2 x T30 Slim Build Log

[escapemcp]

Sunday

Almost there! Just a few reinforcing panels to go and the side is going on!! I did just make a bit of a cock-up, so rather than rushing in to fix it I called it a night in order that I (& you ) can think how to best work around the problem. The issue is that I have run my wires out of the holes in the rear of the cab, but I have forgotten to route the recess for the round speakon connectors.


This is on the rear of the cab behind panel 13. Panel 13 has been glued in place, so access is very limited. I think I have a plan involving string and a wire coathanger with a hook, so I'll try this out tomorrow. I just don't want to lose that wire through that hole, or that will be a whole lot of fiddling to get it back out!!



Pic 1 shows the 2 piece braces, which I found easier to construct than a one piece due to me fast running out of BB! I wasn't planning on quite such a gap between the 2, but I think it'll be ok, especially as I have double braces when I should only have a single one.

Anyway, that's all for today. Busy day tomorrow... unfortunately not speaker related

[miked]

I don't understand what the problem is. Routing the recess for the Speakon is done on the outside of the cab...how can any panels be in the way if you need to route a recess on the back panel?

[billkatz]

I think the problem is that he already ran the wire through the hole, and can't route the recess without pushing the wire back, and it sounds like there is little access to push the wire back out.

[miked]

Ah, I get it now. Thanks for explaining, billkatz.

Looking at this pic, it seems the area behind the angled panel at the upper right is open. Should be able to get a hand in there easily. Unless it's closed off with small triangle pieces like the others, and the angle of this pic makes it look open?

[escapemcp]

Yes, it IS the fact that the wire is poking through the hole which I need to route. I cannot get my hand down behind panel 13 either Sorry for not explaining it enough

The method I am going to use (I think) is to route out one half of the recess with the wire held in the other direction. Then swap sides. I am a little worried that it is going to mean fingers and rotating router bits in close proximity so if so, it's going to be a bit of string put through the top 'triangle' (that I cannot fit my hand in). Use a hooked wire to then get the string out one of the holes. Tie string to wire and push wire through hole. Route recess. Then use hook again to grab string and then tug wire back through hole.

I'm about to give it a go, so I'll let you know how I get on!

[Grant Bunter]

Tie a piece of string or rope to each cable, push them back through the holes.
Make a wire hook to grab the string and pull it up so the string is no longer in the hole.

Route your recesses and using the wire hook again, snag the string, pull it and the cables back through your recessed holes and job's done...

[miked]

Yup. B/T yours and Grant's ideas, you've got it covered. Keep your fingers well away from the router bit! 25K rpm means you'll be minus a fingertip and you won't even know it until it's too late.

[AntonZ]

Keep your fingers well away from the router bit! 25K rpm means you'll be minus a fingertip and you won't even know it until it's too late.

+1 on that. You would rather build a new cab from scratch than getting a finger (or more) in the router bit.

Be careful with the evil power tools. Life is more fun in so many ways with all fingers in good working condition.

[Grant Bunter]

Keep your fingers well away from the router bit! 25K rpm means you'll be minus a fingertip and you won't even know it until it's too late.

+1 on that. You would rather build a new cab from scratch than getting a finger (or more) in the router bit.

Be careful with the evil power tools. Life is more fun in so many ways with all fingers in good working condition.

Yep,
And the router bit won't feel a thing...

[escapemcp]

ARRRRGH! MY FINGER!!!

I shouldn't joke or that's just tempting fate... after seeing Bman's injury (and Harley's nice pic of his old injury) I have been taking a little more care in the workshop! I am actually amazed that I have managed to build 4 T30s and 2 Otops without any injury (touch wood )... I shouldn't speak so soon as I KNOW I'm tempting fate, but I'm a very clumsy sod and I really don't know how I have managed to get away this far without any injuries (except a few whacks on the finger, one falling over, and getting several tubes of PL on my fingers, my clothes and in my hair but, you know, nothing serious requiring A&E... I think I deserve a ). Last time I was doing anything 'practical' in the garage, I managed to get my R/C plane to run over me, chopping into my finger (well, bone actually) at 20000rpm - hell thing! This is the first time I have dared venture back out into garage since!!

Here's the current state of my hands!:

Gotta love that PL!

After all the worrying about my wires, I needn't have (worried). I have 2 bits of ply in the hole making 1 inch of hole in total, I just pushed the wire in the hole and it sat there obediently whilst I routed around it The reason why I have 1" of wood is that the first 1/2" is the rubbish wood, and so if the jacks get accidentally tripped over by a clumsy sod (me!) or the speakers get carried off whilst still connected (seen it happen!) and the screws get ripped out of the crap wood, I still have the BB behind to drive a new screw into. I will also install removable castors at the corners of the rear of the cab, and the screws holding these will be driven into the BB right from the off.

Anyway, this is what I did to give me the clearance to route... no fingers in any danger here:



Question: Is this how you should join 2 wires using a faston connector?


