My new 5E3 Build is underway!

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My new 5E3 build...this is my first 'from scratch' amp build, and it's coming along nicely!

[fmarshall]

Looking good!!

Did you already make mount holes through the board and the chassis?

[erndawg]

Looks good.

What are the 0.02 uF caps you're using?

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Thanks!
The .02 caps are NOS Cornell Dubillier. I got them at an old electronics supply house here in town, and I checked them out on my Hewlett Packard 4260A Universal Bridge and they are right on .02uF, with a nice low dissipation factor. They should sound sweet! I'm not sure about their construction...but I'm pretty sure that they aren't paper in oil, no evidence of a fill hole. They're probably late 50's to mid 60's vintage. I decided to use smaller coupling caps after reading all the info about the 5E3 and its tendency to be too boomy. I am likely to add a switch so that I can parallel additional capacitance into the circuit for different guitars...still thinking about that one. I haven't drilled the board or chassis yet for mounting. I just ordered a stainless steel chassis from Weber on Tuesday, along with tube sockets and some of those shock mounting brackets he has for my preamp tubes...hopefully it's all going to get here by Friday for my planned weekend solderfest.
Any recommendations for board mounting technique? I'm thinking of just using sheet metal screws with some kind of standoff. Anything to ensure that the jumper wire on the bottom doesn't short to the chassis.

[PremiumPlus]

Oh, and by the way, I'm really undecided on the cab. I don't have the tools to finger joint a cabinet, but my friend out in California does, and he's offered to make one for me. I want to make this project a family heirloom to leave to my son after I finish using it, so it's got to be a great job.
Now I do have a lot of experience covering wood with fabric, since back in the 60's I built RC model airplanes from balsa wood, and covered them with silk, which was then doped and painted. So I'm not afraid of doing the tweed job, if I can locate a good source for the cloth...on the other hand, I may just buy one for $200 to $300 or whatever the best ones sell for, but which cab is best? Which one uses the best pine and sounds the best?
For a speaker I've pretty much decided that I'm going to make the leap to a Celestion Blue. I keep hearing nothing but raves from everyone in cyberspace, and my guitar mentor tells me that it's his favorite guitar speaker of all time. He used to be a touring session man in Nashville, so he's been around! The Blue is expensive but you only go around once in life, right?
But I need some intelligent guidance in my decision on what cab to go with...pros and cons of building your own vs buying from a cab supplier...please and thanks!

[erndawg]

Yep, I should have recognized those CD caps. They were in everything from TVs to radios to ham gear back in the day. I'm pretty sure they're foil caps. And I like 0.02 caps in a 5E3.

For mounting the board, I use either hex or round 1/2" or 5/8" standoffs - I think they're size 6.

[cminor9]

Two things to consider:

1) see if the electronics salvage place has standoffs (like the kind that hold jacks in the back of your computer). I get them at a salvage place in town for a nickel apiece. They don't take much torque, but then again...

2) Check out Weber Blue Dogs. I have a ceramic magnet blue dog (cost me $100) and it sounds amazing. It's weber's take on a Celestion Blue, and it's no crappy knockoff. Also, check out Warehouse Speakers. They have a version of the blue too. Haven't tried it but have heard good things. Bottom line, if you aren't too hung up on brand names, you can save some $. News flash, I know.

HTH