Tired of paying $5 for a decent coffee? You’d have to be crazy to drink McNasty coffee. I make this quick drink everyday to save some money and thought I would share the recipe.I have never liked the taste of instant coffee, but I’ve found a way to make it work for me. I got all the ingredients from my local grocery store.

Here’s the ingredients:

1. Instant coffee. Organic Fair-trade Hawaiian blend.

2. Oregon Chai - Vanilla Chai Tea concentrate.

3. Vanilla Soy Milk (or real milk if you like to consume hormones and puss)

Directions:

Mix equal parts of the Chai tea and Soy milk. I take a large 12oz cup and fill it half way with the chai, then top it off with the soy milk.

Next, take one scoop of the instant coffee (or more if you’re hungover for example…) and stir all the ingredients. It will take a while to get the coffee to dissolve in cold liquid so keep stirring until you don’t see chunks.

Top it off with some ice and enjoy!

I did the math, it comes out to about 5.5 12oz drinks costing about $2 each. May be cheaper if you get the ingredients on sale.

Vintage effects can sometimes add unwanted color to your sound and a simple mod can fix this. A True-Bypass switch’s purpose, put simply, routes your guitars signal only through the connections of the switch, leaving the effect’s circuit completely disconnected. An easy way to picture this is when you switch your petal off, it’s as if the the input/output are wired together (like with a coupler). You can find a more in depth explanation here. This method should apply to most effects pedals, for information on how to wire a wah with a 3DPT check out Stewmac, also a good place to pick up a high quality 3PDT switch. I used a Electro Harmonix brand switch I got for under ten dollars on eBay, great quality.

***NOTE: The addition of this switch to a MXR Distortion+ makes the 9v battery no longer fit in the case properly. I haven’t solved this issue at the point of this writing, so if you can (or have) found a better way to mount the battery let me know. If you will not be adding an LED to your pedal, you may want to use a DPDT switch instead. (check the link at the end for a how to) DPDT switches are slimmer than a 3DPT switch and you should have no problem mounting the battery. If you use the DPDT switch, it will wire the same as this example because the 3DPT adds only the other row of posts useful for adding a status LED. (Keep in mind this may devalue your vintage effect and you risk the small possibility of damaging your pedal.)

What you’ll need:

• Soldering iron and solder (need to learn how to solder? go here)
• Philips screwdriver
• 3DPT switch
• Some yellow color wire (same gauge as the other wires in the pedal)
• Wire snips and/or stripper

First step:

Take the back off of your D+ pedal, warm up your soldering iron and de-solder/remove the old switch. Once you have that out, install the new 3DPT switch.

Second Step:

Next you need to unsolder the yellow cable from the input tip (labeled A in the pic below) and the other end that is connected to the circuit board (labeled B below) These will need to be wired to different posts on the switch. The yellow wire from the circuit board will need to be longer, this is where you will need some new wire. Make sure the new wire can reach from the circuit to the switch and re-solder it to the circuit board. Then re-solder the input tip yellow wire.

Third step:

Now you can begin to wire the posts of the switch. Here is a diagram for what posts you want to use.

Position one and two will be the on/off functions of the switch when it is engaged. For this example posts 7,8,9 will not be used, but they can be used to add a LED for on/off status (I will revisit this and show you how to do that at a later update). Refer back to this diagram for wiring posts.

First tin all your wires and all the posts we will be using on the switch.

We will start with wiring the yellow wires. You should have two yellow wires, (from step two) one connected to the circuit board, and one connected to the tip of the Input. Solder the yellow wire from the input to post number number 5 (shown on the diagram above). Then solder the new longer yellow wire from the circuit board to post number 6.

Fourth Step:

Next you will need to wire a jumper from post number 1 to post number 4. Use a piece of scrap wire to make the connection.

Fith Step:

Finally there should now only be two wires left to connect, the blue and brown wire. Solder the blue wire to post number 2. Now solder the brown wire to post number 3.

Your new switch is now wired, plug it in and check it out. You should now have improved performance and more than likely a higher quality switch that can hold up to more road abuse.

