I decided to start this project because I wanted a winter, indoor project in case we get blitzed by the snow. I selected the Fender 5F6 Bassman as I knew two people with them. One played in acts such as Elvis and Roy Orbison, and the other fellow works as a studio musician in Dallas. This gave me an edge in documenting the amp, and coming up with information I need.
The 5F6 is a classic amp from 1958/59. It was sold in what they called the Blonde Tweed. Here's is a site showing what the amp looks like.
LINK
Ok, so we dive in. First realization is that I don't have the time or patience to build the chassis. I found one on the internet for $60.00. It was black, so I took it to a friend of mine who does plating and powder coating. After some imitation chrome, I was set.
A company called Hammond Manufacturing up in Canada sells transformers, and I was able to score the power supply, choke, and push-pull output transformer for under $200.
The 5F6 was built at the time using what they called a Turret Board, a predecessor of the Printed Circuit Board. I found one on the internet real cheap ($9.00) and populated it with wire and parts.
Finally some tubes were needed
I'm just now starting to wire this up. I still need front controls, and a few other pieces. The hard part will be the cabinet, but just last week I found a source for the "tweed" or Tolex (as it's called) for the covering of the cabinet, and all the hardware.
I plan to pack the cabinet with four 10" Eminence speakers, with slightly higher mids (no sacrifice on the low end).
The only thing I'm doing to this which is not a Fender design is adding a "direct out" for recording purposes.
I'll share more as I have time, and get further along in the project. Hopefully I can complete this before the end of the school year when he graduates.
Long live the 6L6GC!
The tricky part is making the wood cabinet. I've made speakers before, but the tweed tolex can be a bit tricky to work with as there is a pattern to it.
