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Rare Corojo Punch Box, Practice Amp Project

Found this beautiful red Punch Rare Corojo box and Blonder Tongue UHF converter on my thrift store run this morning. The UHF converter is an almost perfect size for a small practice amp, it doesn't have a speaker in it, it looks like I may be able to squeeze a 4" speaker inside. I'm sure it was produced in the 60's, according to info on the web, the case is bakelite. If it is, can I drill a hole in it with a standard hole saw? It's going to be a great little amp case, I hate to ruin it.

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Permalink Reply by Paul Craig on October 4, 2017 at 9:08am

I think that'll make a great looking little practice amp. What amp are you putting into it?

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Permalink Reply by Patrick Allison on October 4, 2017 at 12:15pm

That could start a whole new conversation! I think I'm going to try the Artec amp from CB Gitty with a gain pot. I'd welcome suggestions and I can always change it later on but I think that amp will do a pretty good job.

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Permalink Reply by Paul Craig on October 5, 2017 at 7:00am

Those are good amps. Your biggest decision will be the speaker. I'm sure it'll have to be small and small speakers can be good or terrible. I don't use anything under 6" diameter so I don't know what to recommend.

What are the dimensions of the radio case?

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Permalink Reply by Patrick Allison on October 5, 2017 at 8:46am

Approximately 8"w x 6"h and probably 5" deep, it's small. I don't have space for a 4" speaker and amp. I have a few good 3" drivers. I'm going to use one of them.

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Permalink Reply by Paul Craig on October 6, 2017 at 8:52am

I hope it works out well for you.

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Permalink Reply by Kentucky Mojo on October 6, 2017 at 10:44am

Is that Rare Corojo box a thin one, or one of the big square boxes? The reason I ask is because those are very hard to find (usually around $20 on ebay when they do come around and are from the 90's), but make GREAT instruments cause the top is thinner and the sound is always GREAT!

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Permalink Reply by Patrick Allison on October 6, 2017 at 11:44am

The top is thinner and overall, the box is much lighter than the new black boxes. It's got a couple scratches on the top, no doubt from getting shifted around on the store shelf, but it should make a great guitar.

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Permalink Reply by Patrick Allison on October 6, 2017 at 11:56am

Great looking ukes by the way.

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Permalink Reply by Patrick Allison on October 6, 2017 at 11:49am

Well, this was much ado over nothing! It was pretty easy to drill. I don't think this thing was used much, if at all. The tubes look brand new and the bakelite is pretty flexible, much more so than I though it would be.

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Permalink Reply by Paul Craig on October 7, 2017 at 7:47am

You could turn that little tube radio into a tube amp.

What tubes are in it?

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Permalink Reply by Patrick Allison on October 8, 2017 at 10:34am

It's not a radio, it's a UHF converter. It has two tubes that I don't recognize, I'd have to look them up, I don't believe they are audio frequency tubes.