Reconing kits - post your experiences

[C Hart]

I have never done DIY reconing but I am considering reconing two vintage 12" woofers. Has anyone used recone kits from Speaker Exchange or Simply Speakers? Details on the experience and pics would be great. Many thanks!

 

[RxDx]

Makes a huge difference what particular driver you're considering. If
it's HPM 900 woofers, it's a kludge-fest. I got 'er done finally, but I
don't think I'd repeat.

 

[C Hart]

Thanks @RxDx. These are JBL 122As. The online videos make it seem simple so your warning is appreciated.

 

[RxDx]

I didn't check your kit availability, but the aftermarket kits for the
Pioneer weren't the same cone material (no one makes it) and
required a lot of modification (parts of two kits, actually). If kits
are made right for the JBL, it could be that easy.

 

[C Hart]

JBL has a sprayed-on coating Aquaplas that makes the cone exotic also (might be the same white stuff as Pioneer used). But mainly I'm trying to see if people ended up with a satisfactory result from the basic paper kits. Thanks for the info.

 

[gongli]

Pros cut the middle inside middle circle to make sure its lined up just right in the center - just glue it back when done and evidently this doesn't hurt the sound...Hope this helps.

 

[donprice]

I have never done DIY reconing but I am considering reconing two vintage 12" woofers. Has anyone used recone kits from Speaker Exchange or Simply Speakers? Details on the experience and pics would be great. Many thanks!

Do you have a different pair of drivers to practice on? Neat glue lines take skill and practice. If looks matter, consider paying a pro to recone them. I've reconed a few speakers and they looked good enough for bar-band PA use...but not nice enough for vintage JBL home speakers. Of course you may have the touch that I don't have.

Good luck!

 

[C Hart]

@donprice thanks for the tip on practice. I bought a similar (but not exact) JBL woofer to use as the swap-in while I work on the other guys. There are a lot of poorly rehabbed JBL drivers out there and the ones that are unmolested are mostly ugly. Show is less important then go for me, but hopefully they will look reasonably good as well.

@gongli do you mean preserve the old cones and reuse them?

 

[gongli]

I am sorry - I thought you meant re-foaming the outer edge only...My bad.

 

[MacSic]

Glue....
I use this glue for my last reconing and i like it, it is not a contact glue you have 2 minutes and more to correct or move and it does not alter the foam like some glues.
The good news is that it's easy to find and cheaper than the special glue they sell for crazy prices on the internet.

 

[z-adamson]

Use a 1 piece refoam kit and it will be simple. Use a kit that is entirely made up of loose parts, then you are in for a job that takes practice to get good at. I stick to 1 piece kits and buy from speaker exchange usually. If they have a 1 piece kit, I say go that route.

 

[HB3]

I did a pair of Bose 901 Series V's about twenty years ago. Eighteen drivers in total. It turned out fine so I wouldn't worry about the level of difficulty. I used Simply Speakers for a couple of other speakers. Take your time and follow their directions.

 

[C Hart]

Hi there all. Thanks for posting. The thread is a little old so I had to reorient myself.

@HB3 Is it possible you might be thinking I asked about "refoaming"? I am talking about a new voice coil, cone, spider, and surround. If we mean the same thing, I would sooner have a tooth pulled than recone 18 x 4" drivers so you are a better man than I. (Even refoaming a pair of 901s would be a test.)

 

[C Hart]

@z-adamson I agree that is the right way to go.

@MacSic thanks for the tip on the glue. Will take a look at it. I have been using rubber cement for foam surrounds and it works very well. EV advises epoxy for the spider and cone.

 

[HB3]

Hi there all. Thanks for posting. The thread is a little old so I had to reorient myself.

@HB3 Is it possible you might be thinking I asked about "refoaming"? I am talking about a new voice coil, cone, spider, and surround. If we mean the same thing, I would sooner have a tooth pulled than recone 18 x 4" drivers so you are a better man than I. (Even refoaming a pair of 901s would be a test.)

You know, you're right. My bad.

 

[WayneHunter]

I have never done DIY reconing but I am considering reconing two vintage 12" woofers. Has anyone used recone kits from Speaker Exchange or Simply Speakers? Details on the experience and pics would be great. Many thanks!

Actually just finished my first reconing of a JBL 2212. Bought the kit, studied 50 or more reconing videos, downloaded tons of instructions. I reserved two days so I could take each section and take my time so I could minimize any errors. Everything turned out perfect except for the voice coil, which somehow is not properly aligned causing scraping on the sides. Now during mock up and final assembly I checked for clearance, used the proper shims, etc., etc.. I think the biggest problem and I think should be the most important thing they should emphasize is that if that voice coil is off even a micro millimeter then it will not work. The slot it must fit into is already miniscule, maybe 2mm if that. And you are expected to situate the coil so it is DEAD ON when it comes to it's height above the base floor and even more important is that it must be exactly 90 degrees in relation the slot and in every aspect of 360 degrees of the coil, and perfectly centered. That is a level of precision that most people cannot accomplish in a home workshop. Off by just a micro millimeter and the coil is no longer going to bounce up and down without hitting the side of the base or the magnet. The reconing kit was 90 dollars and is now trash. And we can't rule out manufacturer defects or terrible quality control of the coil itself. In the future I will purchase only WORKING speakers knowing what I now know. If I keep buying recone kits at around 100 dollars each until I happen to stumble on one that I happen to get absolutely dead on, I could have bought a pair of the same speakers in working condition and saved myself all of the time, trouble, and money. You have to take all the youtube videos and everything with a HUGE grain of salt. Most are by companies wanting you to purchase recone kits and they want you to think it is a very simple process. It isn't. Just the spider flexing a little or the cone fleaxing a little will throw the coil out of alignment no matter how well your dry fit may appear to be. Save yourself some headaches and money and not try this is my opinion.

Just did a comparasion of the old voice coil and the new one. The first photo is the old coil which shows the seam used for the lead wires. That seam is virtually smooth in 360 degrees, inside and outside. The second photo is the new coil and although you can't really make out the depth of field I assure you that seam is substantially raised at that point top to bottom. It appears that the scraping was in this area of the coil. Again, QUALITY - that seam should be like the original (completely smooth) even at the seam. But with a substantial bulge at the seam of the new coil it is no wonder it would never work.