Arrived (after a long wait) via USPS.
Nicely packed with newspaper.
The first (red) head with bouncy mesh, foam-encased piezo, and evidence of the local paper.
The existing set got lots of use, even managing to burn through felt/foam covers that were on since day one.
That's not supposed to do that... I suspect real damage underneath. Good thing I bought these new heads.
Obviously the red pad got the most use, but yellow was in pretty bad shape too.
First pad popped off easily. It's key to know where the holes are that correspond to the rubber mounts (they are N/S/E/W on all pads). Pry firmly there, and they'll let loose.
The pad wire for red is up against the edge. It's a little hard to get in there, but be patient. Use the smallest flat screwdriver you have or a nail file to release the connector's burs.
Yup, the red pad is dead. Heavy use badly shattered the backing.
It wasn't too hard to move the mounting feet to their new locations. However, the punch-marks on the base don't always line up. Measure and test, and be ready to have a tired hand from wielding a small screwdriver.
Part way done. My hands were pretty exhausted from dealing with tiny screws and inadequate pilot holes. Note this model already has foam inside it, so I initially didn't use the stuff included with the kit. Later I realized that was a mistake and added in the (more dense) foam to prevent settling and occasional double-hits.
The completed set!
The hackish struts made of plastic pipe are key. The new heads are far heavier than the stock ones and red/green will vibrate badly without these in place.
Sadly, the blue pad failed during use at my office, possibly related to people that hit very hard. I talked to the GoodWood guys and decided to attempt the repair myself. Note that the screws with washers are the only ones that penetrate to the base.
Note the clever use of PVC pipe as a tensioning ring (presses on the bottoms of the screen). The middle foam piece sits on the piezo and is not glued down, but the outer foam ring is.
Hooray! They didn't go too crazy with the glue. Small blob holding the wires down, thin bead around the foam.
Zoom in for a better view, but with the foam removed it became apparent that the black wire was only holding on by a conductor strand or two.
Step 1: prep the workspace, make sure the TV remote is near by for adjusting ambient noise while I work.
I got a super-cheap 20/40w soldering kit at Radio Shack, and a base-model glue gun at Lowe's. Extra adhesives and whatnot are just in case.
Glue blobs removed, black wire liberated and re-stripped.
They used some sort of solder my wimpy iron was having trouble with, so I ended up cleaning it and essentially using 60/40 solder to weld the wire to the existing blob and piezo.
After an initial test (tapping with my fingers), I re-assembled the head and mounted it. The tension is *slightly* softer than the other heads, but it still works great. I'm back in business! (And keeping "big bangers" away from it.)
