Homemade 6G15 Spring Reverb Unit....

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PorkyPrimeCut
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Homemade 6G15 Spring Reverb Unit....

Post by PorkyPrimeCut » Thu Jul 28, 2011 5:36 am

The more I look at this, the more confused I get but the more determined I am to start on it.

First, to get something out of the way, yes, I'm mad!! I've just sold a perfectly good Danelectro Spring King & am about to buy a Tech 21 R.V.B. I've had a fair bit of time off work & have ended up with too much time on my hands. Inevitably this has ended with me trawling eBay, getting frustrated with my guitar gear & looking for as many other avenues & options as possible....

So, I've got an old Technics amp that's only working through one channel. It kicks back into life if you push the front panel a bit so I know it works, kinda. There's just a loose connection inside. I'm hoping to butcher it (I'd get fuck all for it on eBay) & get the bit I need from inside.

I've got several bits of scrap wood lying around, plus an actual wooden case I could cut up (although it's at my Mums place up North). Ideally I'd make a unit a bit smaller than a full-size Fender tank but bigger than the Spring King.

The actual Accutronics tanks can be had for reasonably little money.
I'd even buy tolex, metal corner-caps & all the bobbins to make it a proper looking tank.

What I really want is some kind of tutorial with pictures. Even a YouTube clip would help. Anything that's slightly more than just text & schematics as these are the things that confuse my tiny little, pedal buying, adled mind.

Has anyone come across a good, beginners stylee tutorial on other forums or blogs?

EDIT - BELOW IS A COMPILATION OF ALL THE PHOTOS TAKEN THROUGHOUT THE BUILD PROCESS.
IF YOU WANT TO READ ALL THE UP'S & DOWNS OF AN AMATEUR SCRATCH BUILD, CARRY ON PAST THE EYE CANDY....


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Last edited by PorkyPrimeCut on Fri Dec 14, 2012 7:14 am, edited 9 times in total.
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Re: Building a Spring Reverb Unit...

Post by slavemaster » Thu Jul 28, 2011 6:59 am

If you are interested in a kit, I've heard these are ok:

http://www.paia.com/proddetail.asp?prod=6740K&cat=27
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Re: Building a Spring Reverb Unit...

Post by PorkyPrimeCut » Thu Jul 28, 2011 10:00 am

slavemaster wrote:If you are interested in a kit, I've heard these are ok:

http://www.paia.com/proddetail.asp?prod=6740K&cat=27
Yeah, I saw them. They'd be perfect if they were sold in the U.K!!
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Re: Building a Spring Reverb Unit...

Post by PorkyPrimeCut » Thu Jun 14, 2012 8:13 am

Time to start this one back up again. I've been busy sourcing parts & finding the cheapest way of doing this. At the same time I figured I'd want to build something I could be proud of so I'm going to attempt to build a stand alone, tube-driven reverb unit. It should be fairly close to the old Fender models.

I was very close to pulling the trigger on a KLD Guitars 5w Tube Amp with spring reverb. They cost £80!!! I could have modded it to be just a reverb tank but in the end I figured it'd be too technical for me & I might discover a whole load of cheap, sub-standard components inside.
I also read some stuff about the KLD guys being a bit unscrupulous in obtaining info on gear they then cloned & sold cheaper. I don't want to get into the whole China vs USA argument but this time I figured I'd pay for quality goods & go down the semi-D.I.Y route.

So far I've just got a list of suppliers, noted down websites of interest & asked a few questions to reverb tank owners on the forum (thanks Mez).

I'm buying the Triode Electronics kit, the new version. I'm still undecided on whether I should buy the tubes from them or see if I can source them in Europe.
I'll get the actual tank from elsewhere. My research tells me that they're technically selling the wrong tank (from a purists perspective anyway). From what I've discovered, the old Fender units had tanks that were mounted vertically, attached to the inside of the front panel. The tank Triode sells is designed to be fitted horizontally. Hell, this is probably splitting hairs & may have no audible difference either way but I figured I'd stick to the original design. Plus, I can get the correct Accutronics tank cheaper elsewhere.

