My Crites center speaker shipped today!

[Squishman]

Pretty sure Crites doesn't stock the speakers they sell. They build them per order. Their website says 2-3 weeks and they shipped today, 20 days after my order. I am very jazzed to get it. They stained and lacquered it in walnut to match my Klipsch Heresy III's. Hopefully, it's close, but I am not expecting it to be exact. Tracking says this Sunday! Does Fedex deliver on Sundays?

 

[Teetertotter?]

Saturday and Sunday Deliveries from FedEx Home Delivery | FedEx
Enjoy the CRITES!

 

[Squishman]

The regular order is raw birch. I paid an extra $100 for walnut wood and stained/lacquered. They have several shades to choose from.

 

[Squishman]

Saturday and Sunday Deliveries from FedEx Home Delivery | FedEx

Great news! I knew they delivered on Saturdays. Sundays is news to me.

 

[lovinthehd]

Does Crites do a full build from driver to cabinet ?

 

[Squishman]

Does Crites do a full build from driver to cabinet ?

From what I understand is they farm out the cabinet parts then assemble, sand, etc. I believe they make their xovers. They probably don't make the drivers, but I think the late founder Bob Crites I think had a hand in designs and engineering. Bob died around 2 or 3 years ago and now his son Michael runs the operation. Their speaker line is called "Cornscala" with various iterations. Lovely speakers.

 

[Squishman]

It is very nice. It came with a grill, which was unexpected. The website doesn't mention it. The color matches my Heresy III's very close. Weighs 54 lbs. Well the box was. Loaded with mostly styrofoam. Oh and it sounds great. Looking forward to trying something on Amazon Prime or some such to really test it out tonight.

 

[Squishman]

Here is a photo. What do you think of the color match? This is the bedroom 5.2.2 system. I hope you don't mind the home-biult stand that my TV is on. Someday, I may set this up different. Mounting TV on the wall for starters. For now, I am not trying to get on Better Homes and Gardens.
Oh yeah, the grill material is the same as my Heresy III's. Bonus!

 

[Trebdp83]

Wow, nice match. They did a great job.

 

[everettT]

Here is a photo. What do you think of the color match? This is the bedroom 5.2.2 system. I hope you don't mind the home-biult stand that my TV is on. Someday, I may set this up different. Mounting TV on the wall for starters. For now, I am not trying to get on Better Homes and Gardens.
Oh yeah, the grill material is the same as my Heresy III's. Bonus!

Looks nice, if he didn't put a sealer or some type of clear coat you could add more stain till the color matches your eye. I'm not saying it doesn't look good now or doesn't match by any means, just wanted to note it's easy if you wanted it darkened at all.

 

[Squishman]

Looks nice, if he didn't put a sealer or some type of clear coat you could add more stain till the color matches your eye. I'm not saying it doesn't look good now or doesn't match by any means, just wanted to note it's easy if you wanted it darkened at all.

I wouldn't want it darker. Maybe shinier. I am not a wood working guy, but I thought it said "stained and lacquered". I can't find where I read that at the moment. But could I add something like clear lacquer or clear coat (no clue) to match the sheen of the H3's?

 

[TLS Guy]

I wouldn't want it darker. Maybe shinier. I am not a wood working guy, but I thought it said "stained and lacquered". I can't find where I read that at the moment. But could I add something like clear lacquer or clear coat (no clue) to match the sheen of the H3's?

The will have used a satin lacquer. You need to find out if they used a latex or oil Lacquer. Then you could sand with a very fine sandpaper and apply a gloss, or semi-gloss, finish of the same type.

 

[Squishman]

Wow, nice match. They did a great job.

Thx. I think so too.

 

[everettT]

I wouldn't want it darker. Maybe shinier. I am not a wood working guy, but I thought it said "stained and lacquered". I can't find where I read that at the moment. But could I add something like clear lacquer or clear coat (no clue) to match the sheen of the H3's?

