The Joy Of Rediscovery

Far Rider

Far Rider

Ambassador Of The Cataverse
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Like @LiveeviL2000 , I have been in a major funk with my playing. Just couldn't get the juice going to pick something up and start again. My wife gently (with a sledgehammer sometimes) reminds me of the man cave and how the wall garage has grown, but my interest has waned. So the other day I decided to take each one, clean it, tune it, and play for just a few minutes. To go along with that, one of her old bandmates from 50 years ago reconnected with her. He's a decent guitarist and once he heard that I built my own amps, inquired if I wanted to sell him one of mine or build him one. Specifically a JTM45 clone.

Well, selling my "firstborn" was out of the question. There is something special about your first amp build, especially if it works. I hooked it up for the guitar maintenance project and was blown away with how good it sounded. So much so that I had to remind myself that I actually built it. With every guitar I tried the juices started flowing again. It was the trigger I needed to actually play some every day now. My wife is overjoyed. Strats, the LP, the Explorer and V's all sounded great in their own way.

This was one of my goals when I retired. To get back to playing and really enjoying it. After almost 3 years, I may be there.
 
Far Rider said:
Like @LiveeviL2000 , I have been in a major funk with my playing. Just couldn't get the juice going to pick something up and start again. My wife gently (with a sledgehammer sometimes) reminds me of the man cave and how the wall garage has grown, but my interest has waned. So the other day I decided to take each one, clean it, tune it, and play for just a few minutes. To go along with that, one of her old bandmates from 50 years ago reconnected with her. He's a decent guitarist and once he heard that I built my own amps, inquired if I wanted to sell him one of mine or build him one. Specifically a JTM45 clone.

Well, selling my "firstborn" was out of the question. There is something special about your first amp build, especially if it works. I hooked it up for the guitar maintenance project and was blown away with how good it sounded. So much so that I had to remind myself that I actually built it. With every guitar I tried the juices started flowing again. It was the trigger I needed to actually play some every day now. My wife is overjoyed. Strats, the LP, the Explorer and V's all sounded great in their own way.

This was one of my goals when I retired. To get back to playing and really enjoying it. After almost 3 years, I may be there.
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That's cool! That sense of pride when something you made works really well is an awesome feeling.

I picked one up last night. Fiddled with it a little. The rust in my playing built up pretty quickly.
I played around with it for about 20 minutes. Maybe something will spur me on soon.
 
jtcnj said:
quote from another amp building forum: "finishing this amp and turning it on without burning down the house or electrocuting yourself will be among the most rewarding things you do."

I've built a few, and good-golly-miss-molly - it is true!
:dood::dood:
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For sure. I've finished a few projects and then just sat there and stared. Patting myself on the back. Thinking, I don't care what anyone says.... that there is pretty darn cool!
 
Haven't built any amps, except for my very first that my Dad helped me built from a kit when I was nine.
But I have quite a few guitars, so some languish unplayed for months (even years, in certain cases).

Now, I like all of my guitars - wouldn't have bought them otherwise. Still, you forget things about how they feel when you've been away for one for a while. When you take it out again, you remember everything that made it special: not just its voice, but the unique ways each responds to your playing, and what particular aspects of creativity each one brings out in you. And of course the way it interacts with favorite amps.

It's inspiring. I fall in love with them all over again.

There's a downside too, though. Sometimes I've decided to let a guitar go, then just couldn't bring myself to sell.
I'll tune it up and play 'just to make sure it's ready to list.'
After a minute or two I'm, like, "Man, what were you thinking?"
Lately there have been more times I couldn't do it than times I actually sold them.
 
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