My latest build. A 5e3 clone.

[sportster4eva]

Here's a shot of the back of my latest build. It's a 5e3 clone with a little tweak here and there. This little baby rocks! the change I made to the tone circuit makes it very versatile. I don't have any sound clips yet, because you guys would cringe if I recorded myself playing..lol I have a photobucket folder with pics of the build from start to finish if anyone wants to check it out.

http://s28.photobucket.com/albums/c247/sportster4eva/5e3-project/

[The Captain]

Superb work there- it makes my build in progress look a right dog's dinner! What is the Aerovox cap on the tone/ vol pot- is this the only tweak?

[sportster4eva]

Superb work there- it makes my build in progress look a right dog's dinner! What is the Aerovox cap on the tone/ vol pot- is this the only tweak?

Almost..
The other pair of tone caps in parallel are silver mica mil spec jobs, and are a "slightly" lower value than called out in the schematic, the Aerovox cap is also smaller than called out in the schem. Those old Aerovox caps. are paper/foil too. It gave the tone knob a different kind of range. Past 8 it gives you a nice mid boost, and at 6-7 it almost scoops the mids. I'm not a fan of ceramics...usually.
I also used 1K Dale 1%er's to the screens of the power tubes, both as a safety factor, and so I could meter screen current.
I changed the value of the resistor feeding the preamp tubes supply cap.
All the orange caps are Sprague PVC, but I used the last ones I had. Hope I can locate some more.:(
Thanks for the compliment Captain! More builds coming!

[HTH]

very tidy work - don't tell me you built the cab too, that would just make you too much of a smarty pants ;)

btw, you've never seen a dog's dinner wiring job till you've seen my amps. oh well, at least they sound good (eventually)

:cool:

[George Archer]

Hello, I'm a new member here and I would like some information regarding the front lateral panels on Sportster's cabinet. I've just completed my Mission 5E3 kit and now its time to build my own cabinet.

Sportster4eva, did you just glue in those front panels and if so, can you tell me if the panels would be strong enough to take the weight and vibrations of the speaker and baffle.

Any information regarding the above problem would be greatly appreciated, thanks.

George

[sportster4eva]

very tidy work - don't tell me you built the cab too, that would just make you too much of a smarty pants ;)

btw, you've never seen a dog's dinner wiring job till you've seen my amps. oh well, at least they sound good (eventually)

:cool:

That's what were doing this for..:D The sound! It don't have to be a beauty contest winner to sound great! Look inside some of the old point to point amps by some well known names.. (like Bell and Knight, and others) They aren't the nicest things to look at, but they're functionally right. Actually, I did build the cabinet, but not because I'm a smarty pants..lol.. It's because I'm frugal, ie:cheap! The whole cab cost me less than $50, including finishing. It's made of poplar wood, because it's light and hard and strong. It's not a "tone wood" per se, but it is considered a hardwood, and many hardwoods are toneful. The selection of pine here where I am is not the best, so it was an easy choice. The only downside is it's hard to finish because of the greenish tint the wood has. Clear sealer first then a shading coat to even it out. I used Shellac, but laquer works too. I used shellac because it's non toxic, and alcohol based. It dries really fast, so you have to be quick, or it smears. Laquer is nasty stuff, and I work in the basement, and my liver thanks me for it!;) Tolex would save me all the trouble of the finish work, but hey... what the heck. I love the look of a natural finish.


Hello, I'm a new member here and I would like some information regarding the front lateral panels on Sportster's cabinet. I've just completed my Mission 5E3 kit and now its time to build my own cabinet.

Sportster4eva, did you just glue in those front panels and if so, can you tell me if the panels would be strong enough to take the weight and vibrations of the speaker and baffle.

Any information regarding the above problem would be greatly appreciated, thanks.