As TLS mentioned, determining what the top coat is and going from there, you could easily bring out a more mirrored/gloss finish. The last coats and sanding are a big cost for manufacturers but to do it yourself in a few weekends wouldn't be hard, just time consuming.

 

[Squishman]

The will have used a satin lacquer. You need to find out if they used a latex or oil Lacquer. Then you could sand with a very fine sandpaper and apply a gloss, or semi-gloss, finish of the same type.

That might be something I will tackle someday. I will ask what they used on it. Glad to know the sheen can be improved. Probably finish the Cornwall first. I'll need to purchase some veneer for the Cornwall. I'll be in touch so I get the right stuff first. I want to go mahogany to match the color of the La Scalas. You said you have black grill cloth? The speaker measures approx 25" x 35". The grill board is in decent shape, cloth, not so much. I bought some velcro with adhesive. And I have a period-correct badge for the grill.

 

[Eppie]

As TLS mentioned, determining what the top coat is and going from there, you could easily bring out a more mirrored/gloss finish. The last coats and sanding are a big cost for manufacturers but to do it yourself in a few weekends wouldn't be hard, just time consuming.

What about simply applying paste wax and buffing to the desired level of shine? Or is that better suited for oils and shellac?

 

[highfigh]

The will have used a satin lacquer. You need to find out if they used a latex or oil Lacquer. Then you could sand with a very fine sandpaper and apply a gloss, or semi-gloss, finish of the same type.

Latex lacquer? Did you mean 'Lacquer that dries via solvent evaporation' or pre-catalyzed lacquer? If this company does high volume and if the finish has hard, I would bet it's pre-catalyzed lacquer- it's ready to ship much faster than most other lacquers, like Nitrocellulose, which takes a much longer time to dry and stop off-gassing.

 

[highfigh]

I wouldn't want it darker. Maybe shinier. I am not a wood working guy, but I thought it said "stained and lacquered". I can't find where I read that at the moment. But could I add something like clear lacquer or clear coat (no clue) to match the sheen of the H3's?

How shiny? If you decide to try this, you could buy a small can and test some polishing methods, to avoid damaging the speakers. Or, you could ask if they would send a piece of scrap wood with the same finish, so you can practice. Altering the finish will likely void the warranty (if it covers the finish), but it could make the center match the Klipsch better.

FYI- sandpaper is available in grit beyond 12,000 and that's fine enough to polish bare wood.

Edit-

I used the online chat on the Crites site and asked what they use for the finish- Minwax stain and polyurethane- they provided photos of the cans but they don't use all of them at one time, but they use a combination of the stain and poly.

I have polished polyurethane and have used mostly Minwax- I sprayed my kitchen cabinets with their Fast Drying Satin Floor Polyurethane and left it alone, but I can polish an inconspicuous spot and let you know how it turns out.

Poly is different from most other finishes WRT adding coats- it needs to be re-coated within a certain amount of time (several hours), or after 24 hours and if the latter, it must be sanded (or you can use ScotchBrite pads).

 

[highfigh]

Who owns Crites Speakers? Did Bob have employees?

 

[TLS Guy]

Latex lacquer? Did you mean 'Lacquer that dries via solvent evaporation' or pre-catalyzed lacquer? If this company does high volume and if the finish has hard, I would bet it's pre-catalyzed lacquer- it's ready to ship much faster than most other lacquers, like Nitrocellulose, which takes a much longer time to dry and stop off-gassing.

Yes, there are now lots of water based lacquers, or varnishes if you like. If Crites are a larger operation then they will be forced to use water based products by the EPA. That is why your auto finishes are now water/latex based and not oil.

I think oil is better, but latex varnishes can give good results as long as you seal the wood with an oil based product first. If you don't then the water makes the grain 'pick-up' and you never get a smooth finish.

For his purposes 600 grit will be perfect. Home Depot no longer stock it, but I have found that Walmart do. For furniture finishes I recommend 600 grit for most woods.

Just make sure you remove the drivers before doing ANY cabinet re-finishing.

He does need to know what product was used.