I recently came across a Silvertone 1482 amplifier for sale on Craigslist. Since I have a Harmony Stratotone Guitar I figured I needed a matching amp. The amp is all original including tubes. In general it is in pretty decent shape except it is missing the knobs. Unfortunately, it smells like a musty basement. I have let it sit out for a while but it still smells. I think this is probably due to the cabinet material. It is sort of a glorified cardboard - literally. It is not even pretending to be wood. As a result I am going to build a new cabinet and a matching external speaker cabinet while I am at it.
Original Cabinet
Original Chassis Components
Cabinet Re-build
I started building upgraded cabinets. I have seen at least one company (Rockometer Amp) that makes repro cabinets. While they are dimensionally the same, the trim is slightly different. I wanted my amp to look as close as possible to the original. Although, I have not found a source for the original amp covering. It isn't tolex and looks more like wallpaper than anything else. I'm currently (as of January 2019) looking around for something similar.
The interior of my cabinets are dimensionally the same as the original (I should remember to draw up a plan with the measurements). However, I am using 3/4 inch baltic birch for the shell and 1/2 inch baltic birch for the front baffle. After some reflection, I probably could have used 5/8 and 3/8 to keep the weight down and things would have been sturdy enough. Doesn't really matter, mine are going to be very rugged.
The hardest part was milling the pine pieces for the trim. I used 2x2 pine that I cut down with a 76 degree bevel on the front and then dimensioned the pieces to 1 5/16 inches.
I joined the pieces together gluing the side and top joints together with biscuits. Everything should be very sturdy. Certainly better than the original cardboard cabinet.
The interior of my cabinets are dimensionally the same as the original (I should remember to draw up a plan with the measurements). However, I am using 3/4 inch baltic birch for the shell and 1/2 inch baltic birch for the front baffle. After some reflection, I probably could have used 5/8 and 3/8 to keep the weight down and things would have been sturdy enough. Doesn't really matter, mine are going to be very rugged.
The hardest part was milling the pine pieces for the trim. I used 2x2 pine that I cut down with a 76 degree bevel on the front and then dimensioned the pieces to 1 5/16 inches.
I joined the pieces together gluing the side and top joints together with biscuits. Everything should be very sturdy. Certainly better than the original cardboard cabinet.
Three Prong (3 prong) Power Cord Modification
With any old amp it is a good idea to update a two conductor power cord to a grounded three conductor cord. Its really quite a simple modification.
