Who has done this ?........ ( Older ALTEC Woofers )

[LowOhms]

For several years now, Per Hasling in Denmark has written of the advantages of cleaning the goop that clumps-up with high heat over time , at the bottoms of some ALTEC woofers, infringing upon their high compliance and optimum performance.

SEE this URL :

News

Has anyone tried cleaning their accordion cloth outer surrounds and if so, what was used as a safe solvent and technique to do this? I take it, since Per avoids discussion of solvents used, and he does this as a living, he keeps his technique proprietary.

My first question is, is it ethical and moral to compare notes here, on a public ALTEC Forum, amongst those in the USA that have cleaned their outer surrounds of clumps?

I cleaned one of my woofer surrounds in December, and LOVED the difference.

My result ( visually ) was not a good as the lovely cleaning result Per shows, so I am thinking, ..maybe someone here in the USA knows how to do this more effectively.

I'd like to open this topic up for discussion. It took me two days to gently do one 515B woofer, but the A-B comparison, afterwards was awesome to hear.

Comments and thoughts from you good folks ??

Second question : Does anyone have a trashed cone where they could experiment with cleaning solvents? I don't !!

Suggestions ??

Jeff Medwin

[VolvoHeretic]

I do. What did you use?

[LowOhms]

I do. What did you use?

Hello VH,

I used 91% Isopropyl Alcohol, and a toothbrush, The goo sorta gums up on the toothbrush, and I continuously wiped it off on a paper towel. I had my fingers below the outer surround, to support the underside continuously where I was brushing. It was a gradual and gentle cleaning of the surround's outside, but not the inside. Done over two days.

I am wondering now if Acetone and a toothbrush would be viable. Its more aggressive. Its the only chemical I was able to think of, that may give such a totally cleaned look as Per got, on his web pages.

Q. Will acetone hurt the cloth surround, or damage the original 515B cone I have ??

WIKI Acetone :
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Acetone

Q. Got a junker anyone so I can experiment. Just the cone and surround, I'll pay shipping, post results for all.

So VH, what did you use, and what are your thoughts ( or others' ) on how to do it best?

I absolutely love hearing the results, listening full range to the cleaned 515B .

Jeff Medwin

PS: I'm new. Is GM and OG messin' with you above? LMAO. I do too, piano black high gloss!!

[VolvoHeretic]

LowOhms, I have a blown woofer, but have never tried cleaning the goop. It has sagged and run over time. What's that goop made of anyway, is it oil based or what? Acetone sounds kind of harsh.

Those are actual quotes from the two gentlemen.

[tomt]

these are the people that made the 'goop'.

Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. - Manufacturer of industrial gases and specialty chemicals

they called 'that stuff', 'airflex 5100'.

if your real nice, they may tell you what you need to soften 'this stuff'.

they may not,

as most of what they do involves a great deal of research,

and its my understanding that they have much competition from around the world.

competition that is serious, as in espionage/sabotage serious,

so you might use a great deal of tact.


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here is one of their products, although it might not be obvious, there are people watching this 'tank' as it makes its travels -





RailPictures.Net Photo: NS 3435 Norfolk Southern EMD SD40-2R at Bethlehem, Pennsylvania by Austin MacDougall

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i've tried Acetone, i don't it again.


thanks for the link

[LowOhms]

these are the people that made the 'goop'.

Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. - Manufacturer of industrial gases and specialty chemicals

they called 'that stuff', 'airflex 5100'.

if your real nice, they may tell you what you need to soften 'this stuff'.

they may not,

as most of what they do involves a great deal of research,

and its my understanding that they have much competition from around the world.

competition that is serious, as in espionage/sabotage serious,

so you might use a great deal of tact.


`````````````````````````````````````````````````` ``````````

here is one of their products, although it might not be obvious, there are people watching this 'tank' as it makes its travels -





RailPictures.Net Photo: NS 3435 Norfolk Southern EMD SD40-2R at Bethlehem, Pennsylvania by Austin MacDougall

`````````````````````````````````````````````````` ``````````````



i've tried Acetone, i don't it again.


thanks for the link

Hello tomt !!

Helpful post. It lead me to this on airflex 5100 with Google :

http://www.hostboard.com/forums/f700...ex-5100-a.html

and most interesting was post #12 in that thread.

Another thread on "goop" is here, how to get it, not how to clean it :

http://www.audioheritage.org/vbullet...Goop-quot-guy-!!!

tomt, you wrote at the end of your post in words I am unable to comprehend , this :

" i've tried Acetone, i don't it again. "

Can you please share with us exactly how you tried acetone, and what were your results ???

Were you meaning to say " I won't do it again ".??

What happened, 'cause I don't want to ruin my remaining uncleaned 515B, and do seek a good solution, with the help of others smarter than me.

Jeff Medwin.

[RonSSS]

If you have a dud cone, I would try automotive brake cleaner.
Both the chlorinated and unchlorinated. I use it for cleaning all sorts of stuff.
Also try spray carb cleaner.
Perhaps try, toluene, or lacquer thinner.
I'd also be tempted to get a bag of the wooden Qtips.
Although they might put more stuff in the goo.
Bill at GPA may know what removes it too. He puts the stuff on!
Ron

[mikebond]

Hello!
I did it many times, maybe before Per Hasling The best liquid is nitro solvent (based on acetone) for nitro paint. Here in Russia it called "646" Solvent. This solvent leaves no spots on the speaker's cone. I use medium hard brush.

Regards, Mike

[604man]

I use Toluene and a natural 1/2 in. wide paint brush trimmed 1 in. long to clean the accordion.

apply for 20min. Toluene is the solvent for the goop...........GC

[mah]

FYI: Tannoy K3809 - hardened cloth surround issue - solved - diyAudio