Bottlehead Forum

Bottlehead Kits => Legacy Kit Products => Tode => Topic started by: vladimirwolfe on August 28, 2014, 12:58:39 PM

Title: Smoke!
Post by: vladimirwolfe on August 28, 2014, 12:58:39 PM

Tode has been working great for a couple of months. I take it to a rehearsal and no signal and there's a thin stream of smoke wafting out of it. I'm hoping to take it apart this weekend and was hoping for suggestions and what to look for.

TIA,

Doug

Title: Re: Smoke!
Post by: Paul Birkeland on August 28, 2014, 02:11:25 PM

Start by looking for what got hot.

If nothing looks amiss, try measuring the voltages.  (Do go back into the manual and reread the section on voltage measurements)

Title: Re: Smoke!
Post by: vladimirwolfe on August 28, 2014, 06:19:16 PM

Thanks PB. That's always my first try at trouble shooting, back to manual and check voltages and resistance.

Title: Re: Smoke!
Post by: vladimirwolfe on August 30, 2014, 08:10:35 AM

Took the Tode apart today and no signs of anything obviously burnt or wrong. Fired it up and she worked fine. Now I'm really scratching my head. Could it have anything to do with the quality of incoming AC?

Doug

Title: Re: Smoke!
Post by: Paul Birkeland on August 30, 2014, 08:12:51 AM

 It very well could've just been a little piece of a trimmed lead shorting something out.  Did anything fall out when you popped it open?

Title: Re: Smoke!
Post by: Doc B. on August 30, 2014, 09:12:20 AM

I would suggest looking carefully at the wires that flex when the back goes on and off - the ones that go from the back panel to the front one. Maybe one of the terminals they are attached to moved, or some other part got bumped by the wires. Stands to reason that opening the cabinet might have inadvertently fixed the problem if that was it - assuming you didn't find a roasted moth inside.

Title: Re: Smoke!
Post by: vladimirwolfe on August 31, 2014, 12:21:22 PM

No moths or other livestock and nothing fell out. Checked the wiring harness when the back came off and it looked fine as did everything around the power transformer.

It worked great for a couple of months and then took it over to a buddy's place for rehearsal (where it had been before) and smoke. I dunno. I'm just glad to have it back in service-great little amp. Only thing I'd like to change is to get a little more range out of the brake. Is it possible to upgrade to a better part? It's hard to get quiet enough playing my 50's Supro lap steel through it!

Incoming 2 x 12 cab that I'll load with a couple of Scumback speakers...it might get loud ;-)