# Custom kick panels - FJ Cruiser with Dyn MW182



## captainobvious (Mar 11, 2006)

I recently completed a job for a customer on a Toyota FJ Cruiser to build a set of custom kick panel enclosures to house Dynaudio MW182 woofers. The goals were to get the drivers as deep in the kicks as possible and retain as much legroom as we could.


Pics of the build progression:
































Kicks were then reinforced with duraglass and then some resin/long strand chopped fiberglass, followed by filler.


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## captainobvious (Mar 11, 2006)

Test fitting, and making small adjustments to shaping and fitment...



























Wrapping. Done with the best vinyl match we could find for similar texture, color and sheen as the factory pieces.












Edges on back reinforced with a bead of CA.


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## pocket5s (Jan 6, 2012)

looks like they tucked in there nicely


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## captainobvious (Mar 11, 2006)

Speaker connection leads were soldered and then on the other end is a set of insulated XT60 connectors to connect to the wire runs.










Lined the enclosures with Stinger Ultimate roadkill and lightly added some recycled denim insulation.





















The customer is having some custom floormats made to finish the look in the kicks as what you see here is a simple piece I cut to fit for now. For some reason the pics make the vinyl look much blacker than the trim panels, but they are in fact a very close match when looking at them.


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## captainobvious (Mar 11, 2006)

pocket5s said:


> looks like they tucked in there nicely





Thanks. Yeah they are definitely as low profile as I could make them. He can actually rest his foot between these and the brake pedal which is rare with cars with kicks.


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## Lycancatt (Apr 11, 2010)

that much cone area up front there must be quite nice!


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## Truthunter (Jun 15, 2015)

Excellent work Steve! I'm sure the customer is very happy with them... I would be 

Question: Looks like they will be vented into the unibody through those openings in the sheet metal. Were there connector blocks located in those openings and where did they get relocated to? Any photos of that?


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## naiku (May 28, 2008)

Those came out really nicely. 



Truthunter said:


> Were there connector blocks located in those openings and where did they get relocated to?


Connector blocks are the main thing preventing me from building some bigger kick panels. I really want to try something a little larger, but behind my drivers kick panel is a mess of wiring that I suspect will be a major headache to relocate anywhere.


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## SkizeR (Apr 19, 2011)

This guy can build some beautiful kick panels but cant even double pump a no skin, smh 

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## Foghorn (Sep 18, 2017)

First off that is some outstanding work!
Wishing I could of had a duplicate set made at the same time
Interested in hearing how they sound.


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## Mic10is (Aug 20, 2007)

All that work and he still wont think it sounded as good as his 1st season competing.....;-)

Nice work tho, I especially like the transition into the sill panel and how its actually cosmetically integrated into the vehicle and body lines...
So many installs on here that just have speaker blobs in random places.


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## Truthunter (Jun 15, 2015)

SkizeR said:


> ... but cant even double pump a no skin, smh
> 
> Sent from my SM-G950U1 using Tapatalk


I have no idea what that means but maybe I don't want to know after hearing what you and Geoff were discussing at last weekends comp :worried2:


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## danno14 (Sep 1, 2009)

I would SO love to have these replicated in my car! Stellar work here


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## Elgrosso (Jun 15, 2013)

So nice! Looks like it took you only few hours 
The round over cut on the bottom left dash was already here?


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## ErinH (Feb 14, 2007)

Incredible work, bro. Just excellent.


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## lowcel (Dec 28, 2014)

Beautiful work. Can't wait to hear them.


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## benny z (Mar 17, 2008)

<3

(no ****)


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## Gump_Runner (Aug 2, 2014)

Those are bitchin! Would installing "kicks" on the opposite side (in the middle console - under the dash) accomplish the same result?


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## SkizeR (Apr 19, 2011)

Truthunter said:


> I have no idea what that means but maybe I don't want to know after hearing what you and Geoff were discussing at last weekends comp :worried2:


just realized how weird it sounded.. its video game speak lol. Steve is a bad influence on me and makes me stay up until 3am playing fortnite with him so he can get some wins :laugh:


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## ErinH (Feb 14, 2007)

Gump_Runner said:


> Those are bitchin! Would installing "kicks" on the opposite side (in the middle console - under the dash) accomplish the same result?


Short answer: no.


Long answer: it depends on what you're asking by "same result". If you literally mean the same result then, absolutely not. The boundary reinforcement and modes would be different. You'd also lose L/R cueing, and depending on how high you run them this can be a very important factor. If you are just asking in regards to having some up front bass... sure. But overall I would expect the kicks option to achieve what most of us are looking for better than placing them at the center console, facing toward the doors.


