Members Yarbicus Posted October 3, 2011 Members Share Posted October 3, 2011 What is the reason the change it to a 3 prong cord? I see most people do that as well but nobody has explained why. I really want to do the work myself, but in the interest of time I may take it to Elderly Instruments, or Enzo at Shiawassee Technical Services (I think) if he is still in business. Elderly has sent me to Enzo in the past for my Twin Reverb. Also, where can I get spray to clean the pots? I cannot find any. Look, I don't want to sound like a dick, but if you don't know why you need a grounded plug AND you were willing to turn the thing on with no power tubes or speakers hooked up, you might not be the right person to restore the amp. I HIGHLY recommend that you take it to a pro. BTW excellent score! Rather than getting jealous, I am really happy that this sometimes happens. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members extollo Posted October 3, 2011 Members Share Posted October 3, 2011 really remarkable condition for an amp that ended up in a dumpster. i fantasize about these great uncle left behind this stupid old amp, my husband past away & he had this old amp, type stories. i keep hoping i'll go to a garage sale and ..... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Greg_In_Michigan Posted October 3, 2011 Author Members Share Posted October 3, 2011 Look, I don't want to sound like a dick, but if you don't know why you need a grounded plug AND you were willing to turn the thing on with no power tubes or speakers hooked up, you might not be the right person to restore the amp. I HIGHLY recommend that you take it to a pro. BTW excellent score! Rather than getting jealous, I am really happy that this sometimes happens. The neutral on the power connection acts as a ground. It wasn't there to begin with. Why is it needed now? Everything is grounded to the chassis. There were no power tubes plugged in. Without the power tubes, aren't the preamp tubes segregated from the load? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members jimwratt Posted October 4, 2011 Members Share Posted October 4, 2011 Take it to a pro unless you're very experienced in amp work. Why run the risk of ruining a classic or not getting it into preservable shape? The repairs will be much cheaper than the value of the amp anyway. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members iff Posted October 4, 2011 Members Share Posted October 4, 2011 Damn...so jealous. Great score! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Belva Posted October 4, 2011 Members Share Posted October 4, 2011 Look, I don't want to sound like a dick, but if you don't know why you need a grounded plug AND you were willing to turn the thing on with no power tubes or speakers hooked up, you might not be the right person to restore the amp. I HIGHLY recommend that you take it to a pro. BTW excellent score! Rather than getting jealous, I am really happy that this sometimes happens. This times a bazillion. Take it in and have it done. You ovbiously don't know enough to keep yourself from frying a valuable amp at the very least. At the very most you could get yourself very dead. If you fired it up and got tubes glowing, you prolly didn't fry an OT, but you DID juice up the caps. That means, unless you know how to drain them, they still have serious voltage in them. Don't {censored} with it. Take it in and have it serviced. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Belva Posted October 4, 2011 Members Share Posted October 4, 2011 The neutral on the power connection acts as a ground. It wasn't there to begin with. Why is it needed now? Everything is grounded to the chassis. There were no power tubes plugged in. Without the power tubes, aren't the preamp tubes segregated from the load? I'm old enough to remember when outlets didn't have a ground. I also remember getting bitten by a Fender Concert amp. It knocked me off a chair. Have a {censored}ing 3 prong cord put on and it won't happen to you. 'Nuff said. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Stratofortress Posted October 4, 2011 Members Share Posted October 4, 2011 WOW!!! good for you man! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members drewl Posted October 4, 2011 Members Share Posted October 4, 2011 If that's the same "Enzo" from the Music Electronics forum, dude knows his {censored} inside and out and has helped me diagnose things I was stuck with for many years. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members southtexslinger Posted October 4, 2011 Members Share Posted October 4, 2011 Hell of find . . . on top of finding a great amp and the joy you will get from restoring it you have a great story to tell. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members JamesPeters Posted October 4, 2011 Members Share Posted October 4, 2011 Nice score. The F&Ts and Sprague Atoms in that kit are top notch components and the price seems to be on the money. Actually, the caps cost about half what that auction is going for. Under $40, and shipping would probably be less too. From a place like this: http://tubesandmore.com/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members rog951 Posted October 4, 2011 Members Share Posted October 4, 2011 Ahhhhh...you asshole!!!!! That's just about the sweetest amp Fender ever made. If you can get it working right, it's worth $2k all day long. I just paid close to a grand for an early silverface VR, but I played through a couple blackface versions along the way and they sound unreal. You lucky S.O.B.!!! Congrats! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members akapuli Posted October 4, 2011 Members Share Posted October 4, 2011 Maybe I should check dumpsters more often Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Mister Crow Posted October 4, 2011 Members Share Posted October 4, 2011 Your roommate knows you play electric guitar, knows you have a guitar amp with the name 'Fender' on it, yet when he finds one for free, even with the name 'Fender' on it, he doesn't even bother to throw it in his car to give to you, or even call to see if you'd be interested, he just chucks it in a dumpster and tells you about it hours later, making you drive an hour to see if it's even still there? