Fuse just blew on my Roadster

  • Thread starter Thread starter War_in_D
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War_in_D

War_in_D

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I've had a few things up for sale locally and thinking that I would get serious about selling in anticipation of the new Friedman Jose. I pulled my Roadster out to take better pics, and was going to throw out the "crappy phone vid" this time around for FB Marketplace but when I flicked it on.. the jewel light lit up, and then went right out. Checked the fuse, and sure enough.. it's blown. Looks like somewhere along the line, the 4A fuse it calls for was replaced with a 2A fuse. The amp worked fine prior to today the few times I fired it up, so I'm just hoping that the amperage flared up when I kicked it on and that 2A wasn't enough to hold. But, seeing the keyway below has me wondering...

Fuse Specs.jpg


While I was in there, I pulled one of the power tubes and found this. The keyway in the tube socket looks to have been "hogged out" (for lack of a better word). You can still see which way the tube is supposed to go in, but it's so wallered out that you could conceivably put the tube in there any way you wanted. Checked all the others and they are ALL this way. :doh: I checked and all the tubes are keyed correctly, but I have to say that I'm a bit disappointed. The guy I bought this off of just went on and on about his "amp guy". If his "amp guy" did this to these keyways, I'd like to give him a swift kick in the nards. Why the heck would anyone even do this?

Opened up keyway.jpg
 
I’ve seen tube sockets look rough like that and assumed it was from people rotating the tube until it found the key way and dropped in. I’ve had amps and replacement tube sockets look like that but they were cheaper and poorly manufactured but I wouldn’t expect that to be the case with a Mesa or anything costing quite that much.
 
Does nobody carry a 4 amp 250V slo blo fuse in stock?? The closest place I've found is Menards, which is about 25 miles away. I guess I'll have to wait until I can get up that way. The cost to have some shipped is crazy. LOL
 
Replace with the proper rated fuse and turn it on without power tubes installed. See if all is good. If it blows again, you’ve got either a bad preamp tube or other damage already exists.

If you install tubes and it blows again, bad power tube and you’ll need to take it in to a tech.

If tubes install and all is good then post up a clip and send it on its way. I still see a notch in the socket so I don’t see an issue that requires new sockets but it will get the job done.
 
glpg80 said:
Replace with the proper rated fuse and turn it on without power tubes installed. See if all is good. If it blows again, you’ve got either a bad preamp tube or other damage already exists.

If you install tubes and it blows again, bad power tube and you’ll need to take it in to a tech.

If tubes install and all is good then post up a clip and send it on its way. I still see a notch in the socket so I don’t see an issue that requires new sockets but it will get the job done.
Click to expand...
This
 
LP Freak said:
Very odd with the socket. But I would start with the proper fuse and if that blows its probably a power tube gone bad.
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Exactly this. Every fuse I've popped was a bad power tube. If it popped, just replace the power tubes and be done with it.

?
 
UPDATE:

All good. Pulled the power tubes and tested them with the Orange MKII. All tested good, but stuck the proper 4A fuse in there while they were out. Turned on just fine. Put the tubes back in, fired up fine. Played it on bold and spongy for a bit without any issues. Thanks for all the help and suggestions! :cheers:
 
dont know if you need or want to have spares, but i went crazy last month looking for a 2A slo blo

you may get lucky at ACE, HD or Lowes. probably going to be like $7 for one

I ended up ordering a box on 10 on amazon for $6.99

my culprit was a gassy tube that turned white, so had to buy a matching set as well
 
70 Mach 1 said:
dont know if you need or want to have spares, but i went crazy last month looking for a 2A slo blo

you may get lucky at ACE, HD or Lowes. probably going to be like $7 for one

I ended up ordering a box on 10 on amazon for $6.99

my culprit was a gassy tube that turned white, so had to buy a matching set as well
Click to expand...

Thanks for the info, the amp blew a 2A slow blo but it should have had a 4A slow blo in it. I managed to find a the 4A slow blo that I needed a Menards and bought some spares.
 
War_in_D said:
Does nobody carry a 4 amp 250V slo blo fuse in stock?? The closest place I've found is Menards, which is about 25 miles away. I guess I'll have to wait until I can get up that way. The cost to have some shipped is crazy. LOL
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if you own a tube amp you must have a tube tester ,it has been such a great diagnostic tool.
 
War_in_D said:
Does nobody carry a 4 amp 250V slo blo fuse in stock?? The closest place I've found is Menards, which is about 25 miles away. I guess I'll have to wait until I can get up that way. The cost to have some shipped is crazy. LOL
Click to expand...
Napa..probably any automotive parts store I assume….
 
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