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## GEM592 (Jun 19, 2015)

Yeah and you wouldn't want replace these with dedicated subs either.


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## mrichard89 (Sep 29, 2016)

Incredible looking kicks! I'd love a set for my FJ!


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## BP1Fanatic (Jan 10, 2010)

Awesome kick panels!


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## knever3 (Mar 9, 2009)

So did you cut into the unibody of the truck for more air space? I don't really see the pictures of the modifications to the vehicle. Could you elaborate?

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## bertholomey (Dec 27, 2007)

Those do look excellent Steve! Beautiful integration and I was told they are built like tanks! 


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## GreatLaBroski (Jan 20, 2018)

Absolutely stellar work Steve. This truly look great!


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## bbfoto (Aug 28, 2005)

REALLY nice work, Steve. Honestly some of the nicest kick-panels I've ever seen. Fit and finish looks top notch...looks OEM to me. 

I'm assuming this is for Bill's FJ? If so, he should be over the moon! What range will these play in his system before the subs and the mids take over?


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## captainobvious (Mar 11, 2006)

Truthunter said:


> Excellent work Steve! I'm sure the customer is very happy with them... I would be
> 
> Question: Looks like they will be vented into the unibody through those openings in the sheet metal. Were there connector blocks located in those openings and where did they get relocated to? Any photos of that?





Yes there were some wiring connectors which the customer relocated before dropping the car off. Sorry, I don't have any pics of that part since I didn't do it.


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## captainobvious (Mar 11, 2006)

Mic10is said:


> All that work and he still wont think it sounded as good as his 1st season competing.....;-)
> 
> Nice work tho, I especially like the transition into the sill panel and how its actually cosmetically integrated into the vehicle and body lines...
> So many installs on here that just have speaker blobs in random places.





Thanks Mic. I had to take quite a few extra hours to get the transition and shape just right. He was surprised to see his factory kick panel plastics still sitting untouched in the back seat when he arrived  In some builds, I might use the factory kick to build off of to retain that factory shape, but I needed to do these free hand to make them extra strong and to also allow for the greatest amount of recess into the kick area.


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## captainobvious (Mar 11, 2006)

SkizeR said:


> just realized how weird it sounded.. its video game speak lol. Steve is a bad influence on me and makes me stay up until 3am playing fortnite with him so he can get some wins :laugh:



I have no idea what this guy is talking about.






:surprised: 






knever3 said:


> So did you cut into the unibody of the truck for more air space? I don't really see the pictures of the modifications to the vehicle. Could you elaborate?
> 
> Sent from my SM-G920P using Tapatalk



The FJ has a fairly good sized opening behind each kick panel already although it's hard to say how much airspace those provide. No additional cutting has been done, yet.








bertholomey said:


> Those do look excellent Steve! Beautiful integration and I was told they are built like tanks!
> 
> 
> Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk



They are quite heavy and beefy. While playing, you can put your hands on the enclosures and not feel much tactile feedback. After constructing, I reinforced with more fiberglass on the inside and then also lined with Stinger Ultimate Roadkill.




bbfoto said:


> REALLY nice work, Steve. Honestly some of the nicest kick-panels I've ever seen. Fit and finish looks top notch...looks OEM to me.
> 
> I'm assuming this is for Bill's FJ? If so, he should be over the moon!. What range will these play in his system before the subs and the mids take over?



Thanks Billy. I'm not sure yet on the crossovers. Right now Bill is letting these break in and then they can be re-evaluated for crossover points as well as deciding if any additional venting is required.


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## captainobvious (Mar 11, 2006)

Instead of starting a new thread, I figured I would just add my fabrication pics here for another project I recently completed on this vehicle- pillars!


The goal was to create new pillars housing the new drivers and keep the car in the ModEx class for competition- no small order for drivers of this size. We tested for hours in the vehicle with several different drivers, locations and angles before the customer made the call on what he wanted to go with.
Some challenges with these were the curtain airbag bracket I had to build around as well as the size and build off requirements.


Without further ado....Here are some build pics.


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## MrGreen83 (Jun 11, 2015)

Stunning 


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## GreatLaBroski (Jan 20, 2018)

Incredible work. Just wow.

(and nice driver selection)


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## TomT (May 19, 2005)

Absolutely stellar work!


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## SkizeR (Apr 19, 2011)

So thats why you havent been on xbox..


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## bertholomey (Dec 27, 2007)

Phenomenal work! I can’t wait to hear it!


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## rton20s (Feb 14, 2011)

I don't know that I've ever seen anyone else run the Accuton stuff in a car. I think your pillars are worth more than my entire vehicle. :laugh:

Those came out great.


