*Update 5/7*Project log - Disassembling the Grado RS1 & Modding and Thunderpants Mod(with pics)

[pcf]

Amazing thread. One of the best I have seen at Headfi.
 

 

[LugBug1]

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Amazing thread. One of the best I have seen at Headfi.
 

+1
 
Ya doing a fine job! 
 

 

[Rhor]

looks amazing! great work with the dremel, i would scare myself. . .i have not-so-steady hands.
if you dont mind me asking. why did you sand the plates between the driver and your ear? and how did you manage NOT to fill them with dust from the sanding?

 

[schwallman]

Push on them really hard. there are 2 or 3 glue dots holding them in place
 
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Yup, they just rest in there.  Yeah, it's a pretty big gap but not worried about it.  Can fill with wood glue or wood putty.  I'm sure I'll figure out something.  
 
How did you get your metal screens out?  Mine are really stuck in there.

 

 

[mlantinen]

 
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Amazing thread. One of the best I have seen at Headfi.
 

+1
 
Ya doing a fine job! 

Thanks fellas.  Much appreciated. 
 
 
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looks amazing! great work with the dremel, i would scare myself. . .i have not-so-steady hands.
if you dont mind me asking. why did you sand the plates between the driver and your ear? and how did you manage NOT to fill them with dust from the sanding?

Well...it's definitely not perfect but it's cleaner and more importantly the drivers sit in there flush and flat now.  the drivers were all wonky before I cleaned up the left over bits of glue and wood.  Plus it was fun to use the dremel.  Remember guys...if you're going to use a dremel for precision work you should buy the Flex Shaft Attachment.  It's much lighter.  Just sit the main dremel on your lap if your sitting down and then work with the lighter dremel. 
 
I decided to sand down and polish the plastic on the outside of the drivers because I didn't like the way they looked with the cheesecloth removed.  I like looking at these beautiful drivers and removal of the cloth doesn't seem to affect the sound quality (maybe it would for those more refined ears, but not mine).  Once the cheesecloth is removed there's sandpaper like bumps leftover...looks like glue resin.  It's ununiform and I don't like it. 
 
So I remembered that I had some Novus 2 Fine Scratch Remover leftover from a computer case mod that I had done several years ago.  I started with 320 grit then went to 600 and then 800.  Then I applied a very, very small amount about the size of a pellet from a bb-gun to a dish cloth (rubbing two parts of the dishcloth together to get the Novus to spread evenly on the cloth) and wiped very gently over the plastic driver to make sure not too much of the substance gets trapped in the holes.  IT WILL get caught in the holes but if it's not too much then it won't trip down onto the driver and you can twist the towel and get into the holes to remove and you can even use a damp q-tip to clean out the holes.  You need to make many strokes over the plastic to get the Novus to do it's work.  You can also use more pressure with the same spot of cloth once most the Novus has already been saturated into the cloth.  I might grab some finer 1000 grit and go for a fine polish yet. 

 

[mlantinen]

 
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you can spray goo gone extreme on the screens and take the black off. The silver screens with a dark wood would look nice also.

Good idea, but I'm still leaning toward some sort of copper screens if I can pull it off.  Orrr...
 
***What does everyone think of White Sleeving just like my old Denon's in my sig PLUS, White Painted Screens with an irridescent coating?  Would that cheapen the look of them?
 
 
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Push on them really hard. there are 2 or 3 glue dots holding them in place
 

 Dude, I used the dreml on them last night to chip all the glue and then some, and they are like digging into the side of the cup.  I'll look at the other cup tonight to see if it's the same way.

 

[schwallman]

before i screw my cups up anymore, how are you planning to sand the cups down. Im curious hoe a dremmel abrasive buff might do on them.

 

[schwallman]

they are in there tight, just get one side pushed in and they will come out at an angle. once they come out the first time they will be easy to get in and out
 
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Good idea, but I'm still leaning toward some sort of copper screens if I can pull it off.  Orrr...
 
***What does everyone think of White Sleeving just like my old Denon's in my sig PLUS, White Painted Screens with an irridescent coating?  Would that cheapen the look of them?
 
 
 Dude, I used the dreml on them last night to chip all the glue and then some, and they are like digging into the side of the cup.  I'll look at the other cup tonight to see if it's the same way.

 

 

[schwallman]

picked up a flex shaft and some abrasive pads at lunch. We will see what kind of destruction I can cause tonight.

