Woofer dust cap repair advice, HELP

Hello Nate. Yes, the smartest thing to do is call Kharma for their professional advice.

However, since you asked, I have a little story for you. Awhile back, I was in a professional music store where they sell band and recording studio equipment. I had a passing interest in a beat up pair of Yamaha NS40 studio monitors. The salesman wanted 50% off retail price and I was only willing to pay 75% off retail considering the cabinets were terribly abused and (3) of the woofer dust caps (made of white paper) were pooched in.

The salesman said the (3) pooched in dust caps were not a problem...and I said yeah, right. Sure enough, the salesman had a technician repair all (3) of them in less than (10) minutes right before my eyes.

The tech carefully hand twisted a 1/16" drill bit into each dust cap. He then straightened out a paper clip, curled the tip of the paper clip slightly with needle nosed pliers, carefully inserted the curled tip of the paper clip into each of the 1/16" predrilled holes, and in just a few short minutes the tech had the dust caps looking like new. The tech finished the job nearly to perfection with (3) small dots of Elmer's white glue.

I then had to eat my words about the pooched in dust caps. Still yet, I had to pass on the 50% off retail before the guy started refinishing the beat up cabinets.

Nate, I hope this helps. I like Elevick's idea above of gluing on new caps if my idea does not work out for you.

Regards,
Dan

Nate...I have one other possibility for your consideration. Last Christmas, I received a complete 1/2" diameter set of "Mini Attachments For All Vacuums." I have not used it yet, but it says it is adjustable for both full sized and hand held vacuums. It is made specifically for the cleaning of computers, office machines, and stereo & video equipment. It looks to me that you can get adjustable suction in very tight spaces with this clever gadget. I don't know at the moment where my sister bought it, but I'm sure you could quickly find a little set somewhere here on the internet.

Eldartford, I often follow Nrchy's threads and answers; I like Nrchy. I think Nrchy posed the question to us because he wants a nearly perfect repair job. Nrchy may get just one shot to either get it right or wrong with a pin, paper clip, or whatever.

I have personally tried the amateur pin method (and yes, even pro audio dealers suggest the same) about 10 times over the years. About the 9th try, I got lucky and the dent came right out with the pin. The repairs I did on speakers 1-8 and 10 were amateurish and not to my satisfaction. Either end of a pin leaves score lines or pooch marks on the fragile paper dust caps as you try to pull out the dent. The friction fit of the pin in the paper can also cause additional creases in the paper dome.

No, it is not rocket science, and we know that the dented dust cap is trivial in the grand scheme of things. However, I would like for Nrchy to be 100% happy with his repair, because I relate to perfectionism.

Nrchy, have you ever seen anyone "spoon" a dent out of a car? Car dealers use these travelling "artists" to make dents quickly and magically disappear. Think of the curl in your paper clip as your spoon to massage the dent forward and out.

Regards,

Eldartford, I am impressed with your skill and/or luck. Great advice to Nrchy to practice first on some old or blown out drivers.

I tried BOTH the pin and paper clip "thing" last night on an old blown Yamaha woofer obtained from my nephew for free. The funny thing is NEITHER method worked for me. I discovered that the dust cap permanently retained the "memory" of the dent. Every time I popped out the dent, it would just pop back in. LOL. After repeating this a few dozen times, the dust cap started coming off cleanly at the seam. I carefully and completely removed the dust cap. I have had little luck in massaging out the dent with my fingers, let alone the pin and paper clip. Yes, I must be an unlucky klutz ;-)

Yes sir, I agree with Eldartford on the practice before proceeding to your Kharma. Perhaps you can get a lot of free practice at your local junkyard or obtain some cheap junk speakers for experimentation.

Now, I fully understand the speaker manufacturer's response to Cmp.

Best wishes to all,

Eldartford, you make me "work" to explain things in detail just like my older and wiser brothers (fully intended as a compliment).

Nrchy, remember to practice and good luck.

Respectfully,

Yeah...what was I thinking...duct tape...that's the ticket, and btw, the Green Bay Packers suck! ;)

I know.......devil must've made me say that...as a typically bumming Bunglers' fan :(

I've been on "pins and needles" ;) Seriously, cheers to your success, Nrchy!!! :)