JeffB Posted October 26, 2020 Posted October 26, 2020 I hadnt used the amp for a while, maybe turned it on once every couple of months over 2yrs to see what didnt work on it anymore. Volume cut in and out, got loud, died away. Reverb occasionally worked for about 5seconds. All sorts of glitchy things happening with it as well as scratchy pots. So I took it in expecting a long wait and expense. Couple of hours later all done. DeOxit. Just needed a clean and test. I couldve done that! Why didnt I? I plugged it in and played through it when I got home. Glorious. Deleted all the bookmarks for all the new amps I was looking at. Its really nice to hear its familiar sound again. Question: Ive never cleaned or shined the tolex in 35yrs of owning it, whats the best way to get some shine back into it?
tbonesullivan Posted October 26, 2020 Posted October 26, 2020 Is the tolex still solid and in good condition? If it has started to degrade you can have issues. First I would try cleaning it with a bit of soap and water on a towel. Years of dust/dirt etc may be stuck on the covering. Someone sold me to use Turtle Wax "black ice" on tolex, and it really does the trick, IMHO.
Gitfiddler Posted October 26, 2020 Posted October 26, 2020 Quality liquid black shoe polish can help unless the tolex is ripped or torn. Just mask off the chrome hardware with painter's tape and go for it. That simple process brought this 80's Concert II back to life.
kbp810 Posted October 26, 2020 Posted October 26, 2020 If it's in good shape but just a bit dirty; the soap and water isn't a bad idea to clean dirt, debris, oils, etc... off it. But then I'd recommend following it up with something like 3M leather and vinyl restorer. Or some 303 Aerospace works great on vinyl too, and will restore light fading. I like the black shoe polish idea too, especially if you're got some scuffs or heavy fading.
JeffB Posted October 27, 2020 Author Posted October 27, 2020 10 hours ago, Gitfiddler said: Quality liquid black shoe polish can help unless the tolex is ripped or torn. Just mask off the chrome hardware with painter's tape and go for it. That simple process brought this 80's Concert II back to life. Thats the amp. Just not as tidy and nice looking as your one. I think I might replace all the chrome corners and chassis straps, theyre all quite rusty, grill cloth while Im at it. A couple of the knobs are broken so I might replace the whole lot plus the on/off switch.
tbonesullivan Posted October 27, 2020 Posted October 27, 2020 For the hardware, I'd go after them with some Flitz or something similar. They may not be as bad as you think, and you'll never get that patina back.
loudtubeamps Posted October 27, 2020 Posted October 27, 2020 Assuming it's black/brown and not tweed: I've had good results with pro-solve to clean and then armour all to make it shine. Chrome hardware.....0000 steel wool.
JeffB Posted October 27, 2020 Author Posted October 27, 2020 Just discovered what aluminium foil and vinegar can do for chrome! Its not a total refinish but it looks okay. They both looked the same or similar. One has been rubbed with vinegar and ali foil. I'll keep going for awhile and see if it brings it up any better.
tbonesullivan Posted October 27, 2020 Posted October 27, 2020 Just now, JeffB said: Just discovered what aluminium foil and vinegar can do for chrome! Its not a total refinish but it looks okay. They both looked the same or similar. One has been rubbed with vinegar and ali foil. I'll keep going for awhile and see if it brings it up any better. Nice! It really does work well. What you can do is hit them with a bit of the Flitz liquid polish, which has anti-corrosive agents in it. That can help prevent it from happening again. I've gotta take off the hardware and do this exact same thing to the Rivera Pubster I picked up two years ago.
pressure Posted October 27, 2020 Posted October 27, 2020 I'm a big fan of Flitz. I may be mistaken but I think "Jaws" from the James Bond movies brushed his teeth with it.
bolero Posted October 27, 2020 Posted October 27, 2020 I would not use Armor All on anything tolex, that you intend to lift/move/carry it makes it slippery as hell. I almost killed myself moving a 4x12 someone had armor all'd
LK155 Posted October 27, 2020 Posted October 27, 2020 Agree with Bolero about ArmorAll. I used to put it on my car tires at one time, until I heard from a paint guy that it wasn't wise. If any of that stuff gets on your paint ANYWHERE, he said, nothing will ever stick to that surface again (like a repaint situation) unless it's sanded down to bare metal. Weird stuff.
