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This is the second Archived Forum which was active between 1st March 2012 and 23rd February 2022
Now that I have some time for to work on my radiogram again, I need some advice. First, how should I treat the wood? Should I use teak oil or wax or something else? My second question concerns the bearings of the beogram: what kind of oil should I use? Thanks in advance for the advise!
Wouter
If you want to get the wood like new, clean with paint thinner or acetone, sand with 200 grain, until the wood has an even color and all smaller marks and nicks are gone, then sand with 400 grain. Clean off dust, apply teak or boiled linseed oil, let soak, wipe off excess, let dry 12-24 hours, sand light with 400 grain, apply oil, let soak, wipe off excess. let dry 12-24 hours. Polish with lint free rag.
For lubricating the BG, use sewing machine oil or Liquid Bearings.
Collecting Vintage B&O is not a hobby, its a lifestyle.
Thank you Søren! I tried it first with my beovox 1500's, and after the first sanding and oiling they look a lot better than before! Tomorrow round two.
The Beovox 1500's look al lot better now. Next will be the beomaster.
But first: the beogram 1000. It wasn't working when I got it, and after cleaning and lubricating it, it still did not work... Now I disassembled it completely, and I think that it should work when put back together. When apart, the damage and nasty spots on the metal became visible, and as they might be hard to spot when it is in the radiogram, I want it to look perfect. However, I'm not certain what colour... Maybe silver/grey again, or black, or maybe green, like this beogram 3000!
I like the green with rosewood, but the silver/grey is the original, I normally prefer original, but in this case I would think a lot and then choose the green. There is an old thread where the color code is mentioned..
Søren Mexico: I like the green with rosewood, but the silver/grey is the original, I normally prefer original, but in this case I would think a lot and then choose the green. There is an old thread where the color code is mentioned..
I'm not sure yet, difficult question...
I've been working on my beovox 1500's today. after a lot of sanding and oiling, they look a lot better now! Still need some veneer, glue, a steady hand, patience and some more sanding and oiling to get them perfect, but for now they look good. Pictures will follow.
Recapping the crossover boards: Before - After
New, more healthy and better sounding (IMHO) damping material. Cutting it the right size:
Filling them up
And preventing more damage
Hopefully I will have some time tomorrow to attach new, longer speaker cables to the crossovers and reassemble them. Will post an interesting picture of the crossover board as well! :-)
Looks good, but if you cant use the caps fasteners, at least glue the caps with silicone.
Søren Mexico: Looks good, but if you cant use the caps fasteners, at least glue the caps with silicone.
Good point Søren! I actually used some wood glue to glue them to the wooden plates on top of the coils, works quite good!
Still,
We have to check each other, it has to be as near as original as we can get it.
Søren Mexico: We have to check each other, it has to be as near as original as we can get it.
Indeed! I tend to silver/grey, fortunately I've two weeks to think about it! :-)
Here the difference between gray and green, BG 3000/Thorens (highest on my wish list)
Not forgetting the black with oak veneer version (which I have just ordered from Frede).
Dave.
Is this yours Dave? Perfect match!
Brengen & Ophalen
Thanks for the pictures! They all look good, but I think I'll just stick to original which is more close to silver than grey. I really like my black beogram 1000, but I think it will look too dark inside the cabinet. When I get my hands on another beogram 1000, I'll definitely paint it racing green like the one above!
Today I put back together my beovox 1500 speakers. Connected to the bm 900, they are a perfect match! Now it is really clear to me why the 1960's are called the golden era of hifi. The speakers sound really good. They are now placed terrible, but in a good position, especially combined with a pair of cubes (the treble could be more clear) it sounds awesome!
Concerning the cubes: I found the first one!
At least, the biggest part of it! Wondering where the other one is... It should be somewhere!
Leslie, this one was actually one that Frede restored for another customer and posted here a while ago. I liked it so much as the light Oak is a perfect match for my Frede restored 5000 system. Based on those pictures, I ordered the identical Beogram 3000 Thorens 124 in these colours from Frede and it is currently being worked on as we speak. Probably receive it in August/September.
Very curious how yours will look like Dave.
After further cleaning of the beomaster and installing another new lamp, I tried to fix the problem with the FM tuner. The wheel that presses against the wheel that moves the cord was slipping. I fixed it by gluing some sanding paper on its surface. Works perfect! However, I have a question concerning the FM reception. Underneath the radiogram, a wire is fitted. When I connect both ends to the beomaster's red connector, nothing happens. I have no reception. Without any cable connected to my beocenter 9500 reception is perfect... Am I missing something? Connected like the picture below:
What a wonderful piece of hi-fi it is!
