Amp Cradles: make one or buy one?

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Structo
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Re: Amp Cradles: make one or buy one?

Post by Structo »

Yes, mine does hold a chassis with tubes in.

I believe earlier in the thread I addressed this by saying, make sure you build the sides high enough to allow the chassis with tubes in to clear the bottom of the cradle.
Tom

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malt
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Re: Amp Cradles: make one or buy one?

Post by malt »

I bolt my chassis to the cradle, don't want the chassis to come loose + it rotates 360*

[IMG:800:600]http://i141.photobucket.com/albums/r63/ ... der014.jpg[/img]
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Structo
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Re: Amp Cradles: make one or buy one?

Post by Structo »

That's pretty cool! :D

I like the idea of using the mounting screw holes.

I have always had some anxious moments when I put my chassis on my cradle because when I first built it I didn't have it balance properly.

Set the chassis in it and it flipped over. Of course I had the tubes in it and three didn't make the journey.

Did you build that from scratch or is it using the Panavise parts?

Unfortunately I don't have the ability to fabricate anything like that out of metal.
Tom

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malt
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Re: Amp Cradles: make one or buy one?

Post by malt »

I made it from scratch at work the parts are mostly alu, got the idea from some pics posted over at the hoffman forum years ago. The plastic parts is from an old office chair. Her is a pic of all the pats

[IMG:800:600]http://i141.photobucket.com/albums/r63/ ... lde004.jpg[/img]
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Structo
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Re: Amp Cradles: make one or buy one?

Post by Structo »

Sweet!
The L pieces appear to be the hardest to come by.
Tom

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tooold
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Re: Amp Cradles: make one or buy one?

Post by tooold »

Hi, guys -

Just joined the forum, and the first thing I find... is another project! Please, not another project!

But they look so cool...
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M Fowler
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Re: Amp Cradles: make one or buy one?

Post by M Fowler »

too old,

Welcome aboard and yes you might as well make an amp cradle too.

Do you like the Tremolux too, I wish I hadn't sold mine.
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tooold
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Re: Amp Cradles: make one or buy one?

Post by tooold »

M Fowler wrote:too old,

Welcome aboard and yes you might as well make an amp cradle too.

Do you like the Tremolux too, I wish I hadn't sold mine.
Thanks! I have four blonde heads in various states of disrepair to work through, so I need another project like a hole in the head. "But this project would make the other projects easier..." So says the evil project starter.

Yep, my Tremolux is pretty much what I'd keep if I could only have one.
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drhulsey
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Re: Amp Cradles: make one or buy one?

Post by drhulsey »

Structo wrote:... The L pieces appear to be the hardest to come by.
I used aluminum extrusions for the ends: two pieces, one with a 45 degree angle on one end. Then it was just a matter of drilling a hole for the panavise post. That was drilled in a rounded nub that attaches to the end of the extrusion. I drilled and threaded a hole for a machine screw to hold the position. Check out these guys for aluminum extrusions, etc.:
http://stores.ebay.com/8020-Inc-Garage-Sale?_rdc=1
They're great people to deal with.
The panavise grips the chassis VERY well.
malt wrote:I made it from scratch at work...
I think I have seen pictures of your cradle before. Very cool 8)
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guitarmike2107
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Re: Amp Cradles: make one or buy one?

Post by guitarmike2107 »

Hi Guys

A "Sam" emailed me recently about looking for suppliers of pre made cradles or kits for making your own, I tried to mail him back but all my mails get returned for Spam.

Anyway if you have seen any kits for sale of finished goods could you post them here. I dont know of any in the states.

Thanks

Sam, Sorry I couldn't e-mail you back direct... your spam filter is set very high.
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Structo
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Re: Amp Cradles: make one or buy one?

Post by Structo »

Tom

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topbrent
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Re: Amp Cradles: make one or buy one?

Post by topbrent »

I built one of these. Found the plans here or 18watt.com...can't remember.

There are nicer designs out there, but this one is easy to build...and cheap.
Cost me about $15.00 to build. Bought everything at Lowes. I had them do the major size cuts. I did the curves and slots on a scroll saw.

Uses a standard, 1x8 board width, so there really isn't much guess work in the measuring.
***(For those who have never worked with wood, 1x8 boards aren't actually 8" wide or 1" thick, hence the 7 1/4", and 3/4" measurements on the plan...)***

One peeve is that it should have been designed to handle a long chassis like a fender twin or JCM800. Handles everything else with ease, though.
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Deric
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Re: Amp Cradles: make one or buy one?

Post by Deric »

I bought one of these from Trinity Amps a couple of months ago. It was a kit but it goes together in 10 minutes or so... I assembled it to make sure everything fit (and to make sure I put everything in the right place) then disassembled, re-assembled with wood glue, let it dry for a few hours then hit it with the palm sander to smooth it out a little. I love to DIY but don't have the woodworking tools (or skills) to build myself. Wasn't "cheap" - $90.00 shipped - but it sure works great. Balance is very nice. Doesn't handle super wide chassis (the Marshall DSL I worked on today wouldn't fit :x ) but everything else I've used it for worked fine.

These were a limited run and they ran out but say they may do more if the interest is high enough. There is a thread in the "Want Ads" section of Trinity's forum (I do believe you have to register to see it...).

[IMG:160:120]http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e243/stumper1/Script%20Phase%2090/WGS%20ET65/Trinity%20Amp%20Cradle/th_TrinityAmpCradle001.jpg[/img]
[IMG:160:120]http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e243/stumper1/Script%20Phase%2090/WGS%20ET65/Trinity%20Amp%20Cradle/th_TrinityAmpCradle006.jpg[/img]
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Structo
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Re: Amp Cradles: make one or buy one?

Post by Structo »

Looks to be a nice cradle.

As simple as these things are when I bought the materials to build mine it came to over $65 just for the wood and hardware!
I bought some thin rubber type material and cut it and glued it the the arms to pad them.
I think it was made to line tool drawers or something.

I bought poplar wood and bought pieces that were close to what I needed so that probably added to the cost a bit.
Tom

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