Sansui SR-929 Veneer Project
- Thread starter prwallen01
- Start date
prwallen01
oldturntableguy
Hi All,
Sorry that this update is so long in coming. The Sansui 929 was finished in Aug of last year......but......I had a good reason to be slow. While I was working on the veneer project the customer "found" another 929 with a near perfect plinth but with other issues so I played mix and match for some time and we (my customer) (I wish it was me) ended up with 2 really nice 929s. One, an excellent original 929, and the 2nd one was the veneer project. The veneer he had chosen was Wenge (a little tough to work with) but it turned out great. There were some electrical issues with both that had to be fixed, along with a broken tone arm mount, and a severed tone arm wire but all is well. He ended up selling one of them to offset some of the costs he had incurred (I can only imagine).
I have included some pics of the veneer project. Sorry for the pics, they really don't begin to do it justice. I ended up using contact cement (no other real alternative) and it worked out great. The worst part for me were the holes for the buttons. The trim rings weren't very wide, < 1/16", so ANY little issues with the veneer and the holes would have been very visible. Thankfully all went well. My customer ended up liking the look of the stripped platter trim ring so that was given a light brushed look instead of power coating it. He decided he didn't want to "label" the controls so that area was left blank. I was very pleased with the way it turned out and my customer was happy. So happy in fact that after playing with both of his 929s for awhile he decided to sell the one with the original finish and keep the veneered one.
It was a fun project!
Sorry that this update is so long in coming. The Sansui 929 was finished in Aug of last year......but......I had a good reason to be slow. While I was working on the veneer project the customer "found" another 929 with a near perfect plinth but with other issues so I played mix and match for some time and we (my customer) (I wish it was me) ended up with 2 really nice 929s. One, an excellent original 929, and the 2nd one was the veneer project. The veneer he had chosen was Wenge (a little tough to work with) but it turned out great. There were some electrical issues with both that had to be fixed, along with a broken tone arm mount, and a severed tone arm wire but all is well. He ended up selling one of them to offset some of the costs he had incurred (I can only imagine).
I have included some pics of the veneer project. Sorry for the pics, they really don't begin to do it justice. I ended up using contact cement (no other real alternative) and it worked out great. The worst part for me were the holes for the buttons. The trim rings weren't very wide, < 1/16", so ANY little issues with the veneer and the holes would have been very visible. Thankfully all went well. My customer ended up liking the look of the stripped platter trim ring so that was given a light brushed look instead of power coating it. He decided he didn't want to "label" the controls so that area was left blank. I was very pleased with the way it turned out and my customer was happy. So happy in fact that after playing with both of his 929s for awhile he decided to sell the one with the original finish and keep the veneered one.
It was a fun project!
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bimasta
Addicted Member
Great! Much better than I thought possible. I guess I was too enamoured of the original black gloss — it was so classy. But it's still just as classy. And classic. The choice of veneer is spot-on, and details, such as the way the buttons are handled, are so tasteful — no need to clutter them with labels.
Good move to keep the tonearm too; the better Sansui arms, and better Japanese arms in general, are vastly underrated. "What, you use an old tonearm? You can't be serious! You must get a new boutique arm for several thousand $$$ or you can't really hear music!" The laws of Physics have not been repealed, and designers in the '70s knew everything designers know today. Even those dustcovers were made of non-resonant acrylic.
If you're proud of your (re)creation, you have every right to be.
Good move to keep the tonearm too; the better Sansui arms, and better Japanese arms in general, are vastly underrated. "What, you use an old tonearm? You can't be serious! You must get a new boutique arm for several thousand $$$ or you can't really hear music!" The laws of Physics have not been repealed, and designers in the '70s knew everything designers know today. Even those dustcovers were made of non-resonant acrylic.
If you're proud of your (re)creation, you have every right to be.
Nice job! I'm tempted to try it with my SR 717. Only the side trim is covered with something like walnut look formica, I guess stripping that and covering with thick veneer wouldn't be too hard. I think the plinth is all particle board. The control /cue panel needs restoring too, but I'm not sure about that project.
bimasta
Addicted Member
I have the 838. It's great — and it's why I praised the better Sansui tonearms: if the 838's arm were offered stand-alone today, it would be a best-seller (except for the plastic gantry).
Fortunately my TT is in perfect shape, so veneering isn't needed. Great as it is, I don't use it, and plan to sell it.
Fortunately my TT is in perfect shape, so veneering isn't needed. Great as it is, I don't use it, and plan to sell it.
prwallen01
oldturntableguy
Guys, thanks for the kind words. I really appreciate it! It was a fun project but a little nerve racking and yes, I think it turned out great!
mccalljd
Well-Known Member
The table looks awesome, but now you have me wondering, how do you re-label the controls on a re-finish job? That has always been one of the sticking points that keeps me from trying to re-do a table. Also, does the addition of the extra layer of veneer throw off the height of the arm or platter and maybe even how the auto-play mechanism engages the tonearm or other articulating parts? I have a Marantz 6370 I would love to refinish, but those things cause me second thoughts..