U47-style bodies - who can make one?

[Jeremy.Starseed]

Yeah. Let it rest now.

I can see both sides in this, and the internet is just not the right place for an argument, especially not with tons of people following this thread, which has been really good, and still is. That was just an unnecessary turn of events.

Keep on keepin' on 

 

[FerrariT]

I said I wasn't ready to pay at the moment.
then a guy comes in shooting his mouth off, minding my business for me.

That would be me, I guess? Ask others here about my reputation and you'll see I don't quite "shoot my mouth off"...

Look, you made it EVERYONE'S business when you posted in a public forum. We have every right to post here just as you do.

I mean, really, what was your intent saying you are not ready to pay now? Just because you said you were at one time?

True indeed.
But I think you missed my point.

You didn't have nothing to say when I said I was ready to pay, a few weeks prior.
So why say something now?
What was the purpose?

My intent was made clear a few posts back. Try to read and follow along.

I'm not asking anyone, about anyone's internet reputation.

I'm not even mad, I just think it is funny how in one hand people can see donating to help DUkka in the  
Cinemag CM2461NiCo Groupbuy.

Yet when I make a comment that has all to do with timing.
people tell me to start selling off this, or dont buy that.

It just doesn't make sense.
With what was said here, then in-turn all of you guys should have been in that thread telling people not to donate, for the obvious reasons.

but I won't make anymore comments.
fair enough?

 

[ryansteele]

soooooooo...........

these bodies are looking pretty sweet, huh guys?

 

[matta]

FerrariT,

Duka is a LONG term member here who many of us here have LONG term friendships and relationships with, he has been a GREAT contributor and a good friend to many. I have made many life long friends on this forum and had the pleasure of meeting many of them across the pond in the UK and Stateside.... so guys may well help him out, as I've been helped out by many of my friends here, and helped others in return.

No offense, but you are a newbie here, many of your posts here are in this thread alone, just waiting to get a mic body... have you made any other contributions or en devoured to develop friendships? If you did, maybe someone woudl be offering you financial assistance in buying a body or 2...

Forgive, me, or others if we seem uptight when you 'seem' to get demanding, bumping the thread and saying you now can't afford the mic body because it is above the original prospected $100... that is life and I think whatever these units end up costing they will be worth and I will get one, even if I have to beg, borrow or sell something to do so.

I thought my advice was honest and sincere, if you can't afford the project, be it a monetary of timely thing sell it on... I've passed on my 8 Channel S800 Eq, my MEQ500, Pultec, Night Eq and a few others because of monetary or time issues... no biggy, life throws us all curve balls, but we count the blessings we do have... I have  some great kit even if I passed on those.

Money is getting tighter and is the reason I'm staying away form Guavatone's REDD47 type which I REALLY wanted to build is that I just can't afford to build it... I'd love to, but can't.

My comment about making everyone happy is in that if you DO sell on the project someone will buy it up out of the BM and get to make a great project. I'm thrilled when I see half completed projects I sell off get up and running and guys showing off pics here... it is great feeling.

Matt

 

[MATTI]

On the other these are not for sale so far, just a survey of interest. So we shouldn´t be disapointed of the price before
we know what it is?  ( 1500$ contra some 200´ish possibly )

Matti

 

[speakercoil]

Excited...

How long of a window will there be to order and pay you, etc... I have been flaking on checking posts a lot lately, and will be pissed if I miss it! Will it be a matter of days or a week or two weeks or what? I am curious, because I would love to order two if I can afford it. Also what is the time frame. If it is in like 2-3 weeks I can purchase two for sure... Which would be sick!

-Grant

 

[Skylar]

Just an update guys:


I have not heard anything from the mesh supplier (Langley) in weeks, despite phone calls and emails!

I'm going to try to get in touch with my sales rep contact for this company (who seems more pro-active about this project) and hopefully light some fires under some arses.



Now, here's the somewhat bad news:
The last time I spoke with the Langley project manager for my account he said that the engineers were having problems figuring out how to assemble the headbasket.
I explained that it's a remake of a vintage 50s design, so we cannot be 100% sure how they assembled them.
BUT, I have some pretty good suspicions, I told him.
I went into detail about how I think they were assembled, which should still be perfectly feasible today.
I also put together a PDF that explains my process in a simple manner [attached to this post].

When I spoke with him last, I was getting a "we-don't-really-want-to-do-the-assembly-on-this-though-I'm-not-going-to-openly-admit-it" vibe.

If it turns out that they can't or won't assemble headbaskets, we may be in a situation where either:
A) I am assembling headbaskets myself, then having them finished (I will have to get mesh samples from Langley to see if I can make them consistently).
B) You guys get the parts and assemble them yourselves, finishing them in whatever way you see fit, which is more DIY-ish.

Option B would mean lower price for the body.


Thoughts? feelings? laments? rants? flames? confessions? erectile dysfunctions?

 

[Kaspar]

I'm voting option B. This is DIY after all.....

 

[[silent:arts]]

...
B) You guys get the parts and assemble them yourselves, finishing them in whatever way you see fit, which is more DIY-ish.

Option B would mean lower price for the body.

Thoughts? feelings? laments? rants? flames? confessions? erectile dysfunctions?

let me start ;D
(Kaspar has been faster, but still ...)
i would feel sad missing your hard work on this,
lamenting and ranting on: I HATE DOING ANY METAL WORK ON MY OWN
flaming how really stupid am i ??? ??? ???
confession is I might be out with option B.
would be the part I don't like to do, since I'm - do you call it double left handed ?

nevertheless, keep up the good work.

