The Burning Amp Festival- an Audio Happening

[AR2]

Originally posted by hayenc


The emails I sent to the site for heatsink quotes get returned as undeliverable. Has anyone else had any success?

Try phoning them. I spoke with them when I was buying mine. Who could wait for email?
Really I was so excited when I found them, that I couldn't wait for morning to came to give them a call. I just couldn't believe what I was reading off the web.

[hifimaker]

Did you anodize the heat sinks and other aluminum parts yourself?

-David

[AR2]

No, that will be too much for me. Anodizing is nasty with chemicals much stronger than what I am use to bath in (metol, hydrohynon and borax found in photography developers are drugs of my choice, but last 16 years I am completely green being digital, so not even those I use any more) I would say good Gin or Single Barrel Jack Daniel's is the strongest chemical I use.

I think I wrote this somewhere. I did powder coating. It is absolutely great process and very inexpensive. For the beginners Sears sells powder coating gun and powders:

http://www.sears.com/shc/s/p_10153_12605_00917288000P

After that all you need is an old oven, small or big, whatever the biggest size is that you want to do. It is as simple as it could be:

You clean the metal well, attach the electrode to that and spray the powder that is safer and cleaner than any paint. With this gun you do not need compressor, it has blower included in it. It needs just a little pressure that small fan inside the gun provides. Electric charge does the rest, so that powder you spray gets attached to the metal. That ensures minimal spill over. After that, bake that in the oven at 400 degrees F for about 15 min. and voila you are done. Like I said it is healthier, easier and faster even than any painting. After you are done just vacuum the leftover powder spill.

Black wrinkled finish hides all your mistakes in finished surface, so typically that is may choice. There is also clear powder and that is what I used for the front panel. Honestly, anodizing looks better, but this comes close to it.

I did brushing as well. I made a lots of research on brushing. Finally I went to the source - 3M. There I found some engineer that was trilled to talk to me about all kinds of abrasives and who gave me the advice of what to use, as the very same thing is used in the machines that are doing brushing. The simple 3M abrasive pad. Here look in the picture. You only drag that abrasive in even motion and in the whole width of your panel.

Do not let the picture confuse you. The panel is already done, brushed and powder coated. The clear area is what I have protected so it doesn't have the powder coat on it. There you could see the difference between the clear powder coat and clear metal without the finish. Just look at the picture as an illustration of how to use the abrasive pad.

[FastEddy]

Very Cool !!

I'll go get that Sears blow gun today !!

[AR2]

Originally posted by FastEddy
Very Cool !!

I'll go get that Sears blow gun today !!

Hold on, do not jump the gun yet. In a few hours I will post some more info, that could give you more choices. Got to go now, but stay tuned.

[FastEddy]

Standing by ...

[gl]

Hi Vladimir,

Thank you for posting more information about your amps. Having seen them and heard them in person I have to say that I have never come across a finer DIY project! I really think that they deserve their own thread over in the PL forum. I fear that all this wonderful info will get buried here and be forgotten.

I have one question for you.

I count 10 output transistors on the one main heatsink you show out on the bench. That means that your amp has 20 output transistors total. But the X600 manual on the Passlabs site states that that amp has 48 output transistors. Can you help me understand the difference?

Cheers,
Graeme

[AR2]

Ok so answers in the order it has been received. Your estimated wait time - 2 min.

Like I described in my post, Sears gun is good, and simple to start with. But if you already own a small compressor than for almost same amount of money you could have much higher quality unit such as this one:

http://www.caswellplating.com/powder/

The compressor needs to give only 15 PSI so any small one will do, but with a good filter in line. So why this unit is better? Because it gives very high voltage ( 50 KV) and it has variable voltage. Typical problem with the powder coating is to evenly cover sharp edges. There you have a Faraday effect where the powder escapes from the edges. Solution to that is to preheat the metal and than to apply the powder with (if I remember well, but could be the opposite - didn't do that for a while) lower voltage. That is where this gun will shine. This site that I posted has very good info and manuals, as well as very extensive supplies. So pick what suits you but I taught it is good to give you full info on options before you buy. Sears is something like $190 and this is $ 230, for much higher quality unit. The pleasure when it is done is full. Especially for someone like me who cannot wait to see it done. When I work on my projects I am almost killing myself to speed up process to see it done. For the like ones this is great - not too much wait time.

[FastEddy]

Got It !!! Thanks a bunch !!!

This still needs a separate compressor ... and either system needs an old oven with thermostat ... and I should cook the parts @ preheated oven of 400 F. for ~ 15 minutes to "set" the paint powder.

(I understand about cooking parts in my wife's good kitchen oven ... last time was the last time for me )

[AR2]

Originally posted by FastEddy
Got It !!! Thanks a bunch !!!

This still needs a separate compressor ... and either needs an old oven with thermostat. Both systems should cook the parts @ preheated oven of 400 F. for ~ 15 minutes

(I understand about cooking parts in my wife's good kitchen oven ... last time was the last time for me )

You are correct. And no, do not mix oven for food with oven for metal work. I purchased used oven for this purpose for very little just around the corner from the studio. Still works with no problem. I have a laser thermometer from before so that works great. Next you will need a nice sifter for the powder so that powder crumbles stay away from the gun. With Sears they will give you a few steel wires to hang your objects, and with Caswell you will need to buy them. And that is about all.