I had considered trying to piece the kit together myself. I found a parts list on the Weber website (see bill of materials - 5G15) but in the end found it tricky to source certain value components. Maybe I didn't look hard enough or maybe, deep down, I just like following step-by-step assembly kits like BYOC pedals. I'm really not that great at electronics & don't know my ohm from my elbow!!

I've discovered a timber merchant down the road who'll sell me a board of pine & cut it to the dimensions I need to assemble into a cabinet. The guy will even cut out a curved alcove for the top panel & round-over all the edges. I'm yet to ask if he can cut the 2 holes in the plywood back panel I also need to make.

I'll be buying the same blonde tolex that my Vox-ish cab is covered in. I might put black corners on the unit too, like my cab. It depends on how well I can tolex the corners. I've found this great webpage with pretty detailed photos of an old Fender unit that I'll be working from.

I think the only remaining things I need to source are 4 rubber feet & 4 springs that keep the tank "floating" in place.

More soon.......
Last edited by PorkyPrimeCut on Fri Jun 15, 2012 2:35 am, edited 3 times in total.
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Re: Building a Spring Reverb Unit...

Post by noisepunk » Thu Jun 14, 2012 9:26 am

I'd love to build one of these as a companion to my champ (and future Princeton NR). Will be watching intently, and potentially with awe :)

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Re: Building a Spring Reverb Unit...

Post by PorkyPrimeCut » Thu Jun 14, 2012 11:36 am

I Wish I had a better understanding of electronics. Seriously, the only tricky part of all this is the circuitry.
If you can read & understand a schematic you could build one of these for 75% less than they normally cost!
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Re: Building a Spring Reverb Unit...

Post by PorkyPrimeCut » Thu Jun 14, 2012 11:49 pm

More geekery.

I've been trying to get my head around how the reverb tank is suspended & discovered, pretty obviously in the end, that the 4 springs that hold it vertically in place are attached to the 4 screws/bolts that hold the front panel in place.

I reckon I could buy 4 bolts & some kind of spring anchors like these that I could screw onto the ends from the inside.

EDIT - OK, I just found this photo....

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It looks as though Fender simply screwed a spring with an eye at one end onto bolts. Different ones to the 4 front panel screws though.
This make things a whole lot easier as I can buy a pack of 8 or so springs & modify 4 into hooks & 4 into eyes.
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Re: Building a Spring Reverb Unit...

Post by PorkyPrimeCut » Fri Jun 15, 2012 1:40 am

This was as far as I got with my measurements. It's based on 175cm x 30cm pineboard sold by B & Q ...

Image

As I'm now buying from a local timber merchant instead the pieces will probably be cut from a 2' x 4' board.
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Re: Building a Spring Reverb Unit...

Post by matt22 » Fri Jun 15, 2012 5:35 am

IRV78 from Austria just posted this on the SG101 forums the other day. I'm sure he could help you out with his plans he used. He listed his parts that he used in there somewhere. I hope that helps.

I have a Weber Tore-Vibe, but I didn't build it. It sounds GREAT and the guy I got it from built it from the kit and said it was a pain in the arse!

http://surfguitar101.com/forums/topic/1 ... =1#p244324" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
Matt tha Kat Lentz

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Re: Building a Spring Reverb Unit...

Post by PorkyPrimeCut » Fri Jun 15, 2012 6:14 am

matt22 wrote:IRV78 from Austria just posted this on the SG101 forums the other day. I'm sure he could help you out with his plans he used. He listed his parts that he used in there somewhere. I hope that helps.

I have a Weber Tore-Vibe, but I didn't build it. It sounds GREAT and the guy I got it from built it from the kit and said it was a pain in the arse!

http://surfguitar101.com/forums/topic/1" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false; ... =1#p244324
Thanks for the link. I'd already got a lot of my info from threads on that site. Really useful stuff.

