This is not exactly what you asked; hopefully, this may help a little. The older M55 resonator tubes were/are a metal flake lacquer. The newer resonators are believe are powder coated. I brought my resonators into a well equipped automotive paint shop and they got the color very close. I use Omni AU Gold dust Metallic, which is a two part acrylic enamel.
Thanks for the information and sorry for the late feedback. I have received from a school an old and completely run down M55 frame without motor in silver. This I now want to prepare for my gold bars and gradually provide with my modifications.
I have already integrated a very lightweight stepper motor that runs extremely quiet (I hear only bearing and air noise) by a special motor mount and a special control unit.
Some missing bar posts I have replaced by 3D printed variants made of flexible material. This is so much more comfortable (no noise, no moving, no shock noise) that I will probably replace them all. After that I will add my twistable flaps and have the tubes powder coated.
Regarding using a stepper. Did you use a Nema 17 motor and control it with something like a Raspberry PI, or an Arduino? A assumed you used micro stepping to keep the noise down.
The following are some random thoughts/suggestions:
I had some silver Musser bars re-anodized in gold. I had it done twice by two different anodizers because the finish was "splotchy" both times the finish wasn't 100% even. They were almost a semitone flat before retuning. According to the anodizer, it was a function of the alloy making up the bars. After a retune, they sound wonderful, although they have a unique look, my customer is very happy with them. I've always wondered if Musser has a way of knowing what batches of aluminum work best for gold.
You may have noticed this already but there is a "stress riser" on the inside two rails where they are cut down to allow for the old motor. In later models Musser M55s have a long screws from the bottom bottom of the rail; I assume this was to fix the cracking problem I've seen in a few M-55 frames. Will you powder coat legs and damper parts too?
I always check to see if the hinges (where the legs mount to the end blocks) are working properly. Often the bushing is spinning and not the shaft. Also check for small cracks on the legs at the weld points. The frame around the expandable casters is often bent or cracked. Replacing the plastic bushing on the caster with a slightly larger bushing made out of aluminum make the casters more stable. This is assuming you have a stock M-55 frame (vs. a field frame).
I love the idea of 3D printed posts. It seems like every now and then my aluminum bar posts gets bent in transport. Will 3D printed posts break under the same circumstances?
Best regards,
IndianaGlen
Comments
M55-G colors
IndianaGlen Wed, 02/16/2022 - 17:32
This is not exactly what you asked; hopefully, this may help a little. The older M55 resonator tubes were/are a metal flake lacquer. The newer resonators are believe are powder coated. I brought my resonators into a well equipped automotive paint shop and they got the color very close. I use Omni AU Gold dust Metallic, which is a two part acrylic enamel.
M55 repair & upgrade
wyndorps Wed, 02/23/2022 - 05:38
Thanks for the information and sorry for the late feedback. I have received from a school an old and completely run down M55 frame without motor in silver. This I now want to prepare for my gold bars and gradually provide with my modifications.
I have already integrated a very lightweight stepper motor that runs extremely quiet (I hear only bearing and air noise) by a special motor mount and a special control unit.
Some missing bar posts I have replaced by 3D printed variants made of flexible material. This is so much more comfortable (no noise, no moving, no shock noise) that I will probably replace them all. After that I will add my twistable flaps and have the tubes powder coated.
M55 Frame, Questions and comments
IndianaGlen Wed, 03/09/2022 - 09:39
Regarding using a stepper. Did you use a Nema 17 motor and control it with something like a Raspberry PI, or an Arduino? A assumed you used micro stepping to keep the noise down.
The following are some random thoughts/suggestions:
I had some silver Musser bars re-anodized in gold. I had it done twice by two different anodizers because the finish was "splotchy" both times the finish wasn't 100% even. They were almost a semitone flat before retuning. According to the anodizer, it was a function of the alloy making up the bars. After a retune, they sound wonderful, although they have a unique look, my customer is very happy with them. I've always wondered if Musser has a way of knowing what batches of aluminum work best for gold.
You may have noticed this already but there is a "stress riser" on the inside two rails where they are cut down to allow for the old motor. In later models Musser M55s have a long screws from the bottom bottom of the rail; I assume this was to fix the cracking problem I've seen in a few M-55 frames. Will you powder coat legs and damper parts too?
I always check to see if the hinges (where the legs mount to the end blocks) are working properly. Often the bushing is spinning and not the shaft. Also check for small cracks on the legs at the weld points. The frame around the expandable casters is often bent or cracked. Replacing the plastic bushing on the caster with a slightly larger bushing made out of aluminum make the casters more stable. This is assuming you have a stock M-55 frame (vs. a field frame).
I love the idea of 3D printed posts. It seems like every now and then my aluminum bar posts gets bent in transport. Will 3D printed posts break under the same circumstances?
Best regards,
IndianaGlen