Grill cloth conundrum.

[vanhalen5150]

Last week I got some great basketweave from a member here. (Thanks Toronto Kevin). Reading through Jim's(Scumback) tutorial on "How to not f@#k up your grill cloth" I proceeded. I did the 4/12 first and after about an hour of finger tip pain that would rival bamboo shoots, I got the thing done. Came out pretty darn nice. I could bounce a Canadian dollar off it about 3 feet high(we have coins). Super tight, and not a thread misaligned. "This is frigging easy!"

So your thinking whats the big deal...why is this guy belly aching...what went wrong? Well, next I did what would seemingly be easier, the Mesa 1/12. Followed the exact same proceedure.

But no matter what I did, there is still about a 1/2 to 3/4 sag in the middle when you apply some pressure to it.. Even around the edges, the cloth is raised or rounded a bit over the edges on the inside. The soundboard is plywood, but there is an outer square that fits over it that holds the grillcloth. Its particle board that is cut with a CNC machine so that its all one piece.

Is it possible that the grill frame changes shape when I put it into the cab? The cloth seems tight when its not attached to the cab. Once I screw it on, the cloth seems to be slack.

Maybe Ill have to take it apart again, take some pics, so you guys can see what I mean.

Super annoyed!

[54strat]

I reclothed a 112 Marshall combo after doing my larger cabinet and it WAS more difficult.
When I reclothed my Marshall cab it was all straight and tight when I put it back together. But the cloth relaxed a little after a couple of days and was a little "flappy". Dampened it with a spray bottle set to a fine mist, let it air dry, and it tightened right up. It worked on the combo cabinet too. And no it won't hurt your speakers. Very little of a fine mist will get past the cloth.

[vanhalen5150]

I reclothed a 112 Marshall combo after doing my larger cabinet and it WAS more difficult.
When I reclothed my Marshall cab it was all straight and tight when I put it back together. But the cloth relaxed a little after a couple of days and was a little "flappy". Dampened it with a spray bottle set to a fine mist, let it air dry, and it tightened right up. It worked on the combo cabinet too. And no it won't hurt your speakers. Very little of a fine mist will get past the cloth.

Ok. It just screws in from the back with screws behind the speaker baffle board. So I could just remove it and spray it anyways, then put it right back in.
I'll that a try first. Removing all the staples on both the basketweave and the piping wich is then attached to the outside of the same board is not where I want to go yet.

Thanks for the tip dude.

[vanhalen5150]

Water, correct?

[Big Mike]

yup.

And hot sun for a bit maybe.

[vanhalen5150]

yup.

And hot sun for a bit maybe.

Hmm..don't know when I'll get some of that here though......

[54strat]

It was easy on my Marshall combo because the grill cloth is on a frame attached to the front of the baffle with velcro
With my big cabinet I did not go through the trouble of taking it apart to spray it. But you can of course. You can spray it really good that way and not worry about getting your speaker cone wet at all.
And I just let it dry indoors. I think sun & heat would probably evaporate the water before it has a chance to really soak into the cloth and make it shrink as it dries. And for anyone else reading this...the water trick only works on basketweave, salt & pepper. It will not shrink newer black "cloth" or anything else synthetic.

[vanhalen5150]

Ok, took an extra piece of the grill cloth and put a piece of paper behind it. Using one of those fine mist bottles people use to spray plants I sprayed it about 3 times. There was virtually nothing on the other side.

So, left the grill on the cab and sprayed it pretty evenly 2 times. Layed it on it's back, and set a hair dryer on low. Moved it over the face about a foot away for about a minute. Threads all straightened out perfectly, and is tight against the grill frame.

Thanks guys! Great tip. I wouldn't have believed it was that fast and easy. I should have taken a pre/post pic.

[54strat]

Awesome! You might even have to do it again at some point. I did. The first time I took my cab out for an outdoor gig the heat made it relax so I sprayed it down again and it's been good ever since...couple of years now.

[vanhalen5150]

Checked it this morning. It's actually even tighter. Good stuff.

So I'm thinking would it make sense to dampen this stuff before you put it on?

[54strat]

Oh gosh I don't know. It might make it even harder to work with and get stretched and straight.

[vanhalen5150]

I think your right.