I tried it like that, but there would always be a few strands of wire that were not gripped by the tabs of the connectors. I therefore do a VERY BAD soldering job (as my iron doesn't get hot enough to get the solder to flow over such a large amount of copper) in order to stop these strands coming loose.

I told you it was bad!! Thought you could do with a laugh!

After a quick cover up, no-one is any the wiser (except you guys of course):


Note the nicely routed speakon recesses in the background (and lack of blood or body extremities)

[miked]

That worked out well. Very glad to not see any bloody splatter on the cab.

AFA joining the wires, how you did it is the general idea. Do you not have the crimp-on connectors over there like we do in the states?

You take this and stick your two wires in the round, open end


Then you crimp it with this tool


And you wind up with one neat "smooshed in" or crimped area on the round part of the terminal that holds both wires.

[escapemcp]

Just realised I could have probably skipped the solder step, as the insulation tape stops the strands from coming loose anyway!!! It'll help conductivity if nothing else!

Um, apart from that it's been a day of bondo and sanding... got to get a belt/air sander cause the electric orbital one takes forever to sand down anything - even my crap wood!

Managed to flush trim the edges - my £3 #2 flush trim bit died on first use - you gets what you pays for!! - so I had to switch back to my original bit. Also managed to get every accessible edge rounded off. This is all before the side has been put on - I haven't got any screws left, and the weather was proper best of British today, so didn't fancy cycling up B&Q (like Home Depot or Lowes) to get some more. The sanding and tidying up still took all day, and I reckon I still have a day to go what with sanding down the last layer of bondo (bondo IS woodfiller, yes?) to make sure everything is nice and smooth, as well as sanding down the edges of all the panels to ensure they are all at the right height (my 15" jig was actually 1/32 out which shows on the longer panels).

Oh, I did manage to get the flanges installed. They are easily my best flanges yet - totally on the (same) level!


The 2 triangles blocking off behind the reducer panels are BB, as are all the flanges. This sucker isn't coming loose and just to make sure I also drove a few screws through the side and into the flange below (where it is glued). This was to ensure that the veneer didn't peel off and render my flanges useless. I reckon it would have been OK without the screws, but as with everything on this build, reckon is not good enough due to that wood. If I had built this with BB, this would have easily been the strongest cab on this site!!! As I built it with the shit stuff though, it is probably one of the weakest!! I stood on the side of the cab, along the front edge (mouth of the horn) and it flexes a little too much for my liking and it made a slight creak, so that's not good... no dancing on this sub

A couple of end of day pics for you:


Thanks for looking

[escapemcp]

That worked out well. Very glad to not see any bloody splatter on the cab.

Yeah, me too!!

AFA joining the wires, how you did it is the general idea. Do you not have the crimp-on connectors over there like we do in the states?

And you wind up with one neat "smooshed in" or crimped area on the round part of the terminal that holds both wires.

We have those crimp connectors, but when I was shopping for the speakon connectors, they all had 3/16" (I think) tabs, which all the ads said 'compatible with FastOn connectors', so I went and bought the FastOn connectors... 3p each or something like that. I just use a pair of pliers to bend the metal to grip the wire.

Something like this:



I don't think there is really much difference between the two (although I can't see what's behind the rubber boot in your pic!!). The FastOn connectors have a little raised dot which locks into the hole in the tabs on the Speakon connectors. I dunno if the crimps have that, although I can't imagine either coming loose... it's the other end where the wire goes in coming loose that I worry about more... hence all the questions!

[AntonZ]

To obtain a proper connection with crimp connectors, use a proper crimp tool. Pliers alone do not come near a crimp tool.
If you don't have that (can be a tad expensive), soldering is the next best thing. I would advise to get a bigger soldering tool next time. It doesn't cost much, and lasts a lifetime if you only use it every now and then.

for routing the speakon recess without body parts and blood stains.

[escapemcp]

To obtain a proper connection with crimp connectors, use a proper crimp tool. Pliers alone do not come near a crimp tool.
If you don't have that (can be a tad expensive), soldering is the next best thing. I would advise to get a bigger soldering tool next time. It doesn't cost much, and lasts a lifetime if you only use it every now and then.

My soldering iron is already large.. I thought I needed a SMALLER one, as it is just too big for detailed soldering. Now I have to get a bigger one as well Add that to the crimp tool, router, angle-o-meter and all the other stuff which I have been recommended to buy, and Bill's initial comment of "If you only have a circular saw you can make a sub" kind of hollows a little! It's all good, I'm just taking the piss I will say that it is SO nice having the right tools for the job though, and I think this is another one I may well need to invest in for the next build, whenever that may be (i.e. when I next have some disposable income!)

for routing the speakon recess without body parts and blood stains.

Many thanks for this and all of your comments. I could not have got as far as I could without all of your help. This place is the best site on the web... bar of course Lots of body parts on there