Trouble shooting:

If for some reason your unit doesn’t work when you turn it on, go back and check your signal flow. Make sure the wires are attached to the correct posts and check for cold solder joints.

If your wires were different colors than mine their connections are as follow:

• Brown is connected to the middle terminal of the output pot.
• Blue is connected to the tip of the output jack.

Useful links:

I found some more useful information about modding the MXR D+ online that I will be doing a tutorial for at a later time, so check back. Here are some links;

Nice tutorial on wiring a DPDT switch on a 1980 D+ - Link here

Premier Guitar shows you some D+ mods - Link here

Distortion Plus schematic - Link here

At a later time I will post the mods from the Premier guitar link and post a tutorial with switches to bypass mods so you can still have the original pedal sound as well as the modded sounds. Will also show you how to add the LED (witch is very simple).
Have a link to some D+ mods? Comments? Something you would have done instead? Let us know in the comments.

Sometimes it’s necessary to remove the fretboard from your guitar and may seem like an impossible task. You may be surprised to know that it’s not all that hard and you probably have the tools you’ll need already.

Here’s what you will need:

1. Iron (with steam function)
2. Razor Blade
3. Putty Knife (or knife)
4. some rags

The iron with steam is going to soften the glue used to bind the fretboard to the neck and make it easy to remove.

Step #1:

The first thing you will want to do is fill up your iron with water and get it warmed up on it’s highest setting. (make sure the steam is on as well) While that is warming up, get your rags (I used a couple old towels) and get them damp with water. The surface you use to lay the guitar neck down is going to get hot and wet from steam, so make sure you are using an area that will not become damaged.

Wrap the neck with the damp rag and place the iron on the fret side and let it sit for about 5 mins. Make sure to move it around occasionally so it will not burn anything.

Step #2:

Now that the iron has heated up the glue joint, we will take the razor and work it into the bottom part of the neck in-between the fretboard. You may have to use something to tap the blade in, being careful not to cut into either the neck or fretboard. (I used the handle of my putty knife to tap it into place) The thinness and sharpness of the razor is what will make it easy to later place the putty knife in. (You Also may need to scrap off any lacquer covering the joint before this process.)

Step #3:

Lastly, once you have make enough room from the razor slide in the putty knife and work your way up the neck. What I’ve found to work best is slide the putty knife back forth while pushing up the neck. Don’t rush this process or you could break the fretboard. Take your time, move slowly and if the putty knife doesn’t want to budge forward try some more heat. The more time you take, the better the pay off in the end.

That’s it, the entire process shouldn’t take you more than a half hour depending on the quality of the glue used during manufacturing. I would like to note that steam may not be necessary and might cause damage to the wood. This is how I was successful, but you may want to find a better way without the steam.

Check out these books on vanning.

I found two of these books at my library, “The Do-It-Yourself Custom Van Book” by Franklin Peterson & Judi R. Kesselman and the book “Customizing Your Van, 3rd Ed.” by Allan Girdler. Both are amazing documentation of the 70’s Vannin scene, both hilarious and spectacularly awesome. They are full of pics from vintage rides, clad in shag carpet and tear drop windows. (If I get a chance before they are due to be returned, I may make a PDF of them and put them up online since they are both out of print)

I think I may be the only person alive that thinks 70’s custom vans are cool, but I don’t see why. One of the books hasn’t been checked out in so long it was lost in storage and someone had to go retrieve it for me! I’m beginning to think I should partake in a documentary of the lost culture of 70’s vannin communities. Can’t wait to put some of these custom tips from these books into my ‘76 “Heavy Chevy.” and grow my mustache out…

If you know of some other good sites, throw ‘em in the comments.

Check out these rad rides right here!

Just picked up this guy the other day.

