already gone. Try household bleech or another wood bleech like oxclyic acid if household bleech does not work.

                  A product like Formbys wood refinisher will remove the existing finish without damaging the veneer. You could try it or the restore a finish stuff after you have tried to bleech the out the black stains. You may need to apply stain to the bleeched area to get a color match.

                  I would be inclined to redo the finish on all sides rather than trying to match the renewed finish one side with the original finish on the other sides.

                  Comment

                  • wardprobst
                    Senior Member
                    • Jan 2006
                    • 681
                    • Wichita Falls, TX, USA.
                    • Craftsman 22811

                    #10
                    Try oxalic acid on the stains after you strip the panels. You can mask them with 3M green masking tape, that's works well. If you can't find oxalic acid, it's a main ingredient in several deck cleaners but unless you have a deck that's a lot o bleach. After the old cleans up, I'd use Watco walnut oil.
                    DP
                    www.wardprobst.com

                    Comment

                    • DaveStL
                      Established Member
                      • Jan 2006
                      • 100
                      • St Louis, MO, USA.
                      • Jet 10: Xacta RT

                      #11
                      Originally posted by JR
                      Why not think about applying a new veneer? You'd get a consistent result and a fresh look.

                      LOML would love it if I'd re-veneer my walnut Klipsch speakers (sorry, I'm not and Advent guy). I, OTOH, love the walnut. It's a discussioni that may last longer than either she or I.
                      JR
                      Yeah, I love the warm look of walnut, pehaps in part because it was in style when I was growing up. All the veneer is solid, so if I can get pretty close w/ the finish, I'll be happy.

                      Originally posted by Uncle Hook
                      You might try bleaching out the black stains before you remove the existing finish. This will help to isolate the bleech to black stained areas where the finish is already gone. Try household bleech or another wood bleech like oxclyic acid if household bleech does not work.
                      Originally posted by wardprobst
                      Try oxalic acid on the stains after you strip the panels. You can mask them with 3M green masking tape, that's works well. If you can't find oxalic acid, it's a main ingredient in several deck cleaners but unless you have a deck that's a lot o bleach. After the old cleans up, I'd use Watco walnut oil.
                      DP
                      Is oxalic acid generally safer on the wood, or is it more for effectiveness on this kind of stain?

                      --Dave

                      Comment

                      • wardprobst
                        Senior Member
                        • Jan 2006
                        • 681
                        • Wichita Falls, TX, USA.
                        • Craftsman 22811

                        #12
                        Effectiveness depends on the type of stain. I haven't seen yours but it works well in removing black stains if they are caused by water and ferrous metal based stains.

                        DP
                        www.wardprobst.com

                        Comment

                        • JR
                          The Full Monte
                          • Feb 2004
                          • 5633
                          • Eugene, OR
                          • BT3000

                          #13
                          Originally posted by DaveStL
                          All the veneer is solid, so if I can get pretty close w/ the finish, I'll be happy.
                          Hmmm, either I'm a little unclear, or I didn't make my suggestion clearly.

                          Are you saying the speaker box is solid walnut? Really? Maybe I'll switch my alegiance to Advent after all! If this is true, then I understand your reluctance to cover with new veneer. I would go ahead and refinish using the suggestions already made. You could use chemicals and sand to your heart's content, until you got a nice even foundation for a new finish.

                          OTOH, if the boxes are MDF or plywood with a walnut veneer (as my Klipsches are) then I would repeat my suggestion. Doing the chemical/sanding thing runs the risk of going through the veneer to the substrate. What my suggestion above meant was that you could apply a new, additional venneer layer to the outside of the boxes. This would be a fairly straightforward exercise resulting in a brand new finish.

                          JR
                          JR

                          Comment

                          • DaveStL
                            Established Member
                            • Jan 2006
                            • 100
                            • St Louis, MO, USA.
                            • Jet 10: Xacta RT

                            #14
                            Originally posted by JR
                            Are you saying the speaker box is solid walnut?
                            No, I mean it's well-adhered to the substrate, and isn't dry or splitting. The composite underneath has desirable properties for the sound (that's an issue for another forum!), although I think they did sell some Advents with solid wood cabinets.

                            --Dave

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