Best transformations of useless crap category..........

[chopstuck]

I think we should we have a category for the best transformations of useless crap.

Old tape recorders, phonographs, wire recorders, PA's, organ parts and any unidentifiable chassis with big iron and shiny tubes et all.

For this category I have to enter my rebuild of a Bogen CHB-14.

OK it wasn't total crap but it was the later flimsy el-cheapo variety.

I put together four of my favorite things.

Pentode preamp with a voxy voicing.
Alternate low loss treb and bass tone controls.
Tweed deluxe style gainstage and inverter
Noval small combo triode/pentodes

All this was done with minimal metal work.
I only changed one pot , with knob. I also had to add a fuse holder with a 3 wire cord.
(Can you believe these things were built with two prong cords and no fuse) ?

All in all it has to be one of my best efforts and making a silk purse of a pig scrotum.

At lower volumes it has that pentode shimmer and higher up it has that tweed compression.
I'm not saying there aren't any bad sounds in there but there are a few good ones if you are patient, I suppose I need to do a little "voicing" too.
All in all not bad for using all the major components and tubes while not using up too much cash and drill bits.

I think others should show of their handy work and effort in this time of American manufacturing scarcity.

[xtian]

Nice job!

I don't have an obvious qualifying entry, but the Filmosound conversion was certainly the tightest old chassis I've worked in. Won't do that again on purpose.

BTW, I have NOT developed any love for 6sn7 preamps.

[chopstuck]

Cool and tidy job !

You gotta love the brown crinkle and those old stamped / screened vanity plates.

Love the little logos and that looks like some real serious iron.

[surfsup]

BTW, I have NOT developed any love for 6sn7 preamps.

Really? I love my cascoded 6sn7! I'll have to look up the schemo for your amp to see how the 6sn7 was used...btw both builds are nice!

[Phil_S]

I have repurposed quite a few transformers and chassis. It takes patience. I do it for fun. Only here would someone understand that! Most of my work isn't all that tidy. Often there are peculiar compromises. Here's an example, a JTM45-like amp. Iron from an Arkay FL-30, recycled chassis with existing octal holds too close for KT66's, and crooked placement of the board to minimize the Swiss cheese effect. This one sounds great!

[M Fowler]

Nice conversion

I did a Hammond AO-35 reverb chassis built into a Marshall Lite IIB.

[chopstuck]

Sweet work Phil, I like the finish on the chassis. Actually pretty tidy.
Are those standoffs rigid plastic faucet supply line ?

Kudos for recycling too!

Mark, even your recycled stuff looks better than most scratch builds.

Sometimes I sits and shakes my head.
Sometimes I just sits.

[Phil_S]

Thank you for your kind words. I'm not quite sure they are deserved, except maybe for recycling.

Well, among other considerations, a really big difference between what I did and what Mark did, is that Mark's has elegance and mine does not. I'd say all the others have a certain elegance to them. That's because they are true conversion projects. Mine was a full gut job -- nothing elegant about that approach. It may not be so easy to see, but there were a number of holes that had to be closed, and I made some interesting compromises on the front panel.

Those stand offs on the transformers are nylon bushings purchased at the local Ace Hardware. They have an old-style full aisle of bins and drawers full of hardware they sell by the single item. I used them to keep the transformers balanced as they are really resting on the end bells (which are really quite substantial) and as a way to prevent warping the chassis when screwing them down.

The paint job is spray on Rustoleum. This is a product with which I have a love/hate relationship. I love the result. I hate to work with it. Rustoleum is among the stinkiest of paints. IMO, it has to be applied outdoors. This means you need a day when the sun is shining, the temperature is in the right range, not too humid, and there isn't much more than a light breeze. After spraying, the paint has a long set time during which you absolutely cannot attempt to move the item (don't ask how I know this.) After several hours, it will set. Meanwhile, you hope not too many dirt specs will land on it and that none will stick. Putting a box over it is a good idea, but it slows the gassing off. Later, before it gets dark, bring it inside and let it finish drying. Remember to place the chassis on a board or sturdy cardboard before painting because it isn't ready be handled for about 12 hours. The can says 24 hours to fully dry, but that's not enough time. It takes at least 2 days and it is better to leave it for 5 days so it is really hard. Meanwhile, it will stink up your basement while it continues to cure. Is it worth it? Heck, yes. The finish is hard and shiny. It will take a bit of abuse. It's about as good as you can get without using powder coat or taking your chassis to the autobody shop for painting and baking. BTW, if you have a friend who paints cars for a day job, and aren't too picky about color, I'd say that's the way to get your steel chassis painted.

