Tell about your isolation projects

[Koolaide]

I'll go first. In the last few weeks, Built a 1x12 cab, redone my bench. Put together an Isolation transformer- seemed like the thing to do since most of us are in isolation. Upgraded my variac with digital display, and built an amp cradle. Thanks Sluckey for the cradle design. And thanks to all here for helping with my IT questions.
I have some things on order to finally put together an Express- odds and ends mostly. I have had a Triode kit for a few years and have threatened to start it on numerous occasions. Gona do it next week along with some yard work.

So how about Ya'll

[xtian]

No need to repost my TAG build logs!

I got a "goth" Epiphone SG for cheap. Pretty nice, after I had my luthier level the frets!

[pompeiisneaks]

I've been doing non guitar stuff.

I've got a 70" LG 4k TV that's broken I'm trying to fix/troubleshoot (got it for free fifty)

I've also started trying my hand at beekeeping

We'll see how that pans out. I built a horizontal bee hive and a bee 'trap' so I can catch a wild swarm. Now that swarm season is upon us, maybe I'll luck out ?

~Phil

[tony hunt]

I am not in isolation,
I'm in construction.
Spare time is a long lost old friend.

But today I found a moment to rack a pair of W.E. REP coils.
They are like a couple of pints of Guiness at the end of a tough week.

Stay safe, everyone.

[ChopSauce]

Not amp related...
(but that AC4 build)

DSC_5791.jpg

The exhaust remains to be finished, plus the wiring...
(Not entierely satisfied with the colors, though... )

[chief mushroom cloud]

no such thing as isolation w/ the interwebs...
working on new amp designs w/ Dave Friedman....and working on my 3rd Gen 4Runner getting ready for some summer off-roading up in the mountains in SoCal
I might put some new PUs in my stratobastard...and maybe finish some wildassed hairbrained amp idea.....maybe fix my Trace Elliott bass amp....the list goes on..........and on...........and on...............

[johnnyreece]

Performed some mods on a Crate BV120 that the customer (my ex-wife's new husband) seems happy about.

Built a coffee bar.

Working on rebuilding a go-kart with my oldest son (new engine should be in today).

That's about it. Kinda thought about making myself a new amp, but my wife likes the extra time together, so she wins. I mostly work from home right now, which is nice.

[Koolaide]

IMHO a smart man's wife always wins

[tristanc]

I have a small FIreFly-style build that sounds great but rarely gets used - my plan is to pair it with a spare 12" speaker I had and box it up to make a little combo. A very high gain tweed combo.

Will probably start a build thread. I bought a ready-made cabinet from Juke Tone as I don't have the carpentry skills. There are a few bodges and alterations to be done. And I might lacquer it as well.

The main issue is the chassis is much smaller than the Blue Jr cabinet takes, so mounting will be an issue. Also the OT is going to be very close to the speaker magnet - I think I'll get away with it.

T

[statorvane]

I'm working from home. I tell you I have never gotten so much work done so fast in my life! I never noticed how my typical day at work is a series of constant interruptions all day.

In my spare time I am refinishing a faded brown Les Paul Studio model I picked up about 5 years ago. After removing the finish and sanding back most of the dirty brown, used motor oil-like stain, the top wood isn't anything special, so I am going to finish it as a gold top model.

Gibson didn't spend more that around 10 minutes on the finish of these guitars - applied brown stain and a shot of lacquer. So after stripping the "finish" I sanded and grainfilled the body, then sealed it up. Very smooth, the buckle rash was pretty much just scratches in the lacquer. I applied some BIN primer to the top - silky smooth and white. I remember doing this on a Tele I refinished and liked the color of the primer so much I went ahead and finished it in white. I am resisting the temptation to do another white guitar however, and mixed up some gold lacquer. Now I am waiting for a clear, dry, calm day (happens like 5 days a year around here) to drag out the compressor and spray gun, and dust on some gold.

In the mean time I am playing guitar, pretty much through a recent Supro clone I built.

Oh, and I taught my niece how to ride a bicycle! Funny how fast kids can pick things up. One minute she is afraid of tipping over, constantly looking at the ground in front of her. The next minute she is very confident - doing figure eights! Let me tell you what an absolute thrill that is to see her ride that bike. Her dad is a useless lug; watches his Coach sitcom DVD collection over and over and over. I can't believe he won't spend time with her (you know you never get these years back later).

[Phil_S]

My job is keeping me busier than ever. Lately, I've been thinking to myself, I didn't sign up for this pace. Yes, I'm working from home. Some days, I find I've been sitting in the chair so long that my hips hurt when I stand up. And, yes, I have a very high quality, honest to goodness, office chair at home, very comfortable, no back/neck related issues.

Meanwhile, I started building a new end table, but the job is interfering with progress. Here's the unfinished table top after glue up. Book matched cherry and walnut. The cherry was an off cut with a diagonal crack. It was a lemon. I made lemonade.

My wife is also working from home. She's busy, too. Many days we don't see each other all day until dinner time.

[Koolaide]

Hey Phil,
I worked out of my home for about 20 years. In all fairness I worked several counties around the state and was on the road about 5-8 hrs a day 3-4 days a week, but returning home daily. The rest of the time I was in my home office doing paperwork. When I first started working at home my former boss told me, that to be successful I would have to learn that there was a time to work, and a time for it to be home. He was 100% correct. I learned that when I was in my office / work area, it was work time. Just like going to an office. Then, when it was time to leave, I would close the door and not go back until work time again. It worked well for me, and my family.
Some guys can't work from home. Mainly for 1 of 2 reasons:
1. They aren't disciplined enough to work in that environment.
2. They can't turn off work and "go home".

When I was deciding if I would take the job, I asked my predecessor (I knew him well) What he liked about the job. He said " I get out of the shower and I am in my office" I asked what he hated about the job and he said " I get out of the shower and I am in my office".
Have a great day and stay safe.

[Phil_S]

This is sage advice about working at home. I had a consulting business for about 14 years, which is why I've got a home office with a really good chair. I used to spend a lot of time here! And when I was doing the consulting, every hour worked was an hour I got paid, and very good money, too. However, the consulting business was feast and famine, which I didn't mind that much, because there was always another project coming along and I managed to earn a pretty good living. This job came along, a former client. It fell in my lap.

Here is the problem I've encountered. When I worked for myself (really no such thing,) I could decide when to work and when not to work. I didn't have a problem leaving the office. There were times when I'd just take a day off, no need to ask permission. When I have a job, it never ends. In general, I've made an effort to "leave work" at around 6:30 PM. It just that I'm starting earlier, finishing later, and working harder while I'm in the chair. I found myself wishing to return to the office!

[roberto]

I'm designing a bass amp with some unusual features, while the preamp will have a classical baxandall equalisation plus a mid control but different from the ones I posted here before.
I will open a thread about it soon, then I will ask some more opinions about it.

[Littlewyan]

I've been tinkering with two of my amplifiers and working on a new design to build at some point in future. One amp was a 20W JCM800, however I was never 100% happy with it. It had to be cranked to get a good tone and the low input was useless. So I modified it to make the low input a standard 69 Marshall lead circuit (with the master volume cranked) and the high input just added another gain stage in front, pretty much using Friedman values. I did start off experimenting with other values, but these seemed to sound best. I also added a small amount of depth into the NFB. It's now a great workhorse amp.

My latest amp build is also getting a make over. I'm going to start a thread on it to explain my journey and how much I've learnt about getting a good overdrive tone and the different overdrive tones!. There's too much to say in a quick post!