The Watering Hole

I have a Nikon camera lens posted on craigslist for $300 and the other day I got an email from a guy asking me if I would be willing to trade some guitar gear for it.  I have had no hits on it so I figured what the hell and asked him for some information.  He has a Hamer Sunburst guitar and a Crate Palomino 50 amp.  Both in good condition go for 250-300 used, each.  

He disclosed that the guitar has a bad switch, no problem there because I'm always up for a project and have talked to a few people that said those are pretty good guitars.  He said the amp is in need of tubes and retainers which is something I haven't dealt with too much.  Researching the tubes that isn't going to be a problem but what about the retainers?  Can they be replaced and if so, is that a generic part or something specific to the amp?

Does this sound like a decent deal?  Does anyone have experience with either of these?

Not specifically with Palimino 50 retainers, but they shouldn't be anything weird.  If the guitar and amp check out otherwise, I'd do that trade.  

I'd be wondering why it needs retainers... if he means what I think he means:



maybe he just misplaced them... but why take them off? did he try to run it without tubes? amp fried? dropped it? dunno, strange thing. if it just needs new tubes and retainers but otherwise works, probably a reasonable deal since the Hamer, at worst, could be a learning experience - setup, nut, refret, wiring, etc.

tough call though - I'd have to see the stuff in person to evaluate if it'd be worth $300 to me - probably not... but mostly because I don't really need any projects right now.

Hamer makes good guitars.  Switches are easy to fix.

That amp even though it's a crate isn't a bad amp.  Tube retainers aren't a big deal to get either.  I'd be tempted at least if I were you.

I'm leaning towards doing it but still on the fence because I have no idea what I need to look for on the amp, this would be my first time purchasing a used one and a tube amp at that.  I know it needs tubes, what else should I be on the look out for?  I won't have an opportunity to play through it..

Does it work?  IF not.  don't get it.  IF it works then it can be tinkered with.  You can always alter a tube amp.  All I care about is if it works or do I need to spend money just to make it produce sound.

He said it does but that doesn't mean much, he also said he hasn't played it in a while because he is in school and the gear is at his parents' house a couple of hours away.  He never got around to replacing the tubes which is fine by me, if that is the only expense then it could be worth it but I'm more concerned about the electronics and speaker and I won't really have any way of knowing.  I'd basically be banking on the guitar working out and, if it works, the amp being an added bonus.  

If the gut says no....don't do it.  

yeah, I'd be cautious, ala Sheep, but you can check things and feel ok...  Ask him if he minds if you pop the amp head out of the cab.  Should only be 4-6 bolts.  Look around.  If it looks clean in there (no burned parts or anything) then you have SOME level of confidence.  Still could be problems, but I wouldn't assume them if the guy seems straight with you.  If it were me, I'd take a full set of tubes and try the amp...  

I have a pretty good feeling about it.  He still has the tubes after all, they just aren't in their prime but he is going to shoot a video when he goes home showing the guitar powering up and the he is going to play a little through it.  I figure that in addition to the in person amp head inspection should ease my concerns. Thanks for the feedback, I'll let you guys know what happens and will probably (hopefully) be on soon asking for advise on tubes.

There's a big difference between it "needing tubes" and "needing new tubes."  If it just needs new tubes, an works with the old ones, that's fine.  Usually it's pretty hard to tell if the tubes are just old but still work, it'll be a little quieter but until one dies, it will work.  If it works, that's a good deal. I always liked those amps. Not a great distortion sound but good clean, and that's why they make pedals.

He sent me a video today, it sounded like garbage but it did power up and work and the sound may be attributed to the poor video quality.  The Hamer looks good but doesn't work in the bridge position so I think it just needs a new switch.  Looks like I'm going to do it, I'll post some pictures later this weekend.

So according to the tech I took the guitar and amp to, it turns out there is nothing wrong with the switch, he cleaned everything up on the guitar and says it is working perfectly.  He checked out the amp and said everything, including the tubes, are in good working order.  He said it may sound a little better if I replaced them but said I should just playing around with it for now because it works perfectly fine and I can spend time trying to figure out if it is what I want before I dump more money in it.  I'm picking everything up on my way home tonight and can't wait to try it out.

Sweet! Glad you got a good deal, Jeff.