I know barely anything about this gem so far, In the process of doing some research. So far what I have found in the little amount of data available on the net is these guys were made in Flint, MI from 1966-1972. This model is the FIllmore (guessing since it was made in the 60’s they named it after the hippy venue?) The gentleman I got if off said that it’s not the original case due to the fact when he got it about 15 years ago the case was in rough shape from sitting in a basement. So he had built a new case for it. He had an “electrical engineer rebuild the insides” and I’ve been to afraid to open it up yet and have a look. It does play, but I noticed when you crank it it doesn’t get any louder past 3, so my guess is it’s in need of some fresh tubes, the transformers (they have two MASSIVE trans!) are going bad or my filter caps need replaced.

—I’ll post some more pics of the insides when I open it up.

The Fillmore’s are supposedly 200 watts according the the West Lab’s website. But the guy I got it off said it’s a 100 watter, but he obviously doesn’t realize that transformers of the size in this amp will hit harder than that (and the fucker weighs about 100lbs!).

I believe the amp has 4 6550 power tubes, and a 12AX7 and 12AT7 in the pre-amp section.

I don’t know the output’s speaker impedance rating yet because my Fillmore has no labels (probably painted over when the case was rebuilt), but a fellow on Music Electronics Forum (user bennieusmaximus) has a Fillmore and informed me on this:

The 4 jacks next to the impedance switch are all speaker jacks and the other 2 are preamp in and out….the 3 position switch next to the speaker jacks switches impedance. The top is 4 ohms middle is 8 ohms bottom is 16 ohms. If you have 4 - 16 ohm cabs hook’em all up just once at the same time and make the earth shake. Feels like the 70’s arena all over again….. I think vintage guitar guide had these listed in the last guide as $1500 on the low end and $3000 on the high end. I was told that by a friend though and have not confirmed this.

I think I will be doing the FAB rebuild listed here on the West website myself to get this thing up and going again. Just hope I can afford all those new tubes!

I’ll post some updates and new information when if find out more. Here is the schematics for the amp, copied from the West Labs website. If anyone could help out with some cool links or information, please leave a comment or email me!!

Here’s the Fillmore’s Schematics:

Click here for full size

UPDATE: 10-28-09

I found a West Avalon at a local guitar shop. They only want $695 for the head and cab! I am really tempted to take a bunch of shit in there to do a partial trade on it and slap the rest on a credit card, why not? They told me that the head and cab both came in separately from different owners, but have close serial numbers. Their guess is that more than likely they were originally sold together when new, got separated, and by luck managed to be brought together once again at their store. The Avalon is in working order and has been professionally cleaned. The cab is the 215 with two 15″ drivers. These guys have this amp priced right, supper rare combo at an amazing price!

here are some pics of it (cell phone):

The amp is located at this store as of 10-27-09 if you want to go buy it:

Fort Wayne Guitar Exchange - fwguitarexchange.com

3411 N Clinton St
Fort Wayne, IN 46805-1823
(260) 471-0200

Here are some links that I’ve found on West Laboratories:

• Website of Dave West (the inventor) - www.westlabs.com be sure to check out the history page.

• I guess West Labs make these guys - www.valvejr.com

• Fucking Grandfunk Railroad played these som’ bitches (and were pretty much the only professional act that used them) - Grandfunk interview (second question) And here is a link to the West Labs site section on Mark Farner

Here is a video of Grand Funk, you can see the Fillmore’s in the background (around 1:12)

• This guy has a Fillmore and uploaded a vid of him playing it with a Webber Mass 200 attenuator on his YouTube page with some good information in the comments.

• This site has some informatio here and here,  it’s in another language so you’ll have to use Google Translate or something similar to make out what it says, has pics of the insides (nice point to point wiring!)
• We all know how worthless Harmony Central user reviews are…. but here a link on the reviews anyways (no Fillmore reviews)

New remix of Ministy’s last ablum “The Last Sucker” out Sept. 15thWhat a great B-Day present for me!

Copied from their bulletin post:

“MINISTRY’S THE LAST DUBBER AVAILABLE SEPT. 15
Remix album of final Ministry release (The Last Sucker) coming
from Al Jourgensen’s 13th Planet Records

Aug. 4, 2009 (El Paso, Texas) – Ministry, arguably the most influential industrial band to date, punctuated the close of their 30 year recording career with 2007’s The Last Sucker. Now comes the remix album, The Last Dubber, an appropriately beguiling album that dabbles in both trance and metal.