I just painted a recycled chassis yesterday. I used Ace brand plastic coat type paint. I didn't want to stink up the place and didn't want to wait a week ;=} It is not nearly as nice, but you can reapply it as often as you want and at short intervals. Rustoluem has a very long wait time for reapplication.

I'm enjoying this thread. Not everyone recycles. It produces some results that are off the beaten path.

[Baxtercat]

Some might remember this from an older thread. Started w/ some low-powered organ or jukebox chassis donation. I keep adding LEDs, windows, antennas, changing things; now it's got 4 6L6's cathode biased. [Not that it makes any difference! I probably sound the same no matter what I drag downtown. A conversation starter though.]

[johnnyreece]

Got a Crate VC-50 that I gutted and am turning into a Rocket. It was on the fritz, so I got it for pretty cheap. Trying to see how cheaply I can build a Rocket (I'm right at about $200 for everything at the moment). I'll post it in this thread if I ever get it done!

[Colossal]

Some might remember this from an older thread. Started w/ some low-powered organ or jukebox chassis donation. I keep adding LEDs, windows, antennas, changing things; now it's got 4 6L6's cathode biased. [Not that it makes any difference! I probably sound the same no matter what I drag downtown. A conversation starter though.]

Yes, I remember that one. Bitchin' amp. Super creative idea.

[dorrisant]

Baxtercat: Do you have the link for your TV(?) project?

Nice job guys... I knew other people enjoyed this type of recycling!

Crescent reel-to-reel ($5@flea market) turned Vox AC4-ish... needs another tube... maybe nix the rectifier.

[IMG:432:766]http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/ad30 ... 092330.jpg[/img]

[IMG:432:766]http://i946.photobucket.com/albums/ad30 ... 120772.jpg[/img]

I'll post more pics if I get it back in the original enclosure.

[Prairie Dawg]

I built a tube matcher out of a Bogen PA amp chassis. Does that count?

[IMG:640:480]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v435/ ... CN4255.jpg[/img]

[IMG:640:480]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v435/ ... CN4251.jpg[/img]

[rp]

but the Filmosound conversion was certainly the tightest old chassis I've worked in. Won't do that again on purpose.

I'd say it was worth the effort. Never let Brown Crinkle go to waste.

... and crooked placement of the board to minimize the Swiss cheese effect...

Nice Post Modern, Eames Era, effect there, pass it on to Baxtercat.

Some might remember this from an older thread.

I remember, wish I'd built it. Ever think of sticking a Samson wireless guitar thing in there? Maybe you're a mac guy? It occurs to me you could prolly take an Apple Express or ATV and stick it inside, get a USB direct box or mixer for your computer and plug in your guitar, open some software, and use Airfoil to stream the audio to your George Jetson amp and amaze people, make them think the aerials actually work. I'm sure there's a PC equivalent.

Where you all finding good tube junk? I never see anything anymore. I think eBay sadly killed junk store, dumpster prospecting. It's convenient but not the same thrill getting it off eBay.

[VacuumVoodoo]

This is a cool topic. I hate seeing old warriors being sent to oblivion, after all these are only flesh wounds:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zKhEw7nD9C4
A customer brought this old, patched up, and barely breathing warrior:
[img:800:600]http://tubewonder.com/serviced/testvids ... ore_01.jpg[/img]
Didn't look so good internally either:
[img:800:600]http://tubewonder.com/serviced/testvids ... ore_02.jpg[/img]
Prosthesis were acquired (some from former UK colonies) and implanted:
[img457]http://tubewonder.com/serviced/testvids ... -armor.jpg[/img]
Extensive work on internal organs as well as some functional augmentations:
[img400]http://tubewonder.com/serviced/testvids ... p-guts.jpg[/img]
The guts as received at birth:
[img1117]http://tubewonder.com/serviced/testvids ... -schem.gif[/img]
and after augmentation:
[img785]http://tubewonder.com/serviced/testvids ... ng-mod.gif[/img]
Fit for fight again and with new tricks up his sleeve (sorry about the sound, recorded with my Lumix photocamera in video mode):
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bqcn1kmwGes
http://youtu.be/3AR3uJtSzuk