Nov 01 2008
New Cabinet for Kalamazoo Series 2 Amp
Some time ago my dear friend Mike gave me a non-functional Kalamazoo Series 2 Amp. It is a small thing, just 8 watts, made by Gibson in 1965. It was a low-end, entry level, guitar amp that used a British style tube design, and was made with the cheapest materials available. The box was particle board, the covering was a paper thin tolex-like material, and the speaker was probably made by CMI.
I handed it off to Mark Cox of Anything Audio and he rebuilt it, making a number of modifications I requested along the way.
After I got it back, and began to realize just how much of a wee screamer it was, I decided that living in it’s cheap and disintegrating particle-board home was just too sad. I knew a fellow, Larry Bott, whose artistic wood creations I’d greatly admired. I asked him if he’d be willing to fabricate a cabinet from scratch, and he said yes!
It’s not quite done yet, but it’s very close. He used beautiful African Mahogany, and is finishing it with a classic French shellac. I took a few pictures just so I could show it off, and here they are:
Hi Sander, The cabinet looks beautiful. What are its dimensions? What will it weigh with the amp inside? Will it be portable? You mention British construction using tubes (valves in Britain). What are the tube designations, ie. 1B3 etc. ? When we lived in Manhattan I built Heathkit preamps and amps using various components including tubes. I understand that these are hard to come by now. Have you found a source? The project looks like its almost done so don’t forget to send a photo when complete. Love, Dad
I took the easy way out and bought one of these, slightly used:
http://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/AC15H1TVLTD/