[HAM] My Summer Vacation (long-ish)

[David Anderson]

With a dead rectifier and a burnt-out power transformer, I would be 
VERY careful before firing an amplifier back up until I knew *why* they 
fried. The most likely culprit would be one of the power supply 
capacitors shorting out.

If you don't diagnose it, you're highly likely to end up with yet 
another smoking power supply. I have been witness to a capacitor 
emitting a bluish/greenish smoke in the process of catastrophic failure.

David Anderson

On Saturday, September 2, 2006, at 11:33  AM, Charles Buckingham wrote:

>  When I lifted the amp out there was a puddle of stinky brown
> wax on the bottom of the case.  The power tranny had fried releasing 
> the
> mystical blue smoke that is critical to the proper operation of all
> electronic devices.  I pulled out the rectifier and there were pieces 
> of
> filament tinkling around in the glass.
>
> So now I get to the crux of this long post.  Here I am with an A0-29
> that blew it's power transformer.  Apart from the dead rectifier there
> are no other obvious signs of trauma.  I'll give everything a good once
> over, check the replacement transformer for leakage, add a proper line
> cord (he never replaced the original) and add some fusing for cheap
> insurance. Does anyone have any general or model specific suggestions 
> or
> recommendations before I stick it in a test organ and fire it up?
>
> Many thanks for reading.  I look forward to any feedback.