Woodworker advice needed (rabbet cut in a speaker cab?)

  • Thread starter Thread starter gybe!
  • Start date Start date
gybe!

gybe!

Well-known member
Looking to solve an issue on a speaker cabinet but before I commit things to router saw dust I thought I should seek some additional opinions...

Issue in particular is a front mounted speaker cab has the hole for the speaker cut roughly ~1/16" too small in diameter for the basket on the speaker I am trying to place in it. So, we have a plywood speaker baffle (either 1/2 or 3/4", haven`t measured yet) with a roughly 12" diameter hole cut in it as well as the 4 speaker mounting holes that are maybe 1/8 to 1/4" away from the edge of the larger speaker hole. The interference with the baffle is just at the edge of the speaker basket and is not actually full thickness thanks to the bevel in the speaker basket itself. In other words, I don`t need to straight shave off a full 1/16th off the ply to get the speaker to fit.

My current thinking is to use a plunge router with a rabbet bit on a bearing to register on the baffle/existing speaker opening and only cutting in at the least amount of depth and adding around 1/16" to the overall diameter of the opening. My concern is tear out of the plywood baffle especially relative to the existing speaker mounting holes...Am I worrying too much and should just send it or am I destined for failure and should think of a different approach?


For those that will want to know; cab in question is an older VHT Deliverance 412 and the speakers I want to place in it are the Fane F70s....So, I will need to have this approach 4 times....
 
I pondered this very project. I don’t think the tear out would be significant enough to worry about. I would just make sure the bit is sharp. You can also do a test run on some scrap to see the results.
 
Emg77 said:
I pondered this very project. I don’t think the tear out would be significant enough to worry about. I would just make sure the bit is sharp. You can also do a test run on some scrap to see the results.
Click to expand...
Definitely planning test runs

But I have also had the test go great and then go full send and don’t get matching results?
 
if it's only a 16th could you not just hog it out with a drill and bit? of course a router is best but like I said it's pretty small. I dunno...might try the lipstick trick and see where its making contact. Might just be a couple spots maybe? shit like this makes me nervous. but I'm also impatient and routerless....lol....
 
Safest bet is to sand it. 1/16 should come off pretty easily with 80 or 100 grit. You just never know with a router.
 
Kelly said:
Safest bet is to sand it. 1/16 should come off pretty easily with 80 or 100 grit. You just never know with a router.
Click to expand...

Test cuts went fine, then I started laying things out and am realizing I am out of space when dealing with the edges of the cabinet. The router base is too large to actually be able to cut into the existing speaker hole at two spots for each opening…

So, I may be forced to sanding as is. Been looking at compact trim routers but even those aren’t great matches for the space available.

Ugh. Annoying.
 
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