L7 Refinish

[John W]

I recently picked up a pair of L7s and the finish was a little scratched and peeling, so decided to do a refinish job.

The first attempt involved the use of a combo of chemical strippers and scrappers to remove all the old black lacquer. Underneath is ash. The veneer is thick, but there is virtually no way to get all the black out of the deep, open grain. After a few various attempts at stains and dyes, it quickly became apparent that things were not going to end well.

[John W]

So, I ordered some rift sawn cherry veneer from Oakwood veneer and set about re-veneering the boxes.

To prep the boxes, I cut a thin groove about 1/16 by 1/16 onthe front to act as a transition between the black tops and the veneered bottoms. Originally the L7s where painted on the front and had rounded edges that wouldn’t work for veneer. To square up the edges I routed a 1/4 inch lip along the bottom sides and glued on hardwood corners.

The plastic bases were also a little roughed up, and werereplaced with a metal, outrigger type stabilizers.

[Titanium Dome]

Very nice! Congratulations! :applaud:

[BMWCCA]

OMG! Beautiful. How about a detail shot of the corner bead treatment?

You might actually be the first to get the respect the L7 deserves from those who can't seem to get past the black-ash finish.

Very cool idea and superb execution.

[grumpy]

+1 :)

[audiomagnate]

Great job! They look so nice without the grilles. I think a "normal" grille would make them look even better with that beautiful new finish.

[Robh3606]

They look great too bad you couldn't get them that way from the factory.

Rob:)

[Audiobeer]

JW THEY LOOK FANTASTIC GREAT JOB! What kind of veneer did you use and whats the process? Looks fantastic. :applaud:

There's a product made by H. Cambell that is used for just the situation you were in. It's meant to flow into the grain and cover the paint you can't get out. You put in on like wax and wipe it of against the grain causing the grain to fill with the Grain filler tinted the way you want. I used it on JBLdogs 4430s that were painted black to hide what paint I couldn't pull from the pores. Irregardless of how succesfull that might have been I like your grain and appearance much better with the veneer on the L7s now. Nice job!

[John W]

Thanks,
The veneer is 10 mil paper back, cherry and was applied using contact cement.
After removing the finish and sanding, the previous veneer made a good base for the second layer.

[Mr. Widget]

Thanks for sharing John... it is always a pleasure to see your work!


Widget

[SEAWOLF97]

too bad you couldn't get them that way from the factory.

Rob:)

if they all looked like that, prolly would still have mine.

never found issue with the sound, only looks.



didn't JohnW also make those great looking 2 box L7's ?? :confused:

[John W]

didn't JohnW also make those great looking 2 box L7's ?? :confused:

It's a healthy addiction :)

[berf]

Beautiful. You confirmed my suspicions that the factory ash veneer is just not attractive, whether lacquered or finished. My L7's are pretty much fleabags. The lacquer is brittle and will come right off with your fingernails, so now I'm sure a veneer job is the way to go.
Anybody know a source for the outrigger feet for the 80% of us who don't have the bases?

[DavidF]

Quite nice. They have a whole new and appealing appearance (admittedly I am bias against all black). That particular cut of cherry looks very good in the pictures.

[svollmer]

if they all looked like that, prolly would still have mine.

never found issue with the sound, only looks.



didn't JohnW also make those great looking 2 box L7's ?? :confused:

These beauties?

http://audioheritage.org/vbulletin/attachment.php?attachmentid=26015&stc=1&d=1182727417

[WCHurtt]

53821538225382353824I had my L7's professionally painted by a custom body shop a few years ago. They came out great but cost a small fortune to do so, $500 each! They had to use a special primer to fill in the wood grain, I think they said it had chopped carbon fiber in it and then finish coated with Mercedes silver. I bought them new in Okinawa, JA at the PX when I was stationed there in 91. They're currently for sale on eBay

SORRY for the poor picture quality, I had to use my iPhone after I discovered the battery in my Leica was dead!!
.


(http://gallery.me.com/wchurtt/100207/IMG_1754/web.jpg?ver=13224006380001)