This is going to be my next project (lap steel content)

[mort]

I can't play it for shit lol


A couple years ago my wife's uncle gave me this old hacked up 1954-55 Harmony Consolectric H-20 guitar. Someone didn't need or want the full set up and hacked off the the amp, turning what was left of the cabinet into a simple case for the guitar and covered it with those horrible steel studs and some kind of gaudy plastic covered upholstery material that's falling apart.

The project is going to be building a new cabinet and amp for it, complete with a speaker and legs. Won't need to do anything with the top except for relocate the jack back to its original spot on the lid. Someone had moved it to the butt of the guitar so they could run a cable from it to the amp. Originally you'd plug into the lid and then flip the top over leaving the guitar on top and lock it back to the cabinet with the same clasps that are used to keep it closed while it's all packed into the cabinet. They legs should also be detachable and have a place to store them inside. The original had 3 legs but 4 might be a better choice.

I'm considering just doing a BF or tweed style champ circuit. Just something nice and simple. Not sure what speaker to choose but leaning toward some type of 10" but that would mean increasing the depth of the box by a few inches. The original didn't have any controls for the amp, only using the volume and tone controls on the guitar itself. Will probably stick with that type of amp so there won't be any controls sticking out from the case. But then again I suppose it's possible to make a recessed control area for a volume, tone, and possibly a vibe effect. Still thinking on it.


Anyway, should be a fun one. Now I just gotta sell some other hobby stuff to generate the funds for this hobby stuff!

[Bloomfield]

That's pretty neat, never seen such a thing. It looks like if you turned the chassis 90 degrees and put it in the middle, you could get two 6 x 9's in that same size box. There are decent ones out there for not much money. I'm thinking that if you made the box deeper for a 10" speaker, you wouldn't be able to fit your knees underneath. I don't mind the three legs, it will never rock that way. There are lots of squarish small Hammond aluminum chassis that would work nicely for the amplifier part. Looks like a fun project; the lap steel itself is quite stylish. What are the fingerboard inlays (screenprint?) Looks like a stack of umbrellas from here.

Andy

[mort]

That's pretty neat, never seen such a thing. It looks like if you turned the chassis 90 degrees and put it in the middle, you could get two 6 x 9's in that same size box. There are decent ones out there for not much money. I'm thinking that if you made the box deeper for a 10" speaker, you wouldn't be able to fit your knees underneath. I don't mind the three legs, it will never rock that way. There are lots of squarish small Hammond aluminum chassis that would work nicely for the amplifier part. Looks like a fun project; the lap steel itself is quite stylish. What are the fingerboard inlays (screenprint?) Looks like a stack of umbrellas from here.

Andy

Originally I think the legs were telescopic. In the ad it says use it sitting down or standing up. Hopefully I can find some similar ones. And everything on the fingerboard is painted or screenprinted.

And yup the Hammond boxes are exactly what I had in mind. All that would be seen from the outside would be an IEC socket and a switch. Moving the chassis would change the location of the socket and switch, which I really wouldn’t mind if it didn’t put the power chord right in the center. I do like the idea of a 6x9’s though. I’ll give it some thought.