Howard's Restore-a-Finish was recommended to me in another thread I started (see here). So I decided to give it a shot. Before using it on my New Large Advents (the subject of that other thread), I tested it first on some other speakers: some Pioneer CS-33s and CS-77s. Scratches weren't really the problem on the 33s, just a little ink on one and some crusty residue (from some kind of liquid, I think) on the other. I used 0000 steel wool and it did a great job on the 33s, removing all the ink (with a little extra elbow grease) and the crusty residue.
So today I tried it on the CS-77s. They had numerous significant water marks (they had been used as end tables by the young guy I bought them from). I used the steel wool as the applicator, and they too required a little elbow grease to get the water marks out. But the results were dramatic and, in my opinion, outstanding. I also applied one coat of Howard's Feed-n-Wax to both the 33s and the 77s, and I may try adding another (or more) to see how much a difference it makes.
But I couldn't be happier with the results as they are at this point. I don't know if they match "original color" (whatever that might have been forty years ago!). But I think they look great. And what's better is that this stuff couldn't be any easier to use. For relatively problem-free surfaces, it's literally wipe on and wipe off, and the difference is huge. And for heavy water marks (or other issues), it takes just a bit of extra rubbing to remove them. (The grills on these big Pioneers, what I guess are called "grate" style, are sure to be another story!).
And no, it didn't completely remove the deeper scratches from the wood (after all, there is no sanding involved), but they do even out the color and finish so that small scratches are hardly even noticeable. And it's said by others that while they darken the scratch somewhat at first, they even out a bit after a little time has passed. Here are some before/after pics of the CS-77s.
Here are some before pics showing the obvious water damage.
Here are some taken after just the RAF treatment.
And these are after one application of Feed-n-Wax.
So today I tried it on the CS-77s. They had numerous significant water marks (they had been used as end tables by the young guy I bought them from). I used the steel wool as the applicator, and they too required a little elbow grease to get the water marks out. But the results were dramatic and, in my opinion, outstanding. I also applied one coat of Howard's Feed-n-Wax to both the 33s and the 77s, and I may try adding another (or more) to see how much a difference it makes.
But I couldn't be happier with the results as they are at this point. I don't know if they match "original color" (whatever that might have been forty years ago!). But I think they look great. And what's better is that this stuff couldn't be any easier to use. For relatively problem-free surfaces, it's literally wipe on and wipe off, and the difference is huge. And for heavy water marks (or other issues), it takes just a bit of extra rubbing to remove them. (The grills on these big Pioneers, what I guess are called "grate" style, are sure to be another story!).
And no, it didn't completely remove the deeper scratches from the wood (after all, there is no sanding involved), but they do even out the color and finish so that small scratches are hardly even noticeable. And it's said by others that while they darken the scratch somewhat at first, they even out a bit after a little time has passed. Here are some before/after pics of the CS-77s.
Here are some before pics showing the obvious water damage.
Here are some taken after just the RAF treatment.
And these are after one application of Feed-n-Wax.
