model 532 amp recap

[e093116]

Hi,

I'm working on recapping a 532 amp and have noticed that the traces on the circuit board are very fragile and like to peel off the board when I desolder the old components.  I did one cap the "traditional" way and am of the opinion that I'd do more harm than good if I tried to do the rest of the caps similarly.  I did a second cap by leaving the solder joint at the board/trace alone, and soldering the new component to the old cut leads on the component side of the board.  While I think that's a hack method, I thought the replacement turned out well...the smaller new parts make it relatively easy to fit them properly and solder to the cut leads, without shorting to anything nearby.

I'm wondering if I should carry on and replace all of the caps on the board soldering the new parts to the cut leads of the old parts, or just do the handful of electrolytic caps on the board?  I don't see any obvious signs of damage or distress to any of the components on the board.

Thanks,

Bill

[Ron Rich]

Hi Bill,
Either way it's not an easy job, on some of those-- If the board traces are bad, attaching the new components to the old wires scares me in that you may cause a "cold solder:" on the board when you heat up the wire on the other side. I would opt for total removal of the old component. If the trace is then loose, bend the new component's lead in the direction of the trace, when installing it. Ron Rich

[e093116]

Hi Ron,

I got this job taken care of over the weekend.  The first two caps that I tried to replace were the worst offenders in terms of the traces lifting. I was able to replace everything successfully.

I found the master on/off switch was bad.  I'm glad I checked that prior to doing any "tests" with the amp!

It took me a couple of minutes to realize that a couple of pins need to be jumpered on the mech connector, or the mech itself plugged in for the amp to power up.  After I figured that out life was good.  It actually worked much better than I expected right from the get go!

Thanks,

Bill

 

[Ron Rich]

Naw Bill--come on--admit it--You just obtained a bucket full of (very expensive) "experience", after the first two !!
Ron Rich