Any way to increase the friction on the Grado metal rods?

This is the classiest way of eliminating the "slippery rod syndrome" but if you don't have the tools or aren't confident of your skill level a little tape on the rod at the top of the rod block will work.

http://www.head-fi.org/wiki/adding-rod-locks-to-grado-headphones 

I've heard people suggest putting a thin layer of nail varnish on the rod above the L/R blocks (can be removed easily with nail varnish remover). Personally, I just put a band of scotch tape round the rod above the blocks. It doesn't exactly increase the friction, rather locks it in the position I want.

Another alternative I've seen is to buy a pair of shaft collars, and place them above the blocks. Not sure what the inner diameter should be - I assume it's something in inches, being that Grados are made in the states.

Thread title sounds dirty lol.

If you use black tape it doesn't look funky, it just blends into the rubberized ends. 

Originally Posted by LaBrosse 

I find the left cup on my Grado SR60i's sliding down abit after use. Any way to increase the friction?

Here's the nature of the problem.

Joseph Grado's now-legendary PS1 didn't have rod locks.  It used plastic rod holders and rubber bushings to hold the gimbal rods in place.  It's the same basic design you'll find on all Grados - high to low.

The lone exception is the German-made HP1000, which featured an all-aluminum body, thick aluminum rods and aluminum rod holders.  I've never worn this headphone but I'm told it's notoriously heavy.  The Germans were smart enough to use thumb screws to hold the rods in place.

When John Grado copied the design of the PS1, to make a mahogany version called the PS1, he went back to the simple plastic rod holders and screw-free design of the PS1.

The cups may have changed sizes on the GS1000 but the architecture of the headband stayed pretty much the same.  The rodholders remained plastic, with no HP1000-style thumbscrews.

When the mushroom tops went aluminum in the PS1000, the additional weight of these aluminum shells weren't considered enough of a problem to merit an upgrade from the same plastic rod holders sans thumbscrews.

Having owned all of these headphones - with the exception of the PS1 and the HP1000 - I'm convinced that the Grado rod holder assembly is just not up to the challenge of handling all that weight.  I've owned all of the current-design aluminum Grados: the SR325, the HF2 and the PS1000.  I didn't keep my HF2 long enough to have a problem with the gimbal rod, but both the SR325 and the PS1000 had trouble handling their weight.  The simple, plastic rod-and-bushings design couldn't prevent "slippage."

This is the Grado rod holder.

Here are the guts of the plastic rod holder.

This is how the bushings fit into the assembly.

This is what the whole thing looks like when you add the C-Clamp to the picture.

The bushings simply add a little rubbery friction to hold the gimbal rods in place.  On the upside, you can move and adjust the headbands easily.  

On the downside, two little pieces of rubber may have trouble holding the cups upward.  With all of my aluminums - except for the HF2 - I have experienced slippage issues.  The pair of rubber bushings simply weren't enough to handle the job.

The most commonly suggested solution has been to buy and add shaft locks, like these.

These SR325s are similarly outfitted with shaft locks.

There is an entire thread devoted to modding the rod holder to introduce thumbscrews.

+1 to using set screws. also, thanks for ripping apart a block bill! i was always curious with what kind of black magic was going on inside there.

One option, not previously explored, is to replace the worn-out bushings with something better.  Rubber bushings are not hard to find.  The bushings used in the Grado rod holder are quite basic.  They work fine with the ligher Grado models, but they could be upgraded for a more heavy-duty handling for a better fit with the heavier cups.  This would eliminate the need for an external locking mechanism and would be more convenient than even thumbscrews.

What type of grommets (I think that's what they're called) did you use to hold the speaker wires to the cans?

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bilavideo 

 

Here's the nature of the problem.

 

Joseph Grado's now-legendary PS1 didn't have rod locks.  It used plastic rod holders and rubber bushings to hold the gimbal rods in place.  It's the same basic design you'll find on all Grados - high to low.

 

The lone exception is the German-made HP1000, which featured an all-aluminum body, thick aluminum rods and aluminum rod holders.  I've never worn this headphone but I'm told it's notoriously heavy.  The Germans were smart enough to use thumb screws to hold the rods in place.

 

When John Grado copied the design of the PS1, to make a mahogany version called the PS1, he went back to the simple plastic rod holders and screw-free design of the PS1.

 

The cups may have changed sizes on the GS1000 but the architecture of the headband stayed pretty much the same.  The rodholders remained plastic, with no HP1000-style thumbscrews.

 

When the mushroom tops went aluminum in the PS1000, the additional weight of these aluminum shells weren't considered enough of a problem to merit an upgrade from the same plastic rod holders sans thumbscrews.

 

Having owned all of these headphones - with the exception of the PS1 and the HP1000 - I'm convinced that the Grado rod holder assembly is just not up to the challenge of handling all that weight.  I've owned all of the current-design aluminum Grados: the SR325, the HF2 and the PS1000.  I didn't keep my HF2 long enough to have a problem with the gimbal rod, but both the SR325 and the PS1000 had trouble handling their weight.  The simple, plastic rod-and-bushings design couldn't prevent "slippage."

 

This is the Grado rod holder.

 

Here are the guts of the plastic rod holder.

 

This is how the bushings fit into the assembly.

 

This is what the whole thing looks like when you add the C-Clamp to the picture.

 

The bushings simply add a little rubbery friction to hold the gimbal rods in place.  On the upside, you can move and adjust the headbands easily.  

 

On the downside, two little pieces of rubber may have trouble holding the cups upward.  With all of my aluminums - except for the HF2 - I have experienced slippage issues.  The pair of rubber bushings simply weren't enough to handle the job.

 

The most commonly suggested solution has been to buy and add shaft locks, like these.

 

These SR325s are similarly outfitted with shaft locks.

 

There is an entire thread devoted to modding the rod holder to introduce thumbscrews.

 

 

Quote:

Originally Posted by ROadkill66611 

What type of grommets (I think that's what they're called) did you use to hold the speaker wires to the cans?

 

 

you just bumped a really old post. that guy isn't even on head fi anymore.. what exactly are you asking? Inside the cups, there is a zip tie wrapped around the cable, with some slack to hold it in place

you can't see them there, but all i used was a zip tie around the cable to hold them in place. 

I actually was referring to the rubber grommet-like part of the wire that many wires use at the headset point of entry (aka the terminal). I initially didnt know what that rubber part was called. I've since found out it's called the strain relief boot. Thanks anyway and best wishes.
 

Quote:

Originally Posted by chrislangley4253 

you just bumped a really old post. that guy isn't even on head fi anymore.. what exactly are you asking? Inside the cups, there is a zip tie wrapped around the cable, with some slack to hold it in place

 

 

 

you can't see them there, but all i used was a zip tie around the cable to hold them in place.