I didn't mention it, but I had noticed something doing a clonk noise inside the amp chassis when moving it around.
Since the chap who sold me the amp gave me a non original footswitch, I did wonder if some Muppet stuck the original footswitch in there.....
Anyway, the only way to find out was to open it.
I took a few pics of interesting construction point along the way.
This amp has an EL84 fan (And probably REALLY needs it, seeing the stickers on the EL84 are fairly brown). Also note the valve retainers!!!!! Let me tell you - no one is changing a valve in hurry on that amp!!!!
Also, the spring reverb tank is inside a very nice bag - all details that are expensive and add up quite quickly.
Then I found the clonking culprit. A loose choke, as it would happen.
Thankfully, someone attempted to fix this. I'll call him Mr Duct-Tape.
Mr Duct-Tape tried to put the choke back in place with...... A wood screw. Bless him. That was nice.
Note that, obviously, there's no nut with the wood screw to hold the choke firmly in place. Probably because no one makes nuts for wood screws. I suppose Mr Duct-Tape didn't know that.
Anyway, what's nicer than a wood screw without a nut to hold your choke firmly in place? Well, Mr Duct-Tape had a guess, and a try. I will not let you wait any longer.
DUCT TAPE!
That will hold that wood screw, and therefore the choke, nicely in place!
I wish in could meet Mr Duct-Tape in person. What a lovely caring fellow.
Something tells me that wasn't the seller (could be though, who knows!).
Anyway, I'm a man, and therefore keeps stashes of odd screws and nuts and bolts from discarded rubbish, just in case it might come in handy one day.
Today was that day. It totally makes collecting 5 years worth of odd screws and bits worthwhile.
Found a couple of screws with anti vibrations nuts, drilled the original holes a touch bigger, and now the choke doesn't go clonk anymore.
One final gut shot- not very good quality pic though.
I really like the lay out on that amp. It looks like turret board construction on PCB. Overall, it looks very well made.
The top of the combo is shielded too, a nice touch i thought. I've never seen that before.
A lot of attention to details there.
I reassembled it, plugged it, and it made a low whirring noise. Thought I'd buggered it...... almost went to switch it off, then remembered it has a fan......
Played it again, that thing is such a beast!!! Best kept away from Mr Duct-Tape's hands though.