Anybody "re-foamed" speakers?

I have some vintage Infinity Reference Four speakers in my workshop and I head a buzzing and lo & behold the foams are shot. I can buy a kit off of ebay to do the pair for $35.00, but really don't want to screw them up.

Is this something I can tackle? or best left to a pro for $140.00 (for all 4 speakers) in the pair? Just how do you keep the cones centered? Thanks for any help. T

I've done it a couple times. Worked great. I wouldn't hesitate to do it again.

I did it for a living. It's not terribly hard. I have a few tricks if you try to tackle it for yourself. Have you priced out kits? If you want, send me the link and I'll make sure they're good stuff. Some substitute the proper glue for Elmer's glue (looks identical, but isn't).

DrBoost wrote: I did it for a living. It's not terribly hard. I have a few tricks if you try to tackle it for yourself. Have you priced out kits? If you want, send me the link and I'll make sure they're good stuff. Some substitute the proper glue for Elmer's glue (looks identical, but isn't).

Thanks! Thinking about this kit, comes with the Big and Mids:

Infinity Reference Four Speaker Foam Surround Repair Kit / Woofer Refoam Kit

I re-coned a pair of Cerwin Vegas, and promptly stuck them in the attic after I got married. They sounded decent for the few weeks I used them, though. Anyone want them? :-)

Gasoline wrote: Just how do you keep the cones centered?

I'd like to know the answer to this question. A few years back, I replaced the bass drivers in my Boston Acoustics A40's. As I recall, at least one of the voice coils was rubbing. I would have re-foamed them if I thought it would give good results.

That was before I had heard just how commonplace re-doing the foam roll suspension was.

I developed a trick to keep the VC centered. Usually you remove the dust cap and use shims. This works fine but can be a bit fiddly. Here's my trick. Glue the inside of the foam to the cone (CLEAN IT ALL) and wait for it to set. Now, instead of removing the dust cap and using shims to jam debris in the VC gap, get a 9-volt battery and some stripped wire. Hook the battery to the speaker. The speaker will push all the way to the limit of its excursion.(tip, JBL speakers have to be hooked + on the battery to - on the driver to get the cone to push out, all others are + to +). That'll center the cone and keep it the foam far from the basket while you apply the glue to the basket. After the glue is tacky (I hope this isn't white glue) remove the battery. The cone will drop straight down, perfectly centered. Let it dry overnight before you use the speaker.
If anyone refoams a speaker, IM me if you want. Heck, you can even call me.
Gasoline: The kit seems decent but the glue is what concerns me. Cheap kits use white glue. It holds, but not as well and for not as long. The better kits use a yellow, clear glue for the foam.
The white glue is great for sealing the foam-to-basket edge to prevent flapping.

In reply to DrBoost:

Cool! Thanks for your help. I will look for the yellow, clear glue.

I can't remember what the manufacturer was, I'll see if I can find out. When I'd build a new driver there was between 4 and 6 different glues depending on the speaker. For refoaming, two glues.
I don't know if it'd make financial sense, with shipping and all, but if anyone wants, I'll refoam them for you. I dunno, maybe $10 a driver. If you're interested, shoot me an IM.