Gitfiddler Posted October 27, 2020 Posted October 27, 2020 16 hours ago, JeffB said: Thats the amp. Just not as tidy and nice looking as your one. I think I might replace all the chrome corners and chassis straps, theyre all quite rusty, grill cloth while Im at it. A couple of the knobs are broken so I might replace the whole lot plus the on/off switch. I really loved that amp. It had the upgraded EV12 speaker and sounded amazing. Unfortunately, after my shoulder surgery it had to go. Too heavy for this aging player.
tbonesullivan Posted October 28, 2020 Posted October 28, 2020 53 minutes ago, bolero said: I would not use Armor All on anything tolex, that you intend to lift/move/carry it makes it slippery as hell. I almost killed myself moving a 4x12 someone had armor all'd 43 minutes ago, LK155 said: Agree with Bolero about ArmorAll. I used to put it on my car tires at one time, until I heard from a paint guy that it wasn't wise. If any of that stuff gets on your paint ANYWHERE, he said, nothing will ever stick to that surface again (like a repaint situation) unless it's sanded down to bare metal. Weird stuff. Armorall contains very thin silicone penetrating solutions, which get into and around EVERYTHING. It also makes things VERY slippery. Some people unfortunately use it on the tread of their tires, or on vinyl seats, and find that friction is a thing of the past. I also have heard that once you use it on vinyl, a dashboard, etc, you have to KEEP using it.
pressure Posted October 28, 2020 Posted October 28, 2020 You know those rubber pads on your cars brake and gas pedals, that's a bad place to treat with Armorall too.
DetroitBlues Posted October 28, 2020 Posted October 28, 2020 I like the shoe sole paint. Never thought of that one. I do like the idea of saving the chrome even if it has a little patina on it. Its an old amp, so why not show some signs of being old?
JeffB Posted October 28, 2020 Author Posted October 28, 2020 List of cleaning products used so far: bicarb/baking soda vinegar aluminium foil. Water. Results. Very good. There are a few little tears. I will touch them up with a soldering iron, or glue and a sharpie.
loudtubeamps Posted October 28, 2020 Posted October 28, 2020 Ha...yes,armour all does make things very slippery. Not recommended for motorcycle , snowmobile ,sea-doo or car seats. One tends to end up over the handle bars. I can imagine the results on break, clutch pedals. I used it once back in the day on my new '70 Toyota Corolla....tires, OK,door seals, OK ....dash not OK, the reflections from the shine were blinding. I can honestly say after cleaning/ refurbishing well over 100 amps and cabs using these products, I've never had an accident...touch wood. The shoe polish application, I'll have to try that one. The 0000 steel wool does work very well, removes the rusty bits and actually polishes the corrosion.
bolero Posted October 28, 2020 Posted October 28, 2020 I don't think you can get the stuff off easily, either if someone was selling an amp that had been armor all'd, it would be a deal breaker for me. especially vintage
tbonesullivan Posted October 29, 2020 Posted October 29, 2020 47 minutes ago, bolero said: I don't think you can get the stuff off easily, either if someone was selling an amp that had been armor all'd, it would be a deal breaker for me. especially vintage Yah, I can't have my drink sliding off the top. Or my army of picks.
JeffB Posted October 29, 2020 Author Posted October 29, 2020 Well, I finished cleaning it and put it all back together. LOL! For all that intense focus and activity it still looks like a black and silver box, just a bit cleaner. I dont know what else I was expecting. I just have to replace the two broken dials. Developed a fixation for a 112 big cab Princeton while I was working on this. I dont know if its even a thing. Opening search result tabs now.
Millennium Maestro Posted October 29, 2020 Posted October 29, 2020 Perfect topic for my little project! Had to clean the 20+ years of dust, spunk and whatever... off this beast. I think she is going to beat up on my power brake! [img]https://i.imgur.com/3d3E2KO.jpg[/img] [img]https://i.imgur.com/0Cjq3du.jpg[/img]
rockabilly69 Posted October 29, 2020 Posted October 29, 2020 5 hours ago, JeffB said: Well, I finished cleaning it and put it all back together. LOL! For all that intense focus and activity it still looks like a black and silver box, just a bit cleaner. I dont know what else I was expecting. I just have to replace the two broken dials. Developed a fixation for a 112 big cab Princeton while I was working on this. I dont know if its even a thing. Opening search result tabs now. this should help you in your quest... https://www.vintagesoundamps.com/product/vintage-15-princeton-style/ http://www.allenamps.com/sweetspot.html http://3rdpower.com/products/amps/wooly-coats-spanky-mkii/#1466056694371-2ce81ba2-beb9a6ec-7aa0 (no trem, but sounds great)
tbonesullivan Posted October 29, 2020 Posted October 29, 2020 14 hours ago, JeffB said: Well, I finished cleaning it and put it all back together. LOL! For all that intense focus and activity it still looks like a black and silver box, just a bit cleaner. I dont know what else I was expecting. I just have to replace the two broken dials. Developed a fixation for a 112 big cab Princeton while I was working on this. I dont know if its even a thing. Opening search result tabs now. Yeah, but it definitely Does look a little better. That grille though, eventually it's just gonna fall apart. There is unfortunately no real way to stop those grilles from eventually just disintegrating.
JeffB Posted October 29, 2020 Author Posted October 29, 2020 43 minutes ago, tbonesullivan said: Yeah, but it definitely Does look a little better. That grille though, eventually it's just gonna fall apart. There is unfortunately no real way to stop those grilles from eventually just disintegrating. Yes. It looks much better. I just finished staring at it for a while with a strat. The grill and two broken knobs did detracted from the tone visual experience. Weird, I think Ive become a semi hollow body humbucker guy this time around. Cool.
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