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## bbfoto (Aug 28, 2005)

Now those are *A-pillars*, haha! :thumbsup: They look the size of most C- or D-pillars in other vehicles. :surprised:

But absolutely fantastic work, Steve! Curious if you guys auditioned the ATC domes as well? Looks like you'd have plenty of room for them in those A-pillars (the motor is massive)! I'm loving mine. My absolute favorites for near- to mid-field midrange drivers pretty much fall between the B+W's that you have in your TC and the ATC domes, though both the B+W's and the Accutons will play a bit lower in the right alignment for a (usually) easier transition to the mid-bass.

Anyway, MAD PROPS on a fine job! :thumbsup: 

We'll have to see how long this keeps Bill satisfied until he gets the itch to try somethin' different.


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## danno14 (Sep 1, 2009)

Oh.... my......!


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## captainobvious (Mar 11, 2006)

bbfoto said:


> We'll have to see how long this keeps Bill satisfied until he gets the itch to try somethin' different.





I'll get him some calamine lotion.


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## JVD240 (Sep 7, 2009)

Sounds like I'm missing out. Pics don't work for me. :|


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## DavidRam (Nov 2, 2014)

No pics visible to me either... I wish I had a better imagination.


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## naiku (May 28, 2008)

OK, not just me. I see nothing, what's weird is that on my end it looks as though the links to the pictures are not even there but on my phone it shows as a blocked image hosted on photobucket. Does not show up in either Chrome or IE.


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## captainobvious (Mar 11, 2006)

Photobucket has server issues right now. Should be back up when they fix it.


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## LOST_llama (Feb 10, 2013)

captainobvious said:


> Thanks. Yeah they are definitely as low profile as I could make them. He can actually rest his foot between these and the brake pedal which is rare with cars with kicks.


Look beautiful!

Are the kicks secured to the car in anyway?


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## BP1Fanatic (Jan 10, 2010)

Those A pillars are HUGE! Awesome work!


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## Porsche (Jun 29, 2008)

​


rton20s said:


> I don't know that I've ever seen anyone else run the Accuton stuff in a car. I think your pillars are worth more than my entire vehicle. :laugh:
> 
> Those came out great.


i have been using acetone for probably 20 years, superb drivers


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## Porsche (Jun 29, 2008)

what amp you driving the accuton with


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## SkizeR (Apr 19, 2011)

Porsche said:


> what amp you driving the accuton with


Bill's using the zapco ap amps

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## D34dl1fter (Jun 23, 2016)

SkizeR said:


> Bill's using the zapco ap amps
> 
> Sent from my SM-G950U1 using Tapatalk


150.6's I believe


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## captainobvious (Mar 11, 2006)

BP1Fanatic said:


> Those A pillars are HUGE! Awesome work!





Thanks.
They appear bigger than they actually are because the FJ has abnormally short pillars as compared to typical passenger cars. It has a very short windshield. So the pillars are wide, but short. This makes them appear to be bigger than they would be in any other car. But yeah, they are still not "small" by any means.


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## DavidRam (Nov 2, 2014)

Beautiful work!!!


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## rockinridgeline (Feb 2, 2009)

I think I just saw this at World Finals. Didn't get to listen, but the pillars looked amazing. I realize he probably picked the drivers for their sound, but they really fit well with the FJ interior and the rest of the installation.


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## captainobvious (Mar 11, 2006)

rockinridgeline said:


> I think I just saw this at World Finals. Didn't get to listen, but the pillars looked amazing. I realize he probably picked the drivers for their sound, but they really fit well with the FJ interior and the rest of the installation.





Yup, that's the one as it was there competing


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## preston (Dec 10, 2007)

Did you build these kicks and pods straight from duraglass (fiber reinforced filler) or was there a fiberglassing step you didn't show - in between the tape mold and the bondo smoothed version.


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## mrichard89 (Sep 29, 2016)

Love the FJ cruiser! Don't know much about those speakers, but they look fancy and the pillars look great.


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## captainobvious (Mar 11, 2006)

preston said:


> Did you build these kicks and pods straight from duraglass (fiber reinforced filler) or was there a fiberglassing step you didn't show - in between the tape mold and the bondo smoothed version.





There were multiple layers of fiberglass mat and another higher strength weaved mat, plus a long strand chopped plus resin mixture I made up before the duraglass.


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## Porsche (Jun 29, 2008)

how does it sound with the cell mid and tweeter, those are excellent drivers, i have used them before


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## Jscoyne2 (Oct 29, 2014)

Large dome midrange. Neat idea!

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## captainobvious (Mar 11, 2006)

Porsche said:


> how does it sound with the cell mid and tweeter, those are excellent drivers, i have used them before





Have you used this C168 mid?
The resolution of the midrange detail is pretty stunning. I was very impressed by them.


