suggest

[guitardude05]

the mark iv combo i just bought is in o.k. condition but the tolex is pretty muffed up for a perfectionist like myself lol. what do you suggest for cleaning the tolex and patching small holes? or possibly could i order a new body from mesa?

also, the amp has svetlana 6l6s in the middle, and some weird russian 6l6s in the outers. they sound pretty good now, but would switching to the mesa tubes (or other) be a good idea? im really going for all out brutal metal sounds, e.g. lamb of god.

 

[Matterra]

Well, if you have actual holes in the body, I'd call up Mesa and see if you could order a new body.

If the damage is only tolex deep, well, you can just google "black tolex" and you get a fair amount of results.

+

Lamb of God = all out metal.
Thats a funny one. Yes, they get great tone, but they are not "all out metal" for sure.

 

[guitardude05]

what? learn to read man, i didnt write lamb of god is all out metal. i wrote "im really going for all out brutal metal sounds, e.g. lamb of god." and if you didnt know "e.g." means "for example/like" im so sorry for asking for help.

 

[HipKitty]

guitardude05, small tolex repair is not that complicated if you only have tears. If you are missing actual pieces of the tolex, and you want the tolex to appear "new", you should have the entire tolex replaced.....that is more complicated than you might think. I'd seek professional help in the tolex replacement. There are quite a few qualified techs that can do that at a rate cheaper than replacing the entire cabinet from Mesa.

Regarding the tubes.....for what you are looking for, you might want to consider EL34's in the two outside output tube sockets and 6L6's on the inside. I always recommend that the amp be biased to the tubes for the best performance and tone. However, you can get Mesa's tubes and drop them in....they will sound good as is, however, keep in mind that Mesa biases their amps "cold". Some folks like it, some don't. In choosing from Mesa's selection, I'd recommend the STR-440's for the 6L6's and the STR-450's for the EL34's. the STR-450's are more expensive, but there's a reason why. Another drop in option is to go with Groove Tubes EL34's and 6L6's, however, you must choose their tube numbers between 4 and 6 to fit within Mesa's bias range. Or.....you could contact Bob at Eurotubes to match the JJ brands for you or Doug at DougsTubes for other brands to match.

Soooo many options.....

 

[Buddy]

Clean with a scrub brush and any houshold cleaner Flanttastick ,clocksyclean ,etc . Rinse with clean water , dry . Mask controls first . ( or pull the chassis . )

Small tears in the tolex can be fixed with contact cement and patience .
the key is to coat both surfaces , let dry and carefully push the tolex back where it belongs .(You get very little working time).
Remember to have all surfaces clean and dry . Small area's where it's missing can be coated with a marker or paint . Sometimes you can make a patch from the bottom of the amp or inside wrap .

I did this with a twin that looked liked it was set on fire , peed on and then beaten with a rake .
When I brought it to the music store for a trade ( a nice acoustic/electric bass ) It looked super . You couldn't tell unless you got six inches away and looked hard for flaws .
Takes some time , But beats buying a new cabinet .
Good luck !

 

[guitardude05]

hey thanks for the help! i used windex on all the vinyl so far, and it looks awesome now even without armor all. i just need to find something to fill in the holes. theyre not too big, but some are about dime sized.

and has anybody ordered a handle from mesa? and how much did it cost? the leather is torn on one side but the metal strap inside the leather is still good. :?

 

[Buddy]

Check the mesa site or give them a call for the handle .
I used acrylic artist's paint , the kind that comes in a tube . As it dries you can texture it to resemble the tolex .