[Ron Ramirez]

It was a battle...

not helped by the fact that the new grille "cloth" is actually made of plastic fibers that resisted bending around sharp corners...

but the cloth is on one cabinet.

[Image: http://www.philcoradio.com/images/phorum/bozak_019.jpg]

[Image: http://www.philcoradio.com/images/phorum/bozak_020.jpg]

The old top is shown here on this cabinet to give an idea of what it is going to look like when finished.

Mistakes:

The cloth is uneven at the top...and you can see it in the photos above.

And when I went to cauterize the holes for the Bozak nameplate, I didn't get them exactly on center. So, if you look from underneath, you can see the two holes in the cloth under the studs that hold the Bozak nameplate on. Fortunately, that mistake can't be seen from above.

And to top it all off, that was the Bozak nameplate that was broken...and it broke again. You can't tell in the photos above, but it is broken in the photos; I just have it lined up properly so it isn't too noticeable.

Oh well.

I still think it is looking better than it did with the previous cloth...and since this cloth is more acoustically transparent (open weave), it should sound better.

One down, one to go...then the tops and trim...

[Ron Ramirez]

I failed to mention that the old top/trim no longer fits well over the top of the cabinet with the new, thicker cloth - I had to press them down in place to take the photos above.

I looked at the new tops today, and I am definitely using the new tops instead of the old ones. The new ones are microscopically larger than the old ones...by tiny fractions of an inch...and because of the new, thicker cloth, that is a very good thing.

I'm calling it a day. Tomorrow I plan to start cutting trim to size and, hopefully, will get the cloth on the other cabinet as well. Then I'll need to glue trim to new tops...stain new tops/trim and bottom trim pieces...apply finish...add grain filler somewhere in there...if all goes well, these babies might be finished (or nearly so) next weekend...

[sam]

coming alone nice

reminds me of my younger years
build speaker boxes out of junk wood spray paint black  put dreaded fiberglass in them
then found that house speakers sound better in cars for bass.  ya cranked it up too

[Ron Ramirez]

Hey Sam,

Now that brings back memories...

A guy I knew in high school was way, way ahead of his time...he pulled the back seat out of his car and installed two 3-way speaker systems in place of what had been the seat back of the rear seat. 12 inch woofers...high power stuff...I don't know where he found the amp to run on 12 volts but man, was that thing loud! And this was in 1976-77...long before anyone else had thought of installing high powered amps and speaker systems capable of standing up to the high power in cars.

I only rode in his car once. That was enough. I wanted to keep my hearing!

[sam]

yep seen that done too
lucky me my hearing was always bad  so I loved to crank it up even now

I had a 70  chevelle station wagon  welded rear doors shut looked like a nomad
flat black even painted inside windows and made the chevy emblem on back window
two  Panasonic radios in.  back 1 for high tweets 1 for low bass and 4 home made speakers
living in city cops did not like it so spent most nights at jersey shore line

[GarySP]

Hey guys, I had a 1974 Dodge Dart Sport back when I had brown hair.  It had a fold-forward back seat, and a fold down panel between the back seat and the trunk area.  I built speaker cabinets into that back fold-down panel housing two 12" woofers and made the entire unit removable with 20 feet of extra wire so I could take them out and set them up behind the car.  Then added 8 more speakers in the doors, rear seat side panels, dashboard and pushed them all with two 30 watt amplifiers.  We used to play softball at a park in the area.  I used to park behind the backstop, pull out the woofers, open the doors and windows, crank the stereo and fill the ENTIRE ball field with music.  Man, I miss those days!  Don't know how I didn't lose my hearing with that car.  Take care, Gary

[Ron Ramirez]

Another day...another speaker cabinet...

[Image: http://www.philcoradio.com/images/phorum/bozak_021.jpg]

[Image: http://www.philcoradio.com/images/phorum/bozak_022.jpg]

Installing the cloth on this cabinet went much smoother. There is only a very slight misalignment of the cloth at the top edge, and most (if not all) of that will be hidden from view once the tops and trim are in place. This time, I think Debbie and I both knew what to expect, and worked accordingly.

Cauterizing the holes for the Bozak nameplate went smoother as well. I made a slight error on the first (lower) hole, but the nameplate hides the error. The second (upper) hole went perfectly.

Slowly, these are transforming back into the nice speakers they once were circa 1957-59.

