Ya i really like the idea of doing it myself for the experience, but i figure im dealing with Unobtanium so i will probably let bill do the surrounds as soon as i can afford it.
I'll be a little surprised if Bill recommends a refoam as I doubt the tolerances of new surrounds could be guaranteed.
Whatever's decided, Have Fun!
 
I'll be a little surprised if Bill recommends a refoam as I doubt the tolerances of new surrounds could be guaranteed.
Whatever's decided, Have Fun!

Thank you a lot! I never thought about the surround tolerances being affected. That is something I will definitely keep in mind.
 
i think a cat got the grille, and that is why there is no fabric. No evidence of other damage to the grille. The woofer surround on one of then has a couple small holes, I believe the same mischievous cat is responsible for these.
This is why the grills for my 80s went right into the closet as soon as they arrived at my place :D

As for the foam on the rear port, I understand it is just relatively standard eggcrate foam, I never got around to taking care of mine, I need to do it. The fabric on these is pretty standard looking black speaker cloth so should be easy to find. I actually like running mine without grills. I do understand that the ribbons were meant to be covered for optimum sound and have heard rumor that some sort of accessory small covers could be ordered back in the day to be used instead of the large full grills. They look much better without the grills IMO.
 
I had this thought as well. Yes the repairs are doing their job i just am a little bit of a perfectionist and really don't like the sloppiness of the repairs. I know i could have repaired them better, almost invisibly in fact. But on the other hand i have also seen repairs get botched even worse.

If nothing else, until you decide on a repair, replacement or not, I'd clean the repaired surround, to remove the touched-up front. Test first, but maybe Acetone or Isopropanol, as a cleaner? Then, I'd use some RTV silicone adhesive, on the back of the surround, to seal the punctures. The silicone seals very well, but stays flexible. A small dab / smear over each puncture, should make for a quick fix, and wouldn't change the surrounds compliance. You can even get black RTV, from an auto parts store, if the color is a concern (it shouldn't be, as you're sealing the back of the surround)?
 
If nothing else, until you decide on a repair, replacement or not, I'd clean the repaired surround, to remove the touched-up front. Test first, but maybe Acetone or Isopropanol, as a cleaner? Then, I'd use some RTV silicone adhesive, on the back of the surround, to seal the punctures. The silicone seals very well, but stays flexible. A small dab / smear over each puncture, should make for a quick fix, and wouldn't change the surrounds compliance. You can even get black RTV, from an auto parts store, if the color is a concern (it shouldn't be, as you're sealing the back of the surround)?

That's a good thought, because if there wasn't glue on the outside it would look much better. I think i will try alcohol first. Would the acetone be to harsh on the surround?
 
Acetone is what's used in finger nail polish remover. So, it's pretty strong stuff. That's why I'd test a spot first. Maybe on the back of the surround? While I don't think acetone would do any damage, it is a de-greaser. It could slightly lighten the color of the rubber material. You might have to treat the surround afterwards, with an automotive rubber, tire, dash treatment, to restore the look.
 
Are the woofer surrounds rubber or foam?
If rubber, search for rubber surround repairs.
If Millersound is willing to repair them that's the way to go, you won't be disappointed.
 
Yeah, I personally wouldn't let acetone come within a mile of Ren drivers, especially the unobtanium 8" watkins.
 
You could try some Rema butyl rubber vulcanizing cement on the back.
However, I wouldn't dick around.
Enjoy as is and get the Ebay doppelschwingspulen:beerchug:.
 
Are the woofer surrounds rubber or foam?
If rubber, search for rubber surround repairs.
If Millersound is willing to repair them that's the way to go, you won't be disappointed.

I left a message with millersound and am waiting to see what he can do with them. They are rubber surrounds. But the glue might be an issue.
 
You should just email Millersound. You will get a response in a few hours and sometimes minutes. Though I must say he is very busy and people ask him stuff all day long and he patiently answers them not making a dime...
He has fixed thousands of woofers. If he can't fix it it no one can. When I drop stuff off there are woofers and speakers on every horizontal service in the shop and office. The volume is amazing for such a small outfit.
 
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You should just email Millersound. You will get a response in a few hours and sometimes minutes. Though I must say he is very busy and people ask him stuff all day long and he patiently answers them not making a dime...
He has fixed thousands of woofers. If he can't fix it it no one can. When I drop stuff off there are woofers and speakers on every horizontal service in the shop and office. The volume is amazing for such a small outfit.

I emailed Bill yesterday and heard back today. he said,

"My advice is to try and clean off the glue and reseal them with black 3M Rubberstrip adhesive.
This is assuming the previous repair wasn’t done with “CA adhesive, aka Crazy Glue. New repair will still be noticeable, but
will be much better than a surround replacement, as butyl
doesn’t go on smooth (as foam does), where it attaches to the cone. Only the factory can get it that way. (Unless a non-aggressive adhesive is used, in which case it wouldn’t hold over time!)"

Do to the rarity of this speaker and the awesome price Bill quoted me to repair it I am going to send this speaker off to Bill to be saved. I will probably try one of these repairs on something else less expensive my self some day but for now I'm letting Bill handle this repair. Thank you all for the advise.
 
I emailed Bill yesterday and heard back today. he said,

"My advice is to try and clean off the glue and reseal them with black 3M Rubberstrip adhesive.
This is assuming the previous repair wasn’t done with “CA adhesive, aka Crazy Glue. New repair will still be noticeable, but
will be much better than a surround replacement, as butyl
doesn’t go on smooth (as foam does), where it attaches to the cone. Only the factory can get it that way. (Unless a non-aggressive adhesive is used, in which case it wouldn’t hold over time!)"

Do to the rarity of this speaker and the awesome price Bill quoted me to repair it I am going to send this speaker off to Bill to be saved. I will probably try one of these repairs on something else less expensive my self some day but for now I'm letting Bill handle this repair. Thank you all for the advise.
Yea that's what I would do too, if the repair is not to your liking you can always buy a used woofer from the bay, good luck.
 
First Congratulations .. For future reference I just want to understand this ... There No Available replacement surround for ren 80 ??? and Bill is simply going to repair the existing surround ... ( If a Ren 80 has a shot surround it cant be replaced and whole woofer has to be replaced ? )
 
First Congratulations .. For future reference I just want to understand this ... There No Available replacement surround for ren 80 ??? and Bill is simply going to repair the existing surround ... ( If a Ren 80 has a shot surround it cant be replaced and whole woofer has to be replaced ? )
Yes, no replacement.
The woofer surround would have to be FUBAR'ed and if so a generic foam surround could be implemented.
In this particular case it's a simple repair with a 2 dollar tube of glue.
 
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