Can this custom enclosure be repaired?

[phenryiv1 10+ year member]

So the enclosure in the pictures below was purchased for my WRX and arrived today. As you can see, it did not arrive intact. Here are the facts:

• Enclosure was purchased from a fellow member of one of my Subaru forums.
  
• I paid about 2.5-3 weeks ago but due to issues finding a box it just shipped out yesterday and arrived today.
  
• Cardboard box looked to be 95% intact. The enclosure was held in place with a series of pillows.
  
• I opened the box to find the driver had collapsed into the enclosure. The mounting ring had almost completely detached from the front of the enclosure and was still attached to the driver.
  
• I took the photos as I progressed toward removing the sub, which had fallen into the enclosure and was stubborn about coming back out the front of the enclosure.
  
• From the looks of things, the inner mounting ring was not attached all that well to the front of the enclosure. One ring of hot glue around the edge joint and a single skim of resin on some parts- no fiberglass, no wood glue between the face of the ring and the back of the enclosure face, no brads or nails.
  
• There were a couple of thin "struts" holding the ring to the back of the face, but those struts all broke or have become loose. There were 3 of them and only 1 of them was braced to the back of the enclosure.
  

So where I am now:

• When I initially bought it I only bought the sub out of convenience- I really just wanted the enclosure. The sub is worthless to me without the enclosure. It isn't like I would just toss it in a rectangular(-ish) enclosure and go on.
  
• Despite having some fabrication skills, I don't do fiberglass and never have.
  
• I bought the enclosure to save time versus the effort to make my own, plus I thought that is had a "cool" factor over a pre-fab enclosure from AI or WickedCAS.
  
• The seller only insured the shipment for $100.
  
• A call to the ONLY audio shop in my area that I have ever used- ever- said that they would not fix it. I sent pictures to the head fabricator and he said he'd rebuild it before he tried to repair it, since to do it "right" he would basically have to cut out the back of the enclosure and re-glass it.
  

SO...

Can it be fixed? If so, how? If I pay someone, how many hours might I be looking at to have it fixed? If I DIY, how long might it take me? (As I said, I paid what I paid to AVOID having to DIY or to spend time running to/from shops, etc.)

If it can't be fixed, how would be the most fair way to resolve this with the seller?

Let me know your thoughts, please.

Click to read more...

 

[jrdnhsnbrg 10+ year member]

You got screwed... Junk box, shoulda saved yourself time and money and made your own.

 

[phenryiv1 10+ year member]

You got screwed... Junk box, shoulda saved yourself time and money and made your own.

I don't know how to fiberglass, can't afford the downtime with my vehicle, and am simply too busy to learn (full time job, 2 hour daily commute, "side" job in producing a specific automotive product that I fabricate by hand [another 8-10 hours per week], and I have 2 young kids). I also built, race, and repair an SCCA-sanctioned race car (7 weekends a year), so time is a bit limited.

Paying $450 for the enclosure was better than spending the time and money to fumble through making my own.

All that said, I assume that your opinion is that the enclosure cannot be salvaged.

 

[jrdnhsnbrg 10+ year member]

I don't know how to fiberglass, can't afford the downtime with my vehicle, and am simply too busy to learn (full time job, 2 hour daily commute, "side" job in producing a specific automotive product that I fabricate by hand [another 8-10 hours per week], and I have 2 young kids). I also built, race, and repair an SCCA-sanctioned race car (7 weekends a year), so time is a bit limited.
Paying $450 for the enclosure was better than spending the time and money to fumble through making my own.

All that said, I assume that your opinion is that the enclosure cannot be salvaged.

Sweet baby jesus that's insane. $450 for a box... It really doesn't look salvageable to me, I'd wait and hear some other opinions though.

 

[cfox10 10+ year member]

Glassing is pretty easy... could be done in a weekend while still working.

 

[Joebobclark 10+ year member]

Thats *****....

But it could be fixed. Just need to make a new ring, may have to cut it in half to get it inside the box. But then just center it best you can and fiberglass in place. Not the easiest to fix, but definitely possible!

 

[phenryiv1 10+ year member]

Sweet baby jesus that's insane. $450 for a box... It really doesn't look salvageable to me, I'd wait and hear some other opinions though.

I should have specified- $450 included shipping, the Memphis subwoofer, and the enclosure. So basically $300 for the enclosure, though the sub is worthless to me without the enclosure.

 

[Braindead]

[quote name='phenryiv1']I don't know how to fiberglass, can't afford the downtime with my vehicle, and am simply too busy to learn (full time job, 2 hour daily commute, "side" job in producing a specific automotive product that I fabricate by hand [another 8-10 hours per week], and I have 2 young kids). I also built, race, and repair an SCCA-sanctioned race car (7 weekends a year), so time is a bit limited.

Paying $450 for the enclosure was better than spending the time and money to fumble through making my own.

All that said, I assume that your opinion is that the enclosure cannot be salvaged.[/QUOTE]

I'm sorry man, but it sounds like he ripped you off...

You could've worked with a builder on here and gotten a much better box for less money. But saying thats all useless, heres a couple builders i know offhand on here and from what i've seen they do really good work. @Buck ; @dbeez ; @pro\-rabbit ;

 

[4bannger 10+ year member]

With the work that it would take to fix that box you would be better off just getting a new one. Most shops arn't going to want to touch it and DIY'ing it would take some know how.

If you bought it and received it like that i would send the same pictures you posted and explain. I think that the box was poorly made from the start. there is no reason for that ring to break off like that.

 

[Jeffdachef 5,000+ posts]

if your going to pay 450, you should have just have an audio shop do it... Thats a sorry excuse for a baffle on a box, makes us question the quality of the overall design of the box in the first place. Get the guy to refund you the box and have a professional do it.

 

[phenryiv1 10+ year member]

Thats *****....
But it could be fixed. Just need to make a new ring, may have to cut it in half to get it inside the box. But then just center it best you can and fiberglass in place. Not the easiest to fix, but definitely possible!

Would I want to glue and brad nail it in place? How about replacing the "struts" that held the ring in place while it was built the first time? Do I need to re-create those?

I have a fair amount of fabrication experience but my only experience with fiberglass is in conjunction with POR15 as a floor patch or reinforcement in floorpans.

 

[phenryiv1 10+ year member]

I guess I made the mistake of going through a vehicle-oriented website and not an audio website. The seller was NOT the builder- he re-sold an enclosure that he paid to have made and used in his own car. I have no idea what he paid.

Now that I have it all apart I see that the back is fairly thin. If I end up keeping this I may have to add additional layers to the inside.

I hate to have to reverse this transaction. The only "winner" will be the shipping company. But if I can't use it and can't repair it in a cost-effective manner, I may have to go that route.

 

[4bannger 10+ year member]

I guess I made the mistake of going through a vehicle-oriented website and not an audio website. The seller was NOT the builder- he re-sold an enclosure that he paid to have made. I have no idea what he paid.

My best suggestion would be to try and get a refund and go spend that money at a car audio shop. You can get a pretty sweet box for that kind of money. From what I see the box was mad pretty cheaply and fixing it would be like painting over rust.

 

[jrdnhsnbrg 10+ year member]

Ship him the sub back and get a refund man...

 

[phenryiv1 10+ year member]

I don't like the way it looks like this is going, but I appreciate the feedback. Ignoring what I paid, if it isn't right, wasn't shipped right, and can't be fixed then it is what it is. I don't feel like the guy tried to pull a fast one on me, just bad luck. Shipping it without solid packing exposed inferior construction. Had it been built right it would have survived the trip and all would be fine.