George

I didn't want to have any screws or holes showing so I drilled countersunk holes about 1/2" deep in the top lateral rail, and 3/8" in the bottom of the cab. Four in each, spaced about 4" apart. I went from the bottom of the cab up for the bottom rail so you wouldn't see anything. What I did was glue and clamp them into place, and while the clamps were still on I drilled pilot holes and screwed them babies tight. No way they're coming loose! I used 1-1/2" sheet metal screws, because IMHO they hold a lot better than wood screws when you sock them up tight. I put a dab of glue on the screws as I drove them in too, for insurance.

[George Archer]

Thanks Sportster4eva. So you just glued the top panel in place. Nice cab. I hope mine turns out as good.

Thanks, George

[sportster4eva]

George,
I glued and screwed both in place. I was worried too that they would break loose due to age/vibration. That's why I glued and screwed them. The original Fender cabs had like a rabbet top and bottom and the front rails went all the way to the edges of the cabinet. I didn't want to go to the trouble of the extra cuts, so I did it this way.

[David Schwab]

It's made of poplar wood, because it's light and hard and strong. It's not a "tone wood" per se, but it is considered a hardwood, and many hardwoods are toneful.

I'm a guitar maker. Poplar is a very nice sounding wood! All those old Danelectros had poplar necks. A buddy of mine made a Les Paul Junior with a poplar neck, korina body, and a curly oak top. Boy that guitar sang!

I bet it would sound great in this beauty of an amp you made. Very nice work!

[George Archer]

Hi, can you folks tell me how you install your speakers. I was just going to use normals bolts and nuts but doing it this way would mean if I wanted to change speaker in would have to dismantle the grill cloth from the baffle before I could loosen the bolts. Are there any special bolts/screws that are used for this application.

While I'm here could anyone also explain the use of the external speaker in my Mission 5E3 delux. I know the internal speaker is 8 ohms and the external speaker should be rated for 4 ohms. Can I use an external speaker while my internal is still plugged in and if so does it have to be 4 ohms.

Thanks for any help with the above problems.

George

[TD_Madden]

External 8-ohm cab would be just fine.

[steve]

George,

Look for a product called a T-nut. They're sold at Lowes, Home Depot, and hardware stores.

steve

Hi, can you folks tell me how you install your speakers. I was just going to use normals bolts and nuts but doing it this way would mean if I wanted to change speaker in would have to dismantle the grill cloth from the baffle before I could loosen the bolts. Are there any special bolts/screws that are used for this application.
George

[Gee]

sportster4eva - Your build is an inspiration. I cant believe how straight you have made the filament wires. That truly is a skill.

[George Archer]

Hi Steve, thanks for the reply. I actually live in Germany so we don't have any Lowes or Home depots here. I tried the internet at these sites but couldn't find anything about the nuts so I'll keep trying.

Cheers

George

[George Archer]

Thanks TD_Madden.

So I can use an 8 ohm external speaker as well as the 8 ohm internal speaker, bothe running at the same time. Why does it say 4 ohms at the speaker input.

Thanks

George

[sportster4eva]

Hi, can you folks tell me how you install your speakers. I was just going to use normals bolts and nuts but doing it this way would mean if I wanted to change speaker in would have to dismantle the grill cloth from the baffle before I could loosen the bolts. Are there any special bolts/screws that are used for this application.


George

Hi George,
One really good way to install the bolts if you can't find t-nuts would be to put a drop of epoxy or contact cement on the last 1/2 inch of bolt under the head. then screw it into the hole and put a nut on the back to hold it straight while it sets up. I drill the hole slightly undersize so the bolt is a snug fit. Once the epoxy cures it will hold the bolt tightly in the hole and won't spin when you install or remove the nut. It works even better if you use countersunk bolts and get some under the head. :)

[sportster4eva]

sportster4eva - Your build is an inspiration. I cant believe how straight you have made the filament wires. That truly is a skill.

Thanks Gee! Solid wire works great.. I like the way it holds it's shape.

