Accutronics reverb tanks

** Hi,

do any people here regularly attempt to fix these things or just replace them ?

I get a lot of dead and bad sounding units - used to be only very old ones but now most are in new looking condition.

Accutronics ( now Accutronics / Belton) have made a couple of major blunders in recent years - first they added little white plugs to the drive and pickup coils and then they added a foam plastic impact pad under the springs.

The white plugs were a disaster since they impacted at the ends of the metal box and caused the hair fine wire on the pick up coils to break. The foam plastic pad was a time bomb - eventually it perished and turned into fine, sticky particles that coated the springs and damped the torsional vibrations so much there was no more reverb.

I have found good fixes for the white plug ones and ones with broken feed wires and even ones that have the tiny magnets resting in contact with the laminations of the drive and pickup coils.

Cleaning springs coated with sticky foam particles with solvent ( even Acetone ) has not proved a complete success - the resulting sound is still sub standard.

Guitarists love these things but I wish they would treat them with more care as many I see have been subjected to massive impacts - over and over. I know this for sure when I see lose and missing steel pins that are intended to limit movement of the sub frame !!

The fix or this last one is to drill out the holes and fit 4x30mm size bolts in place.

Bloody heck !!

.... Phil

I have a box of around 12 of these in the boot of my car, which is going to the local dump this morning. They all have O/C coils.

I've kept them over the last 5 years or so, in the vain hope I will get round to mending them, but have now decided enough is enough and they are going, along with another ten tons of broken power amps, powered speakers, all kinds of s**te that I am never going to get round to fixing, or I would have done it long ago.

Its very cathartic to do this every so often I find, and it means I can now see a bit more floor in the workshop.

Gareth.

"Gareth Magennis"

** 90% of those can be fixed, long as they are the kind with white plugs.

Normally, the hair fine wire breaks just were it is soldered to the pin - mostly only one but I have seen both. You need strong light, close up glasses, a fine tipped iron and a steady hand - plus a strand of tin plated hook up wire.

Want more ?

** I seem to collect modules from powered speakers that defy all attempt at repair.

BTW:

If you can get the magnets off the back of 12 inch speakers, the fames make dandy pot plant stands.

.... Phil

"Gareth Magennis"

** 90% of those can be fixed, long as they are the kind with white plugs.

Normally, the hair fine wire breaks just were it is soldered to the pin - mostly only one but I have seen both. You need strong light, close up glasses, a fine tipped iron and a steady hand - plus a strand of tin plated hook up wire.

Want more ?

** I seem to collect modules from powered speakers that defy all attempt at repair.

BTW:

If you can get the magnets off the back of 12 inch speakers, the fames make dandy pot plant stands.

.... Phil

I've also a whole load of blown valve amp transformers that I have kept for, er, I have no f**king idea why, apart from the fact that new ones cost lots of money.

Any use for these in the home or garden?

Gareth.

"Gareth Magennis"

** Errr - holding doors etc open on windy days is one.

I use any available tranny or SLA battery as dead weight when gluing wood with Aquadhere.

So, am I the only Accutronics tank fixer out there ?

... Phil

I fix them. The stranded wires break or get cut by the Chinese strain relief tabs. I've never had an open coil proper. dave kd6il

** The vast majority of Accutronics reverb unit have this written on them:

" ACCUTRONICS CARY IL. MADE IN USA "

Very recent ones are branded:

" Accutronics & Belton Seoul Korea "

** I don't think you have seen many Accutronics ones then.

.... Phil

I see them a lot. I fix amps for gamblin' money. Change "Chinese" to "Asian".

** The problem you mention occurs with USA made units, but only when they are quite old and the feed PVC wire coating gets brittle.

.... Phil