I have been putting orders together for my next few builds and I am a bit confused on the specs and history of the silver face iron .
I always read about HAD’s apparent preference for the fender silver face era Schumacher iron , but it seems most twin transformer clones are the early 60s 125A29A transformer, not the later 022889 silver face transformer, and many builders don’t make that much fuss about it all.
I also notice Mercury magnetics has the 85 watt and 135 watt versions silver face replicas , but not a 100 watt. Pardon my ignorance of fender history but did they just use the 135 watt tranny in 100 watt amplifiers ? And if they did I assume that’s what HAD did too (?)
All Fender Twin output transformers from 1964 to 1976 should perform very similarly in Dumble clones. There were differences in the lamination materials used but the core stack height stayed the same. I think it was always a 4/3 interleave winding. Beginning in 1977 Fender eliminated the screen supply choke and went to an ultra-linear transformer for the Twin. Marketed as 135 watts. If you have a 'UL' transformer you can use it, just tie off the screen leads. I think they sound pretty sound good that way.
Smitty wrote: ↑Thu Jan 06, 2022 10:07 pm
All Fender Twin output transformers from 1964 to 1976 should perform very similarly in Dumble clones. There were differences in the lamination materials used but the core stack height stayed the same. I think it was always a 4/3 interleave winding. Beginning in 1977 Fender eliminated the screen supply choke and went to an ultra-linear transformer for the Twin. Marketed as 135 watts. If you have a 'UL' transformer you can use it, just tie off the screen leads. I think they sound pretty sound good that way.
I 2nd that!
i have a 135W UL Twin output transformer in my 100W 2nd Generation and it's a beast If you ever run across one cheap like I did have at it. Just make sure you tie off and secure the tap wires and your ready thump away!
Tony
" The psychics on my bench is the same as Dumble'"
talbany wrote: ↑Fri Jan 07, 2022 1:09 am
[quote=Smitty post_id=436547 time=<a href="tel:1641506844">1641506844</a> user_id=466]
All Fender Twin output transformers from 1964 to 1976 should perform very similarly in Dumble clones. There were differences in the lamination materials used but the core stack height stayed the same. I think it was always a 4/3 interleave winding. Beginning in 1977 Fender eliminated the screen supply choke and went to an ultra-linear transformer for the Twin. Marketed as 135 watts. If you have a 'UL' transformer you can use it, just tie off the screen leads. I think they sound pretty sound good that way.
I 2nd that!
i have a 135W UL Twin output transformer in my 100W 2nd Generation and it's a beast If you ever run across one cheap like I did have at it. Just make sure you tie off and secure the tap wires and your ready thump away!
Tony
[/quote]
Now that’s what I am talking about! This was basically where my mind was wandering
Tony, please tell me a little more about this beast!
Tony, please tell me a little more about this beast
Hello Charlie
If your talking about the amp itself I did a writeup on it here. This was like 10 years ago so I've changed a few things. Currently have a matched Quad of RCA Black plates which I love in this thing. It's basically a 2nd Generation w/ a few minor tweaks, the OPT came off a later 76/77 135W Twin style which is a bit larger than the stock 100. I still have the amp
Let me know if you have any other questions https://ampgarage.com/forum/viewtopic.p ... =70s+build
Tony
" The psychics on my bench is the same as Dumble'"
Sounds like that 135 twin iron has some balls and clarity ! I am always searching for those transformers with that potentially uncomfortable clarity, always feels and sounds the best when you play with a real band . More 3D IMO IME . That’s what I always heard with the 70s Schumachers I have tried.
Fun side note , It’s a small world! , my friend Greg Langrish was the original owner of #13 , or at least that’s what he remembered and told me . Lang’s fang is what he called it lol. He has great HAD stories , I grew up listening to local guys like him who wished they weren’t silly enough to let their dumbles go. Lol
WhopperPlate wrote: ↑Fri Jan 07, 2022 9:17 pm
Talbany , Very cool write up thank you!
Sounds like that 135 twin iron has some balls and clarity ! I am always searching for those transformers with that potentially uncomfortable clarity, always feels and sounds the best when you play with a real band . More 3D IMO IME . That’s what I always heard with the 70s Schumachers I have tried.
Fun side note , It’s a small world! , my friend Greg Langrish was the original owner of #13 , or at least that’s what he remembered and told me . Lang’s fang is what he called it lol. He has great HAD stories , I grew up listening to local guys like him who wished they weren’t silly enough to let their dumbles go. Lol
Cool story and I remember the Lang's Fang wooden box amp. But didn't know he owned the small special and others very cool, would like to hear some stories sometime.
My story on these transformers was I got a call from a customer we built a custom amp for at a Guitar Center in Rockville M.D about 45 min from me at the time. He said there was a repair shop above the store that did repairs and warranty work for them and that the shop had gone under and the owner just one day took his equipment and left, leaving behind all kinds of old parts and stuff and if I wanted to come down and if there was anything I wanted? that they were going to toss the stuff anyway.
On the way there I was thinking that most of the parts was primarily solid state gear for power amps, mixers rack EFX/EQ's, wireless etc.
When I walked in couldn't believe it! he had boxes of old guitar amp transformers Partridges/Drake/Schumacher's from both Fender and Music man and quite a few of these Fender U.L 135 and 75's. i imagine he did some conversions on those Silverface amps to Mercury's for non U'L
Anyway I left there with about 30 transformers a bunch of Switchcraft jacks washers CTS pots and some switches and a bunch of wire. It was a goldmine! One of the Custom amps I built that later went to Zac Brown had a Partridge Power transformer on it I got from that score and that thing sounded good as I loaned it to Zac to try and never got it back, but we eventually worked out a trade. I built 3 music Man amps with those transformers, still have 2 and the Power on my 2nd Gen was also used from that batch. So most of them are gone to other folks who played with Brooks and Dunn and Alan Jackson and a few other close friends so they were put to good use. So when I talk with Ron I still to this day Thank him for that call. Right place at the right time I guess. So that's how came to use them in an O.D.S style amp
Tony
" The psychics on my bench is the same as Dumble'"
If you ever run across one cheap like I did have at it. Just make sure you tie off and secure the tap wires and your ready thump away! 
