I had owned a pair of AR17's back in the 1980's and loved them. They were great for the time. But you must ask yourself: Are you restoring these older AR3's for the sake of nostalgia because they've been with you for many years or do you really want to end up with terrific sounding loudspeakers? Loudspeaker technology has come a very long way since the 1960's and even the 1990's. Cabinet materials and construction are much more solid and denser and materials like kevlar, polypropylene, and aluminum are being used for drivers and tweeters. My opinion would be to audition some new bookshelf speakers such as Mordaunt Short, Bowers & Wilkins, PSB, NHT, Energy, etc before going through with restoration. You'll love the sound from one of these I'm sure. This is just my opinion since you're asking. Thanks.
Acoustic Research AR-3
I have a pair of these old beauties in the closet. My father bought them second hand in the 60's. I have investigated restoring these, but I have never acted on it. I thought maybe a few of you fellows could recommend someone in the southeast, or east coast that has a decent reputation and reasonable prices. Price and location are both important. I do not want to ship these to California. Any info is appreciated. Oh yeah one other thing. At what cost is it not worth it to restore these? Or maybe, what do you think I should spend to restore them. Lets just assume all the drivers need rebuilt, and crossovers need repair or replaced. Thanks,