Okay, don't know whether or not it will turn out nice, but this will be the colour! Tomorrow the next layer!
Picture does not show the colour very well, Ferrari red it is!
Third layer:
Apparently it's ready but for the final bench testing phase and a retipped (nude-line elliptical) stylus. Frede says it looks really nice so when it arrives, I'll post some pictures.
When the weather improves I can finish the beogram, for now I've to be patient... Frank helps me!
Last weekend I replaced my "modern" (90's) setup with the golden era equipment. The last days I've only been listening to the vintage equipment and it is great. Sometimes I grab my beolink 1000 to turn down the volume, but that isn't going to work...
The Cx's are connected to my bc9500, but will have to make room for a pair of cubes someday.
This weekend I purchased another pair of loudspeakers. A pair of beovox 2200. One of the woofers is not working, but it is fixable so no problem! The wood is in excellent condition, with only two marks on de veneer. A nice pair of 60's speakers added to my collection! :-)
They look good! (nothing done so far)
Quite small!
Gold plated logo's!
Installing new caps. (and glueing the broken plastic bracket)
Sanding the wood
Oiling the wood. The difference is very good noticeable!
Waiting for them to dry
They match the other equipment very well!
The second one is not finished yet, so I am not able to really put them to a listening test, but I think they sound quite good for their size!
I have a pair of 2200s as well, and I quite like them. You will find though that they are very directional and will need to be aimed at your head!
--mika
What is the problem with the failing woofer ?Christian
My re-capped M75 are my precious diamonds.
tournedos: I have a pair of 2200s as well, and I quite like them. You will find though that they are very directional and will need to be aimed at your head!
I wanted to use them on a shelf with my 900 k and beogram 1000 in between, but maybe I have to think about some other placement...
Christian Christensen: What is the problem with the failing woofer ?Christian
One of the tinsel leads is damaged at the end. I currently fixed it with some solder but for a more durable solution it needs a new one.
Concerning the beovox 2200's, I found out that one of the woofer coils was touching the magnet so I need to take a look at that.
The good news: My Beomaster 900 RG De Luxe is completely functional. I used a donor beogram 1000 as the old motor was, unfortunately beyond repair. The "build in" preamp needs to be fixed so i used an external one. I love it.
Before:
The preamp (temporary solution):
The transplantation:
Previously the metal was suspended on the wood using rubber cylinders, unfortunately these were dried out completely. I used rubber rings from the speaker cabinet of a AV9000 tv to suspend the beogram and screwed the four screws into cork. Checked everything to be level using an iPhone, it's perfect.
A real beauty!
I love it!
My vintage setup is complete! I finally found a pair of cubes! They are in neat condition, no scratches on the feet, but they could use some refurbishing. All the drivers are functioning.
The sound quality improved dramatically. Furthermore the sound stage has widened.
Icons of their time
Great, now you should search for the Beolab/Master 5000 classic. ..
Leslie: Great, now you should search for the Beolab/Master 5000 classic. ..
Yes, and after you have found them you'll think, "Now I need the bigger Beovoxes"... and another pair of Cubes...
Jacques
chartz:"Now I need the bigger Beovoxes"... and another pair of Cubes...
You gotta feed the virus
valve1: You gotta feed the virus
Well, I was thinking about some combination of my third cube tweeter connected to a center speaker via a stereo connector box. I'll definitely keep you updated. For now the setup perfectly fits my needs
My beomaster found himself a brother
Nice find, and a lovely match!
Does it all work?
Can you tell me how you removed the dry oil and lubricated your Motor? I am a beginner and any help would be great.
Thank you
Just a note to anyone new or new-ish to refurbishing any vintage item from someone who scrapes a living from it
It might seem either obvious or superfluous but the time and heartache you will save by being totally anal over putting each type of screw/component in a separate little plastic cup (of the disposable type) or zip close bag and labeling it (write on a bit of masking tape and stick to bag).
Photograph every stage of the disassembly no matter HOW simple and obvious it looks at the time.
And finally the one that separates the pro's from the armatures - cut card panels and masking tape them in place to protect wood veneers / perspex panels etc and do all your re-finishing of wood / perspex etc when it is separated from the electronics and use a thick wool blanket to rest the item on on your workbench to protect it.
Always use the same side "UP" for the blanket and buy the best quality masking tape you can from an auto refinishing supplies.
Buy good quality small steel, brass and nylon "Wire Brushes" - they are the most useful things after the screwdriver!