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Finding Materials - Tolex for Cabinets and Aluminum for Road Cases |
updated 4/03
Where Do I find Tolex?
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Classic Fender Tolex for use on speaker cabinets and cases: It is the
same stuff that is used to make Vinyl roofs for cars (at least
these used to be very popular in the USA, I don't see them much anymore).
Many people have gone to shops that sell auto
upholstery and found a supplier of material there (Tolex is one of many of
the trade names for outdoor automotive vinyl - Levant is another).
- www.marshallparts.com - Look up cabinet covering
- Auto Vinyl Top Material
- www.vibroworld.com - The Same Vinyl Cabinet Material you see on production gear
- Stewart McDonald - They sell Tolex by the yard
Here are some sources:
Auto repair shops can get a much larger selection of this material than listed above. If you ask them nicely, they may even tell you where they get it from (so you can buy in volume if you really need a lot of it). However, the auto shops or suppliers (like those listed above) can get you small quantities of material - enough for a few cabinets. If you go to the manufacturers of these materials, expect to have a large minimum order (they don't sell by the yard, they sell by bolt - A bolt is usually 25 or 32 yards (approx 30 meters) of material on a roll), they do not sell small quantities.
Please note, Tolex (and other material like it) does not stretch much, its not supposed to.
Where do I find Aluminum extrusions to build my own Road Cases with?
- www.penn-fabrication.com - Houston Texas
- www.ecscase.com
- www.crtvworks.com
Here you can run into the same problem that you have with Tolex, most suppliers want to sell you a few thousand feet (approx 1/2 a kilometer) of the material you want. This is great if you are in the business of making road cases, but not so handy if you are just making a few for your own personal use. Knowing what to ask for is the second major problem; many companies will want to make custom extrusions for you, but that will cost a fortune, you want to use extrusions that they already make.
You want materials that have the following cross-sections:
Typically, the material that fits into this will be 1/4 inch (approx 6 mm) or 3/8 inch (approx 9 mm). This will be what is used for the sides of your road case.
Case material Suppliers:
You might find one of them that has the material in stock and will sell you a few hundred feet of it. Its worth a try. Please review the web pages. Odds are good that if you ask them if they have 'Road Case' materials, the sales departments will have no idea what you are talking about. You are looking for 'strutuctural extrusions'.
This site shows some construction solutions:
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Anvil Case Construction
Questions? Comments? .
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