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## captainobvious (Mar 11, 2006)

Jscoyne2 said:


> Large dome midrange. Neat idea!
> 
> Sent from my XT1710-02 using Tapatalk





It's still a cone actually (not dome).


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## Jscoyne2 (Oct 29, 2014)

captainobvious said:


> It's still a cone actually (not dome).


Those accuton look interesting. I read a lil on their site about how they work but its a bit beyond me i guess. Still. Neat looking. Reminds me of my Satori mr16p









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## Porsche (Jun 29, 2008)

captainobvious said:


> Have you used this C168 mid?
> The resolution of the midrange detail is pretty stunning. I was very impressed by them.


yes i have, i have used accuton for over 20 years


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## captainobvious (Mar 11, 2006)

Porsche said:


> yes i have, i have used accuton for over 20 years



Yeah, I know you have used Accuton, just didn't know if you had any direct experience with this specific mid. 


It's quite an engineering masterpiece.


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## rton20s (Feb 14, 2011)

captainobvious said:


> Yeah, I know you have used Accuton, just didn't know if you had any direct experience with this specific mid.
> 
> 
> It's quite an engineering masterpiece.


I haven't even had the opportunity to hear an Accuton driver, and now they're doing this... https://www.facebook.com/MancinellaMarco/?rc=p


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## GreatLaBroski (Jan 20, 2018)

rton20s said:


> I haven't even had the opportunity to hear an Accuton driver, and now they're doing this... https://www.facebook.com/MancinellaMarco/?rc=p


I'm curious why the diamond cones are superior to beryllium when they have such an aggressive breakup mode.

Accuton BD51-6-585 Diamond Cone Tweeter (~$11k per pair):
@5.6v / 315mm distance:











Bliesma T34B-4 Beryllum Dome Tweeter (~$900 per pair):
@5.6v / 315mm distance:










And if they're not superior, why not roll with some top-notch Beryllium dome tweeters and save the rest for a completely custom DSP / DAC / Amp setup? I guess I'll probably never know, due to the fact that I don't see myself ever spending $11k on a set of tweeters.


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## Jscoyne2 (Oct 29, 2014)

GreatLaBroski said:


> I'm curious why the diamond cones are superior to beryllium when they have such an aggressive breakup mode.
> 
> Accuton BD51-6-585 Diamond Cone Tweeter (~$11k per pair):
> @5.6v / 315mm distance:
> ...


Because they are in a 2 million dollar car and the word diamond is on it

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## Porsche (Jun 29, 2008)

captainobvious said:


> Yeah, I know you have used Accuton, just didn't know if you had any direct experience with this specific mid.
> 
> 
> It's quite an engineering masterpiece.


yea, they have knocked it outta the park with the cell technology


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## DavidRam (Nov 2, 2014)

captainobvious said:


> Instead of starting a new thread, I figured I would just add my fabrication pics here for another project I recently completed on this vehicle- pillars!


These aren't A pillars anymore, they are double D pillars (with implants)...


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## GreatLaBroski (Jan 20, 2018)

Jscoyne2 said:


> Because they are in a 2 million dollar car and the word diamond is on it
> 
> Sent from my XT1710-02 using Tapatalk


Wow I’ve never seen a $2mm mini-van before. They must have replaced the car’s wiring loom with audioquest cables.


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## Jscoyne2 (Oct 29, 2014)

GreatLaBroski said:


> Wow I’ve never seen a $2mm mini-van before. They must have replaced the car’s wiring loom with audioquest cables.


https://accuton.com/en-home/automotive-audio

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## GreatLaBroski (Jan 20, 2018)

Ahh I was talking about the Facebook link. Those drivers look like the Accuton diamond tweeters, so I assumed Accuton is the OEM. Putting them in a Chiron makes perfect sense.


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## Jscoyne2 (Oct 29, 2014)

GreatLaBroski said:


> Ahh I was talking about the Facebook link. Those drivers look like the Accuton diamond tweeters, so I assumed Accuton is the OEM. Putting them in a Chiron makes perfect sense.


Did u read the part about the bass system. Its rather amusing. Still. I wouldn't drive a Chiron for its sound system. 

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## GreatLaBroski (Jan 20, 2018)

Jscoyne2 said:


> GreatLaBroski said:
> 
> 
> > Ahh I was talking about the Facebook link. Those drivers look like the Accuton diamond tweeters, so I assumed Accuton is the OEM. Putting them in a Chiron makes perfect sense.
> ...


That has to be some of the most vomit-inducing marketing-wank that I’ve had the misfortune of reading.


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