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Tuff desicion, but i had to make it...im selling/trading my '71 Custom 100

A lot of background information has already been talked about in this forum.... there's a topic under "Hylight amps" where the experts have given their opinions...

But i also found out some other details about the amp, gathered from the first and original owner who had this amp custom made for him in 1971...

- For instance, i found out the inputs are not wired in the "standard" way.
One input is a linked normal/brilliant input (the upper left one)

- The reason why one of the partridges is kind of odd looking, is because it has been hardwired to 220V, and that is how it left Dave's garage...

- As someone has mentioned in my other topic...there has been a grid resistor failure sometime in the past, so that's why some resistors have been replaced.

That's the new details... the other facts :

- all original mustard caps

- all original elco's (now i know many will say...those have to be replaced ! and i won't argue, cause im not a tech... i still didn't replace them, because i have a hard time choosing someone who can work on a Hiwatt and doesn't f**k something up... here in Belgium amp techs are self thaught wannabees, and usually fender/marshall "experts", so it difficult for me to let someone mess with the original...as stupid as that may sound...BUT the amp still sounds great, and recently i saw a pic of Jimmy Page's Hiwatt after service, and it still had the original elco's too, so then i ask myself why...)

- original partridge transfo's

- original pots

As for the minor changes, making it not 100% original :

- internal bias adjustment added
- power section resistors replaced
- Bulgin replaced w/IEC
- one output jack replaced (because the original owner felt the new jack was firmer, giving better contact)

I also have a custom made cab that have 2 Weber FANE CRESCENDO clones in it !

As for the "business" part of this :

I really dont wanna sell it, just for the money, cause then i would have a hard time finding an amp that's equal in quality.
Im actually sticking with Hiwatt, but i feel its time to go the "compact" route...
Im really tired of carrying the head and cab to the second floor of my building every time i go out...(i dont have the luxury of letting it stay in the rehearsal place)
I really want to take it home so i can enjoy playing at home also..

So the obvious choice would be an Hiwatt 1X12 combo...that is what i want now...
Ill be selling my amp, so i can buy one, ore ill trade it for a 1X12 combo...

Finding a 1x12 Hiwatt combo in Belgium is impossible...
Selling my Hiwatt in Belgium is also hopeless, because here amps are more commercial like marshalls, fenders, even line6
People dont even have a clue, and the ones that do offer me a price way below the amp's worth.

So, anybody on this forum or maybe someone you know... im offering this amp for sale or trade.

Here are some pictures:

I've got an SA112, but wouldn't shipping be prohibitively expense both ways across the pond?





Dave

Hello Dave,

Now that is exactly what im looking for !! A 50W 112 Hiwatt combo....
What year is it ?

Do you have any idea in terms of the cost it would take to ship a Hiwatt head (safely) across the pond ?
I guess the "safe" part of it all, is what it'll make expensive, doesn't it ?

Battered Nitro wrote: Now that is exactly what im looking for !! A 50W 112 Hiwatt combo....
What year is it ?

It's a 1980 Hylight Hiwatt (inspection date 15/4/80). No mods, original Partridges.

As far as shipping goes, a bit of research would be in order. I had a DR504 shipped from Switzerland (via SwissPost) in September of 2007 and it was fairly reasonable. That was before oil prices went through the roof. Now that they're back down, I don't know if the shipping companies have dropped their rates (and surcharges).

Who would be the best shipper out of Belgium? Perhaps we should get some estimates?

Dave

Who would be the best shipper out of Belgium? Perhaps we should get some estimates?

I''ll do some research and when i know more ill give some estimates.

Do you know the exact weight of a DR103 ?

By the way... how was your experience with getting something fragile like a tube amp shipped from Switzerland ?
I never done anything like it before...

We can give you plenty of guidelines for packing a DR103 safely! Or it may be best to look into an ATA case for the head. The combo looks like it has one and should travel fine!

That is an interesting Amp #1561. It is wired by Harry Joyce, which would mean that it was one of the very first wired by Harry, or that HJ began wiring in Late 1970 instead of early 1971.

Great Story and Cool amp!

Battered Nitro wrote:By the way... how was your experience with getting something fragile like a tube amp shipped from Switzerland ?

Mine made the trip fine. It's common practice to remove the power tubes, roll them in bubble wrap and put them back inside the cabinet (not in the sockets). The preamp tubes are typically well protected by their spring-loaded shields.

If we were to do this, one option might be to not ship the tubes at all. To lighten weight, another possibility would be to ship the combo without a speaker. You could mount one of your Crescendo clones upon arrival.

Just some thoughts.

Dave

I don't mean to keep interrupting, but you might want to ship the speaker separately. It may be cheaper and easier.

It is wired by Harry Joyce, which would mean that it was one of the very first wired by Harry, or that HJ began wiring in Late 1970 instead of early 1971.

How can you tell? I thaught HJ signed his amps with a specific signature (so ive read)

Harry began signing after a dispute with Dave Reeves regarding payment for quantities wired. Prior to 1973 or so HJ didn't sign them. Harry thought his mil-spec shop was the only sub-contractor, he was surprised and not happy to find out that others were hired to boost production.

If we were to do this, one option might be to not ship the tubes at all. To lighten weight, another possibility would be to ship the combo without a speaker. You could mount one of your Crescendo clones upon arrival.

Just wonderin' :

How does a '80's Biacrown 112 combo without speaker and tubes compare with a '71 DR103 head ?

Let me rephrase :

How much is your Biacrown 112 combo worth ? with speaker ofcourse...
I just don't have a clue...

Im willing to make a trade with your 50W combo, even without the speaker, but then i'll need to know exactly what im doing here.

Anyone got a clue about the value of my head as it is right now ?

April 15 1980 was about a year before Biacrown existed.

Harry began signing after a dispute with Dave Reeves regarding payment for quantities wired. Prior to 1973 or so HJ didn't sign them. Harry thought his mil-spec shop was the only sub-contractor, he was surprised and not happy to find out that others were hired to boost production.

But are your sure it was wired by HJ ? I mean...is there a specific detail in wiring or wiring method that's makes you sure it was wired by HJ ?

Im asking this because i always thaught Dave Reeves wired this one...

Battered Nitro wrote: How much is your Biacrown 112 combo worth ? with speaker ofcourse...
I just don't have a clue...

Mine is not a Biacrown. It is a Hylight HIWATT. To me, it's priceless . I'll let others chime in on relative values.

A couple of contradictory factors: 50 watters generally sell for more than 100 watters -and- combos typically sell for less than heads.

I suggested the speaker thing for weight considerations. Clayton's suggestion to ship it separately makes some sense. Would have to weigh it in the flight case to see if it exceeds any limits or winds up in premium territory as a result.

Dave

Reeves clearly didn't wire this one. I may have to start a thread in the Hylight section detailing the differences.