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70's Ampeg 8x10 Restoration

xJasonSmithx

xJasonSmithx

Jun 25, 2003
851
1,014
43
Denver, CO
#1
This week I traded my Sunn 215BH cab + $80 for this 70's Ampeg 8X10 cab. I have been keeping my eyes peeled for an inexpensive candidate for restoration for a few years now and this seems like it is going to be perfect. I want to use this thread to document my progress and also ask some questions as I go. I have read through a ton of different threads and I think I have decided to go to Duratex route. At some point this thing was refinished with some thick carpet which has gotten nasty over the years. Unfortunately they used glue and a TON of staples along each seam. It is going to be a serious pain in the ass to remove all of these. Does anyone have any suggestions on what tool to use to remove these staples quickly without doing damage to the wood?

I definitely have my work cut out for me. See my next post for pictures.
 
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#2
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#3
Two questions concerning the speakers. The cab sounds great but in the photo you will notice that one of the speakers on the bottom has the dust cap dented in and on the second row from the top one of the speakers has part of the outer ring (gasket?) missing.

1. Does the dented dust cab pose any problems?
2. Does the outer ring (gasket?) being torn pose any problems? Are these able to be peeled off and replaced?

Thanks!
 
#7
+1 about the glue, and by the sound of how nasty it is it's probably old...

A flat pry bar can also do wonders to get Staples etc started and to an easier to reach point. You just have to work a little slow/gentle if there's potential for tear out from the wood.
 
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#8
For removing staples from plywood, I use a staple remover. A place like Staples sells them. You slide the metal under the staple and pry it up a bit. It helps to then have some needle nose pliers available as well to pull it out the rest of the way.

Bostitch staple remover.jpg


There are better staple remover tools available for upholstery work such as the one below.

staple-puller.jpg


For the dented dust cap, you have to draw it out without a lot of pressure. The right sized, soft cup, milk breast pump works by providing a low pressue vacuum.

milk breast pump.jpg
 
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#9
Mordamir said:
Well if you can grab on to them with some wire cutters you can pry them out pretty easy. The wire cutters will let you get a lot closer to what your working on than pliers would.
Click to expand...
Having pulled many staples out of hardwood, I can tell you that pliers are the right tool and dikes are not. The window of enough pressure to grip but not so much as to cut is too small to manage repeatedly. Pliers are what to use. It’s what you’ll be using anyway after you accidentally clip the staples with dikes.

The more sunken ones will need an awl or flat tip screwdriver to get under and get moving so the pliers can finish the job.

EDIT: Lever Staple removers are not a suitable tool either. Those are for stacks of paper held together with fresh staples. Neither is the case here.

Pliers. Regular ones, not needle nose. I’ve pulled hundreds of staples out of wood. This is not theoretical to me at all.
 
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#12
Whether working with duratex or vinyl, proper wood prep is important. Any flaws in the wood come through. When removing the vinyl, some damage will occur. This is where wood fillers and sanding come in.

Pay particular attention when sanding to not change the roundover along the edges. It affects the look.

Some tips for how to do the wood prep are provided here in the TalkBass Portaflex Wiki. The same principles apply to an 810.

SB-12 Cabinet Restoration - part 1 | TalkBass.com

SB-12 Cabinet Restoration - part 2 | TalkBass.com
 
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#13
If you've got a past-its-best flat head screwdriver you can turn it into a pretty reasonable staple remover. Heat up the end and bend it as per the yellow handled one in beans post, and file down the end so it's sharp and fits between the staple verticals.

You'll find this or a proper staple lifter 50 times better than trying to use anything else. Lift the staples a few mil then grab with ordinary pliers.
You'll need to get the metal very hot to bend, and I quenched it after.

Oh yes, if the wood is soft or very cosmetic, it's good to put something like a bit of flat metal under to lever on to save denting the wood. If solid cab to be covered with Tolex this is unlikely to be a concern.
1547568787624378550685.jpg
 
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#16
I would say yes tolex is definitely
What it was factory

It's vintage cab so it's hard to not be a traditionalist

Nothing beats the look of real tolex.
Combined with cloth grill.
It's so easy to look better in world filled with ugly cabinets lol
 
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#17
FWIW the Duratex will look about the same as tolex, you can make it as coarse or smooth as you want. Different paint rollers will give you different results.

Look at this Duratex'd enclosure. Looks almost like tolex but it's not going to rip and tear, at most it will chip/ding, and you can fix a chip/ding so good you wouldn't even see the repair.

InQSnn4h.jpg
 
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#18
cornfarmer said:
FWIW the Duratex will look about the same as tolex, you can make it as coarse or smooth as you want. Different paint rollers will give you different results.

Look at this Duratex'd enclosure. Looks almost like tolex but it's not going to rip and tear, at most it will chip/ding, and you can fix a chip/ding so good you wouldn't even see the repair.

View attachment 3284023
Click to expand...
.

That is what I’m going for! Is this yours?
 
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