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Greg_In_Michigan Posted October 4, 2011 Author Members Share Posted October 4, 2011 It was a total dick move. I have yelled at him for it. The amp was covered in dirt, old people skin flakes, and spider webs and eggs. He did not care to deal with it and he didn't understand its value. Oh well. At least it didn't get taken to the landfill. Where can I find the speaker wire and plug for the amp? I can't find one anywhere. JamesPeters, thanks for the AES link. I think I am going to make an order from there. I think I want to go for Weber 10F150T speakers and Tube Amp Doctor T-6L6WGC-TAD-MP power tubes. I've read that these will give a more warm sound which I want. My Twin Reverb is plenty bright for me. I want to get a really warm driven sound from the Vibrolux. Any objections? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members jimwratt Posted October 4, 2011 Members Share Posted October 4, 2011 It was a total dick move. I have yelled at him for it. The amp was covered in dirt, old people skin flakes, and spider webs and eggs. He did not care to deal with it and he didn't understand its value. Oh well. At least it didn't get taken to the landfill. Where can I find the speaker wire and plug for the amp? I can't find one anywhere. JamesPeters, thanks for the AES link. I think I am going to make an order from there. I think I want to go for Weber 10F150T speakers and Tube Amp Doctor T-6L6WGC-TAD-MP power tubes. I've read that these will give a more warm sound which I want. My Twin Reverb is plenty bright for me. I want to get a really warm driven sound from the Vibrolux. Any objections? No objections. Just take lots of pics and record some clips. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members NixerX Posted October 4, 2011 Members Share Posted October 4, 2011 Happy FREE FENDER DAY! Id be Jelly but Ive had mine recently. Check the chassis stamped SN that will tell you what year that bitch is. take it to a good tech and have it built back up. that thing is in lovely condition! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Belva Posted October 4, 2011 Members Share Posted October 4, 2011 Happy FREE FENDER DAY! take it to a good tech and have it built back up. that thing is in lovely condition! Another good reason to take it to a good tech: you can then say it was restored by (insert name here). Resale value goes up. You mentioned Elderly as a possible candidate. By all means it will be worth more than you put into it. If you do it yourself, knock off about 400 bucks. Not worth it IMO. And I've done some work on amps and am learning my way around them. For comparitive purposes, I consider myself a good Ford mechanic. But this is a Ferarri. Take it to a Ferrari mech. I hope that clears up what I'm getting at.As far as speakers, what you decide on depends on what you want to hear. You can shop Evilbay for a pair just like it had IF you want it original . They'll set you back a bunch, but the value ramps up, once again, more than what you pay for them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members rog951 Posted October 5, 2011 Members Share Posted October 5, 2011 What is the reason the change it to a 3 prong cord? I see most people do that as well but nobody has explained why. I really want to do the work myself, but in the interest of time I may take it to Elderly Instruments, or Enzo at Shiawassee Technical Services (I think) if he is still in business. Elderly has sent me to Enzo in the past for my Twin Reverb. Also, where can I get spray to clean the pots? I cannot find any. Caig DeOxit for cleaning the pots. Radio Shack carries it now. I'd take the amp to someone knowledgeable and let them get it up to snuff. Don't let them replace any caps without making sure they need it...the blue signal caps in there are mojo-laden. If they change anything, have them keep all the old parts for you. The filter caps are likely toast if they haven't been changed already. Edit: The 3-prong cord is for ensuring your chassis is connected to your home's electrical ground. Makes it really hard to end up with a live chassis, and also forces all the (properly-grounded) equipment you use to have their chassis at the same potential. If you only used 2-prong cords you could possibly end up with two or more pieces of equipment whose chassis are at different potentials. If the potential difference is enough and you touch both chassis, you can get yoself electrocuted. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Mogwix Posted October 5, 2011 Members Share Posted October 5, 2011 Sweet score, bro. Have fun with it! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Dolf Posted October 5, 2011 Members Share Posted October 5, 2011 I'm so....so so....so VERY jelly Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members JamesPeters Posted October 5, 2011 Members Share Posted October 5, 2011 Where can I find the speaker wire and plug for the amp? I can't find one anywhere. JamesPeters, thanks for the AES link. I think I am going to make an order from there. No problem! While you're there, look for plugs and speaker wire. They have both. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Y0UNGBL00D Posted October 5, 2011 Members Share Posted October 5, 2011 There seems to be a pattern in the advice in this thread ... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Belva Posted October 5, 2011 Members Share Posted October 5, 2011 There seems to be a pattern in the advice in this thread ... What are you saying? You think the people who say to throw it back in the trash are all wrong? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members scud133 Posted October 5, 2011 Members Share Posted October 5, 2011 What I would do is take it to an amp tech to get it up to speed...... -New caps as needed, repair that missing wire, clean the pots (or new ones if needed)-3 prong grounded power cord-Speakers (Ted Weber apparently recommended 10F150 or 10F150T, or one of each)-new (NOS) power tubes-???-PROFIT! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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