From his pictures I've already spotted one thing that I should change (halving the length of the batons that the back panel will screw into).
It's great to see that he's used the same tolex that I'll be using. I might not bother with the grill cloth & just have mine totally-tolex-overloaded!!! We'll see.

A few more added measurements now....

Image
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Re: Building a Spring Reverb Unit...

Post by matt22 » Fri Jun 15, 2012 6:59 am

Awesome! Yes, there are quite a few helpful lads on that site! A lot of really good minds there too!
Matt tha Kat Lentz

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Re: Building a Spring Reverb Unit...

Post by PorkyPrimeCut » Tue Jun 19, 2012 10:28 am

OK, all the innards are ordered!!!

I'm wondering if anyone can shine light on the last confusing part of the build though.
The reverb tank will be mounted vertically just like in the original Fender units.
I know now that the tank is held a half inch away from the inside face of the front panel with 4 springs.
I can't work out what's used to hold the springs in place. Check out these pictures....

Image

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How the hell is that bolt attached? Does it mean there'd be a bolt-head on the other side of the black panel?
The 4 bolts that hold the springs are different to the screws that normally attach the front panel to the cabinet.
Is that some kind of fancy bolt & grommet that I've never seen before? I'm at a loss here!!
Do I have to make a baffle similar to one that holds a speaker in place in an amp cabinet?
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Re: Building a Spring Reverb Unit...

Post by noisepunk » Tue Jun 19, 2012 11:46 am

I have a question. What exactly is the reason for mounting it using springs (aside from vintage correctness)? My girlfriend's head has a reverb tank mounted identically, except it's just bolted right into the face of the cabinet. Is it suppose to reduce vibration noise?

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Re: Building a Spring Reverb Unit...

Post by irv78 » Tue Jun 19, 2012 12:33 pm

noisepunk wrote:I have a question. What exactly is the reason for mounting it using springs (aside from vintage correctness)? My girlfriend's head has a reverb tank mounted identically, except it's just bolted right into the face of the cabinet. Is it suppose to reduce vibration noise?
The only purpose of the suspended mounting is to be able to lock the reverb springs for transport. There is a lever which pushes the reverb tank towards the baffle onto a small piece of foam that is glued underneath it - thus keeping the springs from rattling during transport.

To mount the reverb tank on my build I put four bolts through the front of the baffle and secured them with nuts on the backside - seems to hold up well so far. If you don't care when your springs rattle during transport you can get away with screwing the pan straight to the baffle - it will sound no different.

Good luck with the build! And don't forget to take a lot of pictures! :)

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Re: Building a Spring Reverb Unit...

Post by PorkyPrimeCut » Tue Jun 19, 2012 1:55 pm

irv78 wrote: The only purpose of the suspended mounting is to be able to lock the reverb springs for transport. There is a lever which pushes the reverb tank towards the baffle onto a small piece of foam that is glued underneath it - thus keeping the springs from rattling during transport.

To mount the reverb tank on my build I put four bolts through the front of the baffle and secured them with nuts on the backside - seems to hold up well so far. If you don't care when your springs rattle during transport you can get away with screwing the pan straight to the baffle - it will sound no different.

Good luck with the build! And don't forget to take a lot of pictures!
Yeah, I was quite surprised when I found out that it was purely for ease of transport. I bet corksniffers still think it gives you that extra 10% of drip!

So, on your build are the bolts that go through the baffle flat-headed & countersunk? I can't have bolt-heads protruding from the front or it'll fuck up the tolexing.
This was why I was confused before. I couldn't get my head around what kind of bolts were used.

Also, as bolts look like being the only way of attaching the tank I might aswell use the 4 springs method anyway. I've even got some spare pickup foam should I want to go the whole way & attach a lock. Fender actually sells that specific part.
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