 

[mlantinen]

 
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before i screw my cups up anymore, how are you planning to sand the cups down. Im curious hoe a dremmel abrasive buff might do on them.

Ha, yeah, I actually tried one fo the abrasive buffers on the face of one of the cups.  You can see it in my pics from last night.  It works ok and may indeed work for the whole shootn match but in my opinion it would only be used to strip most of the old stain/varnish.  Then i'd use sandpaper rolled up in the hand and twisting the cup to get a uniform finish. 
 
I should mention that I do have a lathe, but I haven't tried it yet.  I bought it last fall and I think I bought a chuck that will allow me to grip the cup and spin it for sanding.  I plan to use it more to turn all sorts of stuff.  I'll have to shoot Bill a few messages for pointers if he doesn't mind. 
 
Also, I hesitently am mentioning that I actually purchased a DIY CNC machine about four months back from Kickstarter.  Yes, I plan to use this for all sorts of goodies just like Calico does here on the forums.  But it's going to be an incredibly steep learning curve and who know how long it'll take to learn how to use it, much less put the thing together.  I still haven't received it since I'm waiting for the developer to finalize the USB operation rather than parrallel. 

 

[schwallman]

I dont see the image. would the 320grit buff pad do any damage to the wood or is it gentle enough to not mess with the lines. Also do you think it would destroy the lettering?
 
im sure Bill would love to help you with info about cups. He is always willing to share knowledge.

 
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Ha, yeah, I actually tried one fo the abrasive buffers on the face of one of the cups.  You can see it in my pics from last night.  It works ok and may indeed work for the whole shootn match but in my opinion it would only be used to strip most of the old stain/varnish.  Then i'd use sandpaper rolled up in the hand and twisting the cup to get a uniform finish. 
 
I should mention that I do have a lathe, but I haven't tried it yet.  I bought it last fall and I think I bought a chuck that will allow me to grip the cup and spin it for sanding.  I plan to use it more to turn all sorts of stuff.  I'll have to shoot Bill a few messages for pointers if he doesn't mind. 
 
Also, I hesitently am mentioning that I actually purchased a DIY CNC machine about four months back from Kickstarter.  Yes, I plan to use this for all sorts of goodies just like Calico does here on the forums.  But it's going to be an incredibly steep learning curve and who know how long it'll take to learn how to use it, much less put the thing together.  I still haven't received it since I'm waiting for the developer to finalize the USB operation rather than parrallel. 

 

 

[mlantinen]

@schwally,
That is a good question that I'm not ready to answer as I haven't tried the 320 on my cups yet.  I would maybe try it out on the inside of the cups first to see how it goes.  But I suspect it would be just fine because you'll need to remove quite abit of stain and laquer to get back down to the wood.  You can always rebuilt a few mm of finish with several coats of laquer.  I'm planning on going nuts to get a really shiney and thick layer. 
 
But hopefully I can figure out my lathe tonight.  that would be ideal. 
 
***I wonder if it's possible to jury-rig a drill attachment to slip the cups over, so you can spin and sand them?  Something to think about. 

 

[schwallman]

I will try it out tonight when my daughter goes to bed. I can atleast try it on one cup and  if it doesnt work out, i will see if bill has time to duplicate anoter set of cups. I dont want to loose the lettering though.
 
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@schwally,
That is a good question that I'm not ready to answer as I haven't tried the 320 on my cups yet.  I would maybe try it out on the inside of the cups first to see how it goes.  But I suspect it would be just fine because you'll need to remove quite abit of stain and laquer to get back down to the wood.  You can always rebuilt a few mm of finish with several coats of laquer.  I'm planning on going nuts to get a really shiney and thick layer. 
 
But hopefully I can figure out my lathe tonight.  that would be ideal. 
 
***I wonder if it's possible to jury-rig a drill attachment to slip the cups over, so you can spin and sand them?  Something to think about. 

 

 

[mlantinen]

Ack!  I won't be able to do anything tonight....should have time to monkey around tomorrow.  

 

[schwallman]

That 320 grit buffing pad didn't do much to my cups. I just took a sanding block to them and they came out ok. Need to get some sheets for a final sanding. I still like the unfinished look though.


I still see some spots that i dont know how i even missed. Also went back to the hf2 leather headband. I actually like it more now over the jmoney headband. I sold the original rs1 headband though. So I just switch them out now.