 

[Skylar]

Volker,

RE: Option B
In this case, you would just be taking the parts and assembling them together as demonstrated in the PDF.
Not as bad as making the parts from scratch, but it's still metal work. And then you're left with the bare brass (which some may prefer—others not).


That being said, if Langley Wire Cloth cannot do the assembly, I would very much prefer Option A...
as long as I am capable of building them to quality standards, which may require some jigs, fixtures, and such.
But I still think this is well within my means.
I have an extra oven that might just be perfect for reflow of solder paste.


I would consider Option B as a last-ditch effort.

 

[Kaspar]

This operation will be far easier than making a faceplate for a rack unit (off center holes and the like). There are more than a few ways to do the soldering, plenty of easily obtainable options, a good few of which have been discussed in this thread. You don't need a dedicated oven, or fancy equipment, you could probably do a fine job with a bit of silver solder and a propane torch. I would be sad to see people opting out of this fantastic opportunity because of fears relating to this kind of work. YOU CAN DO THIS, even with two left hands. If you've built any of the great projects on this site (and they've worked ) you should be able to do this ;D

 

[dissonantstring]

hi skylar,
first off thank you for your awesome research, development, design and tremendous efforts in continuing to make this happen.

after looking at your assembly pdf. it does not look difficult, but as with volker i am not the best at metal work.  the only part i do see being difficult is the attachment of the side rails.  i know you site epoxy as an alternative (which I would rather not go there), but is there a way to have all the head basket rails and rings already assembled (welded together) so that only the mesh would need to be formed and inserted.  the main mesh could be inserted from the bottom and the dome mesh from the top and then solder pasted to the assembly possibly? 

i fear that the side rails will not be as perpendicular as i would like if trying to solder/assemble them by myself.

i'm just wondering about this as i know you have probably thought of this and have mechanical reasons (beyond authenticity) for having the assembly process as stated in your pdf.

kindest regards,
grant

 

[Jeremy.Starseed]

I'm still in...my stepfather being a retired precision welder and all 

 

[Peps]

Skylar,
I would like to second Grants idea about rails and rings assembled. Maybe the whole head could be machined from one single piece of brass tubing?
I feel a bit like Volker 'bout metal work...
And I have great respect for your consistent endeavour to realize this project!
Peps

 

[desol]

I don't think anyone here would freely admit to wanting to slap all this work solely onto Skylar's lap...after all he's done enough already. I wouldn't be afraid of option B...but i would be afraid of my ability to do a good job. Hopefully the company comes through.

 

[RIMSHOT]

The only metal work i can decently do is Heavy Metal recording, so it´s Option A for me.

 

[mitsos]

After seeing your PDF, I think I prefer option B.

just 3 questions:

Is this just a matter of following the pdf and then sticking the whole thing in an oven?

What kind of temperature do we need to get the solder flowing?

Would the mesh be shipped pre-formed (cylinder and dome)? Or would you send mesh sheets?

keep up the good work!

 

[0dbfs]

I would enjoy DIY'ing these with option B.

I might up my order if 1 it's possible to do so, and 2 the option B savings makes good sense.

The assembly looks pretty straightforward.

I think it would be fun making some jigs to facilitate the assembly.

My question is whether the three layers of mesh would be precision cut and formed already. It seems that the outside layers will need to be progressively slightly larger than the inner layers. At least in girth.

Awesome project! The effort, detail, and thought are top of the line.

Thanks Skylar,
jonathan

 

[Skylar]

All three layers of mesh would be totally pre-formed and come in two pieces:
1) main cylindrical
2) bowl-shaped top mesh


The PDF is a very simplified set of instructions I gave to the mesh supplier to better illustrate my idea, ensuring that we are both on the same page.
It's easier to understand the process with images + a few words than with words alone.

So, if option B were to happen, I would provide a much more detailed instructional set for builders...probably with a video accompaniment.



Now then, why not a one-piece headbasket, you say?

Actually, my first design was a one-piece headbasket to be made from brass tube.
The problem with that is you have no where to anchor the mesh, making assembly possibly messier than the 4-piece approach.

The next logical train-of-thought would be to have the headbasket milled from solid brass rod-stock on a lathe.
Because of the required geometry (and the fact that you're now hollowing out a solid rod) the cost would be much more.
Also, it will take a sophisticated machine to make the part in this manner.

But I am extremely glad that you guys brought this up again!
Because, now that I think about it, the extra cost of this one-piece design surely won't be much more (maybe even less) than the cost of assembly of the 4-piece design.


So, I'm going to run this by the machine shop and see if we can have it made as a one-piece.

 

[tommypiper]

YES! I've always wanted to DIY the head basket myself, as it saves money and gives ME OPTIONS, like two layers of mesh instead of three!  (See my older previous posts.)  Option B, Baby!  Give it to me, DIY.

I think it's a GRAND plan for you to assemble some for the feeble hearted Option A crowd (no offense, guys) and ALSO offer DIY head basket parts for the Option B DIYers.  

This is what we were expecting, possibly, originally, so we're back where we once were.  :

I would strongly discourage abondoning the original design type to construct the top out of one piece, as someone is suggesting.  BLECH.  For crying out loud, what's the point of that?  We might as well all buy doner Chinese mics instead for the same price (and get cables and other parts free to boot).  The whole point is to make something like the U47 with quality, not just any old mic body.  

I'm getting the feeling too many people here are just waiting to get a body handed to them ready-made.  Guys, this is DIY.  Also, guys, this is a U47 type we're talking!   ;D