Thiele Cab Baffle Board

I started building a couple of Thiele 1 x 12 cabs, and have run into a problem. I was all set to front mount the speakers to the baffle board, but the mounting screws were to close to the speaker cutout and would have made a poor mount. I have run out of the 18mm birch I was using, and my supplier is not going to carry it anymore. I can make new baffles from the back pieces I haven't covered yet, but I think I should rear mont the speakers. Is that a problem with the Thiele design ?

Thanks in advance for any help,
Mike

Hi Mike,
I built a thiele cab with my father in law this summer. We used the Electro Voice plans for it. If you are using that same design, you will find that the speakers do not fit in from the back because the cleats get in the way. We cut cork to make gaskets and front mounted the speakers on the baffle before installing it. I have a build project thread you can reference if you want to see the process.

http://forum.grailtone.com/viewtopic.php?f=14&t=37817

I think it is easiest to follow the plans, just my opinion.