Another 5F1 Champ in the making

[gearjunkie]

Well finally got going on the new Champ build once I received the Hammomd 12X8X3" Chassis with the 5.2" perforated cover....got things spaced best I could figure and worked on getting the holes in place and deburred.. looking forward to hearing what this little 5 watt amp will sound like when it's done..I'll post photos as I go along..

[jipp]

looks very clean. nice work. what made you decide to use wood for your template for the pots,jacks, etc. instead of cardboard? just what you had on hand in the heat of the moment. been there done that on other projects so i understand things like that. keep up the good work. also,can the green wire be shorter? or is there a reason yo are leaving it long. iv read to make sure you keep all the wires as short as possible. oh, its not wired to anything, picture fooled me. laughs. im a noob, i can be a idiot. :(
chris.

[andyfromdenver]

Cool Ernie!
You gotta get you a:
http://www.harborfreight.com/knockou...kit-91201.html
And a:
http://www.harborfreight.com/3-piece...lls-91616.html
Stat!! (I can say stat cause I work in a hospital :))
And not necessarily from Harbor Freight, I kind of hate them. But from some quality made in Canada company.
Good luck with the build! Are you doing any tweaks?

[gearjunkie]

Thanks guys..

Jipp, yes sir that ol chunk of wood just happened to be in arms reach and i felt it would keep everything more stable and upright rather than cardboard

Andy, too funny you attached those links, because i have an old greenlee 7/8" knockout tool that I've had for years likely as old as you, as used it for the premap which should have been 3/4" and for the power tube and recitifer I needed 1 3/16" so I used the greenlee and a dremel tool which took my awhile to do it and certainly not perfect but i got it pretty close..That's a good price from harbour frieght...thinking that the greenlee cost about $75 for one hole only, makes me wonder how good the whole set is for under $15 ..

kinda wish now, I 'd gone with a smaller chassis but then the 5.2" high cover would look out of place too...too bad I couldn't source something like the Traynor darkhorse or Ironhorse to only cover the tubes and leave the trannies exposed and have rounded corners rather than the square like the hammond...but the hammond are well built for $80
Darkhorse 15Watt


Ironhorse 40Watt

[andyfromdenver]

I figured! And I am certainly not judging, as evidenced by my pink lettering and unintentionally phallic symbol shaped panel vents!
Oh yeah I forgot you were going to do the metal chassis cover; It's going to look really cool.
Those Traynors look like rock machines from a bleak, Gotham City alternate universe.

[gearjunkie]

No criticism taken Andy man..and nothing wrong with your work either, at least we're not sitting back wishing we were doing it, we are giving it a go and thats what matters..as in life we learn by doing and our next builds Should be better yet...I admit, I'm not as happy as I'd like as the dremel slipped a few times and marked the finish on the front AND the back , the holes aren't perfect, but I felt once it's covered it'll never be seen but I like to do things right and can't stand sloppy workmanship, especially when it's me doing the work....but hopefully a bit of black marker will hide it to most drunken eyes...

Hey Chris, yes that green wire was not ready to be fitted in that photo, and I also like to keep the wiring as direct and short as possible..

One more thing, and i'm not sure how critical it is to heater voltage, but I thought it would be good for a chuckle and to give drunken clowns something to stare at and stagger away still wondering about...I bought 2 little 3VDC LEDs, they turn 7 different colours and are press fit into tiny plastic sockets that fit into holes drilled into the chassis, and I can't remember how many mA they are but I have it wired downstream of the V1 socket on a DP/ST switch so they don't have to be constantly energized....hopefully it won't rob too much power from the heaters.....Does 10 or 20mA sound right..I know there were 40 mA 3VDC in the electronics store and i didnt get them...if someone could advise I'd appreciate it...