The Last Sucker was greeted with a chorus of glowing reviews including Pitchfork proclaiming it “Ministry’s most exciting record since Psalm 69,” and Spin said Jourgensen “can still pile on the jackhammer beats and clever samples.” Following the album’s release Jourgensen and company embarked on the C U LaTour, which wrapped around the globe with sold out shows at each stop and is documented in the recently released Adios… Puta Madres DVD/CD.

The Last Dubber track listing is:

1. Let’s Go (La Fin Du Monde Mix)
2. Watch Yourself (The Clocks Strike Thirteen Mix)
3. Life is Good (Neuroplasticity Mix)
4. The Dick Song (Straight Outta Lincoln Mix)
5. The Last Sucker (Icke Mix)
6. No Glory (Sandpaper Condom Mix)
7. Death & Destruction (A Vote of Non-Confidence Mix)
8. Die In A Crash (Point of Impact Mix)
9. End Of Days Part 1 (One Less Sparrow Mix)
10. End Of Days Part 2 (Extreme Mayan Makeover Mix)
11. Let’s Go (Dawn of Oblivion Mix)
12. The Last Sucker (Hardware Revamp Mix)

All tracks remixed by Clayton Workbeck of RevCo with the exception of “Let’s Go (Dawn of Oblivion Mix)” by John Bechdel (Killing Joke, Ministry, False Icons) and “The Last Sucker (Hardware Revamp Mix)” by DJ Hardware

The Last Dubber is the fourth in a series of remix records from Jourgensen’s 13th Planet Records. The previous albums being: Prong’s Power of Damn MiXXXer, RevCo’s Cocktail MiXXX, Ministry’s Rio Grande Dubya and RevCo’s Sex-O MiXXX-O (which is set for a Sept. 29 release).”
ministrymusic.org

Amazing documentary of the history of Jamaican Dub sound with tons of interviews from dub originators to current artists.  For anyone that is a fan of sound engineering, it’s a must see.  That’s one of the reasons I love dub style so much is because of the raw art-form and engineering abilities that trump any million dollar studio. They were doing it on cheap, often home made and malfunctioning equipment.  How I like it, lo-fi and original as fuck.  Amazing.

Check out the trailer:

official site: www.dubechoes.com

I recently read this book, for a few days I couldn’t put it down.  It a true story based on the authors obsessive quest to figure out the story behind legendary explorer Perry Fawcett’s disappearance.If you’re into true action and exploration stories, this a amazing tale.  The book goes through, in detail, all of Fawcett’s early explorations of the Amazon jungle up to the his last one with his son, which he became missing.  Fawcett was in search of El Dorado, an either a lost or mythical city that Spanish Conquistador’s spoke of seeing in the 17th century.  El Dorado, translates to “the golden one” and was how the Conquistdors referred to the cheif of the mythical city, not the actual place.  Tales of a chief that would spray himself in gold dust and and abundance of treasure.

After many expeditions, speaking to many tribes, and extensive research of the original spanish expiditions, Fawcett believed he knew the origin of the lost city.  On his last expedition in 1925 with his son, and son’s friend the team failed to return, sparking a whirlwind of rescue missions.  Most of the rescues failed and 100’s of people died in the jungle’s harsh conditions.  They would usually be literally eaten alive by insects, and the ones that remained returned empty handed.

The author sets out on a mission, after becoming obsessed with the story, to follow Fawcett’s last foot steps in hopes of finding what happened on his expedition.  Having new clues that were unavailable to other rescue missions, like access to letters and documents passed down through Fawcett’s family.

Fawcett’s story is a romantic tale of one the last true lone Victorian explorers, shortly before modern technology, like Airplanes, that made mapping the world extremely easy and far less dangerous.

Good interview with the author and place to purchase on Amazon.com

Brad Pitt’s production company has plans to make this book into a movie with Pitt staring as Fawcett.  I can only hope that it becomes a great film and not some over the top, big money hollywood crap. -link