Avon Calling: Tarting up the amp

Made the grilles for the amp today, and they look pretty cool! Used my dremel with the discs that cut metal on a huge sheet I got during the week. The sheet of grille metal was about 1.2m by 2.4m, i really couldn't find anything smaller, and this was a decent enough price and leaves with enough material to make grills for at least another 6 amps, or god knows what else.

Anyway, after starting to cut it indoors and then being told that indoor fireworks and the possibility of setting fire to curtains etc was not a good idea (or furthermore permitted) I did the cutting outside. The dreme discs (456 something) don't last long, so I've ended up using about 10 of them or so to cut the sheet into 80x60cm chunks, and for cutting out the 3 grills, as am making one as an offering to the Oracle (Tony) for all his help.

The front grille i decided to mount onto the herad cabinet, so cut a chunk about 60mm wider than the width, and 1.5cm longer than the height. Then I bent the side and bottom (after cutting out two small squares at the bottom to allow this). The back is just one sheet, no bending, although I sort of wish I had, but, it's not like I don't have enough material to make another one if I am unhappy about it later down the line. Anyway, I think it looks pretty damn cool so far!

 I also mounted the handle, which is a nice faux leather one, which is much like the one I have on my Mesa Roadking (which is returning home soon). Need to drill the holes bigger for that, as I got some of those metal things you hammer in that add stability or make iit fasten better or something... I got those with a "genuine fender dogbone" handle, which unfortunately just looked plastic and had fender written on it, so no use for this project. Still, the screws + inserts that came with it worked with the faux leather handle, so all good.


So, all cut, mounted the wooden bits so the rear grille can be attached, and then got out the spray can like a good little delinquent and went to work.

Sprayed the inside of the cabinet first, this is so when I tolex it, if the tolex doesn't go all the way in, then there's a black coating to stop you seeing bare wood. Only needed one coat quickly, more wood be overkill, as would primer as this isn't really going to be visible unless you really really look hard. With a torch. And are obsessive about things to unhealthy extremes.

Then I did the grille for the oracle, about 2 coats each side of BMW 318 black I had left from an ill fated "paint you own headstock" thing I tried last year. Came out looking cool :)

Then I sprayed the grilles for mine, as well as the screws to attach the grilles as well. Oh, and also some screws which will be used to attach the black corners I have for the amp. COlour coordination. It's important. Really. Anyway, I figured instead of the hassle of painting them by hand (which I did for the screws inside the amp that are visible on the chassis) that it might be easier to screw them into some scrap wood, and just spray paint them. Much more efficient, and a hell of a lot faster, and I think it's also a more even finish on the screws. Still unsure as to whether I am going to strip the apint when screwing them onto their destination, but if so, i'll just repaint by hand.

Anyway, the only thing left to do pretty much now is tolexing, ie, time to dress it in it's clothes!