Tri cone replacement cones from Thomann.de

[doug]

Howdy from Ontario Canada...
First time poster.

I'm asking if anyone could help me with a contact, email, website etc. for Royall EU.

I have been in touch with Griffin at Royall guitars in the US ,although sympathetic regarding my concerns,he has no contacts for the European company.

I ordered tri cone replacements from Thomann .de and 
was assured they were hand spun (Continentals I assumed)

All were packed in separate boxes and labeled as Royall RMB2.
One cone was spun on a lathe, the other two are stamped/ pressed .
Under magnification, it's obvious to see the cutter marks in the one cone while the other two are smooth to the touch and have no etched grooves.

Thomann will not acknowledge that there may have been a mistake.

I am attempting to contact the supplier to find out how they can ship stamped cones and claim they are spun.

Very frustrating to say the least.

Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

Regards, Doug

see attachment:
The 5 cones lined up are all exactly identical right down to the imperfections in the embossed swirls. 2 from Thomann , the 3 that were fitted from the factory in this Aiersi resonator.
Speaking to Mr. Devon Zhu, Aiersi, has informed me that the cones shipped with this guitar are indeed stamped and can be purchased separately for approximately $20.00 usd for a set of 3. 

[pete1951]

From your photos it looks like they are all spun, some were spun quicker than others, so the typical spinning marks are much smother on some.
The cones are then stamped with the spiral pattern ( not something you can ‘spin’ in.)
So these cone are spun, then stamped.
Pete

Some of the edge details are also stamped in at the same time. ( not sure of the timing,but this would seem logical)

The only real upgrade would be a set of NRP cones which will be much more expensive, Far Eastern cones can be a little thick ( I have been told this by someone more experienced with Tricones than me )

You also have felt rings on your guitar, sometimes these improve the tone ( they will probably stop any rattling due to uneven cones/ well.) Many remove them

Your guitar is also ‘ under strung ‘ . National tailpieces were no designed to have the string like that. However, if your guitar has not been given enough neck angle, it may be the only way of putting enough pressure on the bridge without a neck reset.

[Michael Messer]

Hello Doug,

Pete is correct about your understrung guitar and that may require looking at.

Meanwhile...on to the questions about cones.

Some facts...

Your cones are spun and then stamped with the spirals and some of the edge shaping.

The 'Continental' cone brand does not really exist. It is what Westerners call cones made in Shanghai by a particular spinner. This is now changing because one of the guitar manufacturers is muddying the waters by spinning copies of 'Continental' cones with CNC machinery, which I do not approve of.

The Shanghai resonator guitar industry is brutally competitive and a manufacturer will tell you anything to criticise a competitor. I know this from experience. So be careful about who you speak to and what they tell you.

I always advise people not to buy direct from the manufacturers in China, it is always better to go through reputable Western dealers. The people you bought from are a good company and they buy from numerous manucturers. However, what they have told you is correct - they are spun cones. Whether they were spun by a computer or by the skilled spinners is unknown.

I always check every cone in every guitar, even with them made for me, there can be faults. So I change them for a better one. I did this today in a guitar - I wasn't sure about its tone and when I looked I could see a flaw in the cone, so I changed it. That is not going to happen when a guitar is manufactured with no quality control, and it is not going to happen when you order from Thomann. Who, BTW are great people to deal with.

I have my MM cones made to my specifications by the expert spinners in Shanghai. I do not have a tricone in the MM range, so I don't have any 6 inch cones.

Shanghai 6 inch cones for tricones are made of the same gauge aluminium as 9.5 inch single cones are made from. This is not correct, it should be a lighter gauge.

Writing to email addresses in Shanghai is a pointless exercise for you. It will just stress you out get you nowhere.

Looking at your photos is not like having them in my hands, but those cones look alright to me.

Why have you fitted gaskets?

I think we should start again from scratch - what guitar have you got, why are you changing the cones? Send us photos and information and we can go from there.

Just trying to help you. I have been doing business with manufacturers in Shanghai for sixteen years and I have been there, so I know the names you are mentioning.

Shine On
Michael