anyone gut their express and build something else

[wsaraceni]

damn. i really need to dust it off. can I use a cotton ball with rubbing alcohol or is that bad?

[wsaraceni]

i think i am going to order some solid 20awg pvc 600v wire to replace the front of the board and the tone stack wiring. anyone have a recommendation?

also, how can i get the iron hot enough to get the back of the pots grounded. should i get a hotter gun? im using the weller wes51 now

[cbass]

Some pots you have to sand/scrape the backs of them.Some pots wont accept solder on the backs.
40 watt iron should make quick work of it.
I personaly never solder to the backs of pots at least on my amps.

[crbowman]

i think i am going to order some solid 20awg pvc 600v wire to replace the front of the board and the tone stack wiring. anyone have a recommendation?

also, how can i get the iron hot enough to get the back of the pots grounded. should i get a hotter gun? im using the weller wes51 now

Steve from Apex Jr. usually has a wide variety of stranded and solid core wire as well as lots of other cool stuff. He's a member here (ApexJr.)

[jelle]

Dust... Brush and compressed air. Ditch the black Sprague bypass caps on the preampboard. Those pots need to be worked with a file, I use a 1/8 wide one for that. Pretin the pot before adding the buss bar.

Why get different wire?!

Good so far...

[wsaraceni]

thanks. what caps should i use to replace the black sprague? its all stranded. thought it may be easier to work that part with solid core. would there be any tonal differences?

[wsaraceni]

also, what do you use for the buss bar? stripped core from romex or something else? and do you just run a wire to the end to the chassis ground or is the back of the pots already grounded? i can't remember. guess i can check but that would be too easy.

[RJ Guitars]

i think i am going to order some solid 20awg pvc 600v wire to replace the front of the board and the tone stack wiring. anyone have a recommendation?

Mil Spec tinned copper has been used on the best sounding clones that I have been associated with... there are many options that will work satisfactorily. I would suggest you look for PVC that is good up for use in temperatures up to 80C. Otherwise soldering to it can be very challenging.

also, how can i get the iron hot enough to get the back of the pots grounded. should i get a hotter gun? im using the weller wes51 now

If you use an actual solder gun, it's possible if you have done the sanding and cleaning thing... IMHO it's also terribly bad for your pots and not the best method for creating a ground bus. Use the ground tabs that go behind the pots and you'll thank yourself later YMMV.

also, what do you use for the buss bar? stripped core from romex or something else? and do you just run a wire to the end to the chassis ground or is the back of the pots already grounded? i can't remember. guess i can check but that would be too easy.

A piece of #20 bare solid copper wire is more than adequate. This is the ground for signal levels and there is no significant power that runs through it. Use #18 if you want the extra insurance. In theory the back of the pots is grounded but with a wooden faceplate it can be difficult to tighten the pots adequately. This design defies conventional wisdom on avoiding ground loops but the history shows that most folks don't have many problems with it. again YMMV

[wsaraceni]

thanks for the help guys. i hope to have time over the next week or two to finish this up and hopefully get to the fine tuning stage.

[Lublin]

thanks for the help guys. i hope to have time over the next week or two to finish this up and hopefully get to the fine tuning stage.

You can use my Express as an example, if you wish. It sounds pretty darn good!

[wsaraceni]

thanks rich. i may take you up on that offer as well.

[wsaraceni]

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