Above: It's not an iron... really. It's actually an exothermic energy displacement engine with super-heated gaseous hydro-expulsion capability... yeah... |
To our amazement, iron-on veneer was incredibly easy to work with. We broke down and just bought the stuff that Lowe's had in stock, which turned out to look quite extraordinary in the end. It cost about $80 per pair for the red oak variety. This is probably pricey. But 'iron-on'?! C'mon, this was made soooo easy.
I suggest you read Wayne's article on trimming veneer around your rabbets (like I did). This method is quick and easy -- and probably the sharpest as well.
Next I picked out a stain and finish that suited my fancy. I chose the Minwax Cherry stain and the accompanying polyurethane satin finish. In retrospect, It's absolutely amazing how many bits of these speakers are made of polyurethane. Talk about versatile. Following the directions on the can brought about dazzling results. Absolutely gorgeous! My friend applied two coats of Minwax Red Oak stain (in lieu of my single coat) and two coats of Minwax Polycrylic Clear Satin finish (as opposed to my three). He used synthetic brushes instead of real or foam - also apparently yielding magnificent results.
Incidentally, I used foam brushes for everything. They're dirt cheap (67 cents each) and produce ideal results -- why spend $4 on a real horse hair brush?