[Bruce / Mission Amps]

Run to the local hardware store and buy some 8-32 TEE nuts.

http://www.toolstation.com/images/library/stock/webbig/41724.jpg

Use TEE nuts mounted with the pointed parts from the outside of the baffle board, through a larger 1/4" dia hole in the baffle so threaded barrel part of the TEE nut slides right in but the points are on the outside and have to be lightly driven into the baffel board.
Paint the baffle board and the TEE nuts flat black so they will not be seen through the grille cloth.
When mounting the speaker, make sure the actual 8-32 machine screw tips are also black and you use screw lengths long enough to just barely come out the other side of the TEE nut.
Just a thread or two so the vibrating grille cloth will never hit the tip of the screw because if it does hit the grille cloth it will eventually make a hole in it!

The OT has two taps, 4 and 8 ohms.
They should be used with correct speaker loads and not really at the same time.

You can use the 4 ohm tap by using the internal 8 ohm speaker and running that speaker in parallel with another 4 ohm to 16 ohm speaker, with 8 being the preference.
I have a customer who use three 12" 8 ohm speakers.
A light weight, low power tweed Twin sized 2x12 bottom at 4 ohms with the single 8 ohm 5E3 cabinet on top and it's internal speaker... all three in parallel. Not a problem because the total load with that set up is just a little under 3 ohms, ... 2.67 ohms.
The 4 ohm tap works just fine anyhow like this and the combo sounds great, even though the mismatch lowers the primary zed of the OT and more of the actual power goes to the 2x12 bottom then the single 12" in the amp cabinet.

For an easy solution, plug two parallel 8 ohm speakers with a Y cable into the 4 ohm speaker jack.

However, what I do is usually run a parallel pair of wires from the actual combo cabinet speaker, over to a new 1/4 mono jack that is externally mounted on the inside of the very same tweed cabinet.
Then all you do is plug your new auxillary 8 ohm cabinet into that jack.
Now just unplug the 5E3 cabinet's mounted speaker plug out of the 8 ohm jack and pop it into the 4 ohm tap.
Now both the internal and the external speakers are in parallel for 4 ohms and the total load is plugged into the 4 ohm tap of the OT.

[TD_Madden]

sorry I misspoke...my tweedy kits came with the origianl single impedence OT(8-ohm).

I'd suggest a y-cable connected to the 4-ohm jack if you want to use both the internal speaker and an external 8-ohm cab.

[clyde1]

George,
Ruby Tubes sells speaker baffle bolts that have 8/32 machine screws and near the head have a short section of left-handed wood screw thread. You can drill a hole in your baffle and put these in from the front, even use a dab of glue on them to help if you wish and you don't have to ever worry about them coming out. They were used on some older amps and radios, I like them more than T nuts, easier to use. As Bruce suggested, paint the baffle black and they won't be noticeable.

[Bruce / Mission Amps]

sorry I misspoke...my tweedy kits came with the origianl single impedence OT(8-ohm).Right. Still a great OT but that was about 250 Tweedy Deluxe amps ago.

[sjhust]

Hi Steve, thanks for the reply. I actually live in Germany so we don't have any Lowes or Home depots here. I tried the internet at these sites but couldn't find anything about the nuts so I'll keep trying.

Cheers

George

Hi George I live in Germany too you can get T-Nuts in any hardware store here. I don't remember the German word, just go to the aisle with the screws, they'll be there.

steven

[George Archer]

Thanks for the replys.

I'm going to Hornbach today so I will see what I can find.

Cheers

George

[steve]

George,

I know that Tee nuts are available in Europe; I have a little Marshall combo that came with metric Tee nuts for mounting the speaker.

steve


Thanks for the replys.

I'm going to Hornbach today so I will see what I can find.

Cheers

George

[Gee]

George,

Look for a product called a T-nut. They're sold at Lowes, Home Depot, and hardware stores.

steve

I have been searching for these in the UK and finally found some at B&Q. They have 6mm Tee Nuts which are perfect for 12" speakers.