FourT6and2
Well-known member
Clips toward the end somewhere.
Because my Metro Super Lead build-thread went so well (seen here: viewtopic.php?t=81365 ), I've decided to do the same with a SLO100 clone. I'm still waiting for most of the actual parts to come in. But let's get thangs goin' with a rundown of all the tools I'll be using. First, I'd just like to give a shout out to some of the peeps that gave me helpful advice and info during the research phase of this build: Rob at C3 Amps, Olaf Krampe, The folks at SLOCloneForums (Wartime-Novelty, Joey, and mjtripper), and Joachim at Tube-Town.de.
The build will basically be a stock SLO but with two possible mods: 1) Elevated AC Heaters and 2) A switchable, loop bypass.
First up is a gun to bring da heat:
Some wire stripping tools. I'm using teflon hook-up wire. So I had to get a new hand-stripper because teflon wire has much thinner insulation than normal PVC. So I needed s stripper that could go smaller than the one I had, even for the same AWG. The tool on the left is a special RG-188 coax stripper for the Belden shielded cable I'll be using. It strips in three levels (outer jacket, braided shield, inner insulator) in one fell swoop. Handy.
Basic hand tools. Pliers, flat cutter, round-nose jeweler pliers for bending wire and component leads smoothly, and a wide, flat, non-serrated pliers to perfectly straighten leads/wire.
Other misc. stuffs. Component lead bender for resistors and caps and such on the PCB, supercool sharpie, orange wood sticks for (anal) probing, and an x-acto for zee slicin' unt dicin'.
The super pretty mil-spec, silver-plated, teflon hook-up wire. I chose the color palette for number one tone!
For years I've just been using cheap, shitty, pain-in-my-ass soldering irons from Radio Shack. They get the job done. But the tips always corrode and melt away after like a week. And the temperature isn't regulated so the iron's tip fluctuates all over the place with regard to temperature. I decided to do it right this time and get a decent iron. I narrowed my choices down to Weller and Hakko. Weller has a good name. But the only two readily available irons were the WES51 and the digital version. Both pretty good. But this Hakko FX-888D has a ceramic heating element, has more features, is of much higher quality, and I got a bangin' deal on it that included a bunch of replacement tips of various shapes/sizes and a spool of Kester 44 Eutectic (63/37) solder—the good shit—all for less than the cost of the Weller unit alone. This iron makes soldering much easier, faster, and way more funtastic.
Oh and it LITERALLY (no joke) heats up from totally cold to 750 degrees F in about 20 seconds. It's magic, y'all.
Stay tuned for more updates. Parts should start rollin' in soon.
Because my Metro Super Lead build-thread went so well (seen here: viewtopic.php?t=81365 ), I've decided to do the same with a SLO100 clone. I'm still waiting for most of the actual parts to come in. But let's get thangs goin' with a rundown of all the tools I'll be using. First, I'd just like to give a shout out to some of the peeps that gave me helpful advice and info during the research phase of this build: Rob at C3 Amps, Olaf Krampe, The folks at SLOCloneForums (Wartime-Novelty, Joey, and mjtripper), and Joachim at Tube-Town.de.
The build will basically be a stock SLO but with two possible mods: 1) Elevated AC Heaters and 2) A switchable, loop bypass.
First up is a gun to bring da heat:
Some wire stripping tools. I'm using teflon hook-up wire. So I had to get a new hand-stripper because teflon wire has much thinner insulation than normal PVC. So I needed s stripper that could go smaller than the one I had, even for the same AWG. The tool on the left is a special RG-188 coax stripper for the Belden shielded cable I'll be using. It strips in three levels (outer jacket, braided shield, inner insulator) in one fell swoop. Handy.
Basic hand tools. Pliers, flat cutter, round-nose jeweler pliers for bending wire and component leads smoothly, and a wide, flat, non-serrated pliers to perfectly straighten leads/wire.
Other misc. stuffs. Component lead bender for resistors and caps and such on the PCB, supercool sharpie, orange wood sticks for (anal) probing, and an x-acto for zee slicin' unt dicin'.
The super pretty mil-spec, silver-plated, teflon hook-up wire. I chose the color palette for number one tone!
For years I've just been using cheap, shitty, pain-in-my-ass soldering irons from Radio Shack. They get the job done. But the tips always corrode and melt away after like a week. And the temperature isn't regulated so the iron's tip fluctuates all over the place with regard to temperature. I decided to do it right this time and get a decent iron. I narrowed my choices down to Weller and Hakko. Weller has a good name. But the only two readily available irons were the WES51 and the digital version. Both pretty good. But this Hakko FX-888D has a ceramic heating element, has more features, is of much higher quality, and I got a bangin' deal on it that included a bunch of replacement tips of various shapes/sizes and a spool of Kester 44 Eutectic (63/37) solder—the good shit—all for less than the cost of the Weller unit alone. This iron makes soldering much easier, faster, and way more funtastic.
Oh and it LITERALLY (no joke) heats up from totally cold to 750 degrees F in about 20 seconds. It's magic, y'all.
Stay tuned for more updates. Parts should start rollin' in soon.
