My custom stratocaster, played out through a 6” GE radio, for that authentic trailerpark sound.
Official Off Topic Discussion Thread #1
- Thread starter Chrisplosion
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Bravo! I love it!
It's funny. "Collectors", who often like to characterize themselves as "serious", pay big bucks for stuff that is all original. Whether we're talking about guitars, guns, cameras, motorcycles, cars, you name it...collectors want stuff that hasn't been modded or improved or refinished or customized in any way. They swoon over "original" finishes and "correct" bits'n'pieces and "factory" features. They actually want those old worn-out, broken, poorly-functioning relics in their collections; they practically fight over them! And in many, if not most, cases...the idea of actually using that stuff is incomprehensible to them.
You're not gonna actually play that old Stratocaster, are you? You can't possibly mean you are planning to ride that classic Triumph Bonneville, do you? Why are you loading that H&H rifle; surely you don't intend to shoot it???
It is soooo much nicer to see someone take one of those old pieces of junk and lovingly re-work it into something that not only functions, but looks good while doing it and suits the owner to a T. Nicely done!
It's funny. "Collectors", who often like to characterize themselves as "serious", pay big bucks for stuff that is all original. Whether we're talking about guitars, guns, cameras, motorcycles, cars, you name it...collectors want stuff that hasn't been modded or improved or refinished or customized in any way. They swoon over "original" finishes and "correct" bits'n'pieces and "factory" features. They actually want those old worn-out, broken, poorly-functioning relics in their collections; they practically fight over them! And in many, if not most, cases...the idea of actually using that stuff is incomprehensible to them.
You're not gonna actually play that old Stratocaster, are you? You can't possibly mean you are planning to ride that classic Triumph Bonneville, do you? Why are you loading that H&H rifle; surely you don't intend to shoot it???
It is soooo much nicer to see someone take one of those old pieces of junk and lovingly re-work it into something that not only functions, but looks good while doing it and suits the owner to a T. Nicely done!
I tend to collect a lot of useful junk and then eventually I use it.
When I built this little amplifier it was almost all from parts out of my collection of things, that I’m sure I’ve been asked several times, “why do we need those?”
My wife’s discarded radio, my sisters damaged quad stereo. A leather jacket that is way too big since I lost 60 pounds.
I haven’t done a recording of this amplifier worth posting yet but I will.
I had the amplifier, the speakers, the plywood, the leather, the glue, the legs, the screws, the brackets, the paint, the sandpaper, wire, switch, fuse holder, basically everything except a cheap pine board and some cloth remnants and the input jack. About $30 cash outlay.
The Mint badges are powder coated steel garden ornaments. I modded them a little for screws. (Oh yeah. I paid eight dollars for those two vanity badges so I’m out about $40 now.)
This speaker is an infinite baffle design.
The term infinite is a relative one because the cabinet is not sealed but it must be large enough to avoid the sound waves crossing too soon (from the front of the speaker cone to the back of the speaker cone) or you will lose all your bass response.
Putting the speaker up on legs cuts the bass response down compared to sitting on the floor but it keeps people from kicking the speakers.
Also my philosophy about the guitar is that the bass man should play the bass and the guitar should be a guitar.
I don’t normally do that thunderous low heavy metal stuff, unless I want to annoy people, and I’m not normally that guy.
When I built this little amplifier it was almost all from parts out of my collection of things, that I’m sure I’ve been asked several times, “why do we need those?”
My wife’s discarded radio, my sisters damaged quad stereo. A leather jacket that is way too big since I lost 60 pounds.
I haven’t done a recording of this amplifier worth posting yet but I will.
I had the amplifier, the speakers, the plywood, the leather, the glue, the legs, the screws, the brackets, the paint, the sandpaper, wire, switch, fuse holder, basically everything except a cheap pine board and some cloth remnants and the input jack. About $30 cash outlay.
The Mint badges are powder coated steel garden ornaments. I modded them a little for screws. (Oh yeah. I paid eight dollars for those two vanity badges so I’m out about $40 now.)
This speaker is an infinite baffle design.
The term infinite is a relative one because the cabinet is not sealed but it must be large enough to avoid the sound waves crossing too soon (from the front of the speaker cone to the back of the speaker cone) or you will lose all your bass response.
Putting the speaker up on legs cuts the bass response down compared to sitting on the floor but it keeps people from kicking the speakers.
Also my philosophy about the guitar is that the bass man should play the bass and the guitar should be a guitar.
I don’t normally do that thunderous low heavy metal stuff, unless I want to annoy people, and I’m not normally that guy.
Useful junk? Bah, it's all useful if you keep it around long enough. 
When you do finally put it to use, the satisfaction is priceless.
And when a problem or an opportunity arises...the two are often difficult to distinguish...being able to dive into a collection of priceless objects and extracting the one that solves the problem or capitalizes on the opportunity is beyond priceless. You, sir, are a master of the art. If your wife has been after you to "get rid of that junk!"...and I know she has...then making sure she knows about such a genius move is important, and best done in a subtle yet unmistakable way. Actually saying "See, I told you so!" is immature.
Using old "junk" to produce treasure is like a hot coffee in a deer stand, or a cool beer on the deck in the evening, or that first almost-imperceptible jiggle of a fishing float each spring...or any of the other wonderful but underappreciated joys of life.
When you do finally put it to use, the satisfaction is priceless.
And when a problem or an opportunity arises...the two are often difficult to distinguish...being able to dive into a collection of priceless objects and extracting the one that solves the problem or capitalizes on the opportunity is beyond priceless. You, sir, are a master of the art. If your wife has been after you to "get rid of that junk!"...and I know she has...then making sure she knows about such a genius move is important, and best done in a subtle yet unmistakable way. Actually saying "See, I told you so!" is immature.
Using old "junk" to produce treasure is like a hot coffee in a deer stand, or a cool beer on the deck in the evening, or that first almost-imperceptible jiggle of a fishing float each spring...or any of the other wonderful but underappreciated joys of life.
What do you do when you wanna play the new guitar pedal but you don’t have the right 9 V adapter? Scotch magic mending tape and an old adapter cord.
Well that lasted about 20 minutes. ;(
Once the voltage falls to about 8.5 it quits working.
So I taped some expensive 3 V lithium batteries to a stick and continued on.
That made it for well over an hour before it started sagging.
Finally I stuffed six AA cells into a piece of plastic irrigation tubing with some drywall screws, and that kept me playing ‘till midnight, and it still runs.
Well that lasted about 20 minutes. ;(
Once the voltage falls to about 8.5 it quits working.
So I taped some expensive 3 V lithium batteries to a stick and continued on.
That made it for well over an hour before it started sagging.
Finally I stuffed six AA cells into a piece of plastic irrigation tubing with some drywall screws, and that kept me playing ‘till midnight, and it still runs.