Next up: Cutting trim...

[Ron Ramirez]

Well, I started cutting lattice molding. I managed to get enough trim cut for the bottoms of both cabinets. Then I realized that I did not buy enough lattice molding as I only have enough left for an additional piece or two of top molding.

So...I'll be getting two more pieces of lattice molding this week.

I did a test fit and it appears I did cut the bottom trim pieces correctly (proper lengths). That's a relief!

I think my next move will be to sand down and stain the bottom molding, then apply finish. I'll save the tops and top molding for last, as I will have to cut the top molding to the proper lengths, glue them to the new top pieces, then stain followed by finish to both top/trim combinations.

[Eliot Ness]

This is a very interesting restoration project, thanks for sharing.  I've never heard of Bozak before but a little searching turned up this fascinating quote from an owner: 

"I sell high end audio gear including very famous speakers that cost tens of thousands of dollars. I was not prepared for the level of performance that a pair of 42 year old speakers that look more like china cabinets than speakers are now delivering in my living room."

I don't think they are the same model you have, but it is a pretty cool testimonial to the quality of the Bozak brand.  I look forward to a listening test when you are finished.

[GarySP]

Ron, if you wont be doing the tops until next weekend I would keep them sandwiched and clamped to a flat surface if you can.  The heat and humidity we are going to be getting this week can wreck havoc on untreated plywood. Two more cents worth...  Take care, Gary

[Ron Ramirez]

John (Eliot)

Your quote is likely describing Concert Grand or Symphony speakers, which do have sort of a china cabinet appearance.

It would be an honor to have you come over for a listening test. You can compare the Bozaks which will be in my home office when finished to my Wharfedale W70s in the living room.

Gary

I have the new tops in the cool, air-conditioned part of our basement...how do I clamp them to anything? I don't think I have anything which I could clamp four corners down to...

[GarySP]

Yes you do.  Place the two new tops together good sides inside. Then place one of you old tops on each outside.  Clamp all four together at all the corners.  An ounce of prevention saves a pound of cussing!  Take care, Gary

[GarySP]

Good morning Ron.  Meant to comment earlier, and forgot.  I highly compliment you on your choice of grille cloth for your cabinets.  They look very "period-correct".  It's wonderful to see them returning to their former glory from the, for lack of a better word, "modified" condition that you started with.  Take care, Gary

[Ron Ramirez]

Thanks, Gary - I appreciate that. I compared photos I could find of Bozak E-300 speakers to the grille cloth currently available from various sources, and the cloth I ultimately purchased from Parts Express seemed to be the closest match.

http://www.parts-express.com/speaker-gri...e--261-810

It's actually supposed to be a Fender guitar amp pattern. Other than the mistakes I made, I do like how this cloth looks on the Bozak cabinets.

I only wish that it had been real cloth, and not something made of plastic fibers. Which would have been OK had it not been for having to fold it around the left and right sides plus around the back edges.

I think that if I had it to do over again, I would have started in the front and worked my way towards the back on both sides instead of starting on one side and working my way around to the other side as I did. Oh well, the cloth part is done. Even if it isn't 100% perfect, the cabinets still look better than they did before.

I bought more lattice molding today on my lunch hour plus some medium brown paneling nails for the bottom trim, so I should be all set for the final assembly. I think I will carefully measure the bottom molding and drill pilot holes for the nails at precise spots on the sides and front of the bottom trim, to avoid splitting the trim and to make the finished product look as if they were supposed to look that way.

Oh, regarding clamping the tops. I only have two extra large C-clamps and I couldn't justify buying two more for a one time use. So I compromised. I laid both new tops on a flat surface, top sides in (facing each other), and piled lots of heavy books on top of them. It was the only alternative I could think of.

[GarySP]

Hello, Ron.  Just my observation, but I would use small finish nails to attach the new trim.  Use one of the nails itself as a drill bit to pre-drill holes in the trim.  Finish the trim, nail it to the cabinets, then gently countersink the nail heads into the trim about a 1/16th of an inch with a small nail set.  Fill in the indents with stainable wood filler.  Once dry, rub it smooth with 0000 steel wool.  You can then apply stain and finish to the filler with a Q-tip.  End result should then be almost invisible.  Once again, throwing in my two cents worth.  By my account, you should have about a buck in pennies by now!  Take care, Gary