Valve Guitar Effect Case and Power Supply

This will be a power source and chassis for a valve-based guitar effect pedal. I was figuring this out as I went so the progression I will be showing wasn't necessarily the order I took-- what follows is an idealized route, re-arranged and un-besotted with the false trails I had followed.
This particular pedal will become a tremolo effect based on a 1960s Fender Vibro Champ, although once you have a power source, two tubes, in- and out-phone jacks, and some controls, you can build 95% of the fuzz/tone/tremolo valve circuits out there. Many people struggle with the metalwork for stomp boxes and I hope that this instructable will give people a leg up on their projects. More than anything I want to give you, the reader, confidence. Realize that the tools I used aren't expensive or esoteric, and once you have them several worlds open up. I was working on a 16 x 26-inch slab of wood sitting on a dining table with occasional field trips to the balcony floor whenever I felt like getting loud.
Aesthetically I'm going for a kind of steam-punk, but depending on the colors and materials of the miscellaneous details a broad range of genres can be achieved.
This project involves high voltages that can kill you.
If you don't feel comfortable with line voltage (which, by way of the power grid, a true feat of engineering [thankyouverymuch, forebears], will produce as much amperage as it takes to kill you, and will do it without noticing your thrashing corpse) and high direct current voltage you should step back, do some reading, get confidence in your soldering technique, and then embark on the happy journey of obsolete (yet occasionally superior) technology.
Here are a few good starting points:
Start Here
...then pick your way around the rest of Tube CAD Journal
Aiken Amplification has a great Tech Infosection
Basic Tube Formulas
Some good articles about DIY sound, also a host of a DIY forum and seller of kits

...some other forums:
Hoffman Amplifiers also sells parts and has a great library.
Start at this page DIY Basics and the rest of this forum is great as well.

Between the articles and the forums you'll find most everything you'd need to know, certainly enough to start by and probably enough to keep you busy for a good long time. Read around before you start posting. Most forums are populated by VERY gracious people who want to help anyone who shares their passion for DIY audio, but let's not take advantage of them. Do your reading.

Tools you will need:
Angle Grinder
Metal Files
Various Screwdrivers
Triangle
Drill and Various Bits
Soldering Iron plus Affiliated Affects
Taps (optional)
Epoxy (optional)
Exacto Knife
Contact Glue

Step 1 The Chassis

We begin at the perimeter of the pedal. This material can be found at most hardware stores, scrap yards and street corners. I do not promote the theft of DOT property, just sayin' as visual reference. You will need two feet of the the inch-and-a-half square weldable steel tubing, depending on how closely you stick to these plans.
Take your angle grinder and cut the square tube down the center the entire length. Use hearing and eye protection, for !@$% sake. You will want the use of all of your faculties to behold the consummation of this project.
The holes on the tubing are one inch on center and I want the corners to fall on the solid portions. I marked fold lines (starting at one edge) at three inches, from that point eight inches, from that point six inches, from that point eight inches, and from that point I marked a cut at three inches.
I then drew 45-degree lines radiating from the fold lines. These 45s are cut-lines for the corners. I will be folding these by hand and will not be welding them in place, so I made the 45s meet up a little behind the side that will be folded. Pictured below is an exaggerated example of this; to its left is an example of the lines I actually used. This will give you a gap between the cut edges when you fold the metal together, as you will have to over-bend the corner slightly to get it to stay at a right angle.
Once things are cut you can fold it up, starting from one end to the other. The ends didn't quite match up for me so I used three clamps the hold it flat and to make the ends meet. Now I'll button it up using a little plate I ganked from a crappy flat-pack chest of drawers I found in the trash (other parts of it are now book shelves and a spice rack. The gift that keeps on giving.). You can use any piece of metal, but this one already had beveled edges and bolt holes. Saved me forty seconds, at least.
I wanted a unique and vaguely silly way to carry the pedal--plus a way to make it easy to pick a new strap. So I decided to give the pedal guitar strap buttons so you can use any guitar strap to carry the pedal like a satchel. I know Chewie would be all over this. For this vision of perfection I only needed to drill and tap a hole at the first space on both sides to take a 1/4-inch brass bolt. I cut the bolts so that they would be only just long enough to penetrate the square tubing and a lock nut, with a small gap for the strap on the outside.
The holes on the side of the tubing are the perfect size for phone jacks and there is room for two on one side of the tubular plate; on the other side, the holes can be used for the power supply. You can use a strain relief on one hole to feed in the power cord and a fuse holder at the other (like the P-H1200 and S-H205, respectively, at Antique Electronic Supply).
I, however, prefer detachable power cords--if it's damaged, you can easily replace it. Plus, as you use the pedal in different settings, it lets you find that perfect length, so there is one less thing to be bothered with. This means Mr. IEC Socket and his dinner guest Mr. Square Hole--which is where most people politely excuse themselves, suddenly remembering the grand opening of a Denny's down the street, where the remainder of the party-goers will re-form and spend a happy evening in Mr. Square Hole's absence, made all the more pleasant by the near miss.
I do enjoy a bit of misery, and metalwork for an IEC is at that level where one can proudly look at one's self in the the mirror without having to live through, for example, a governmental destabilization. Four drill holes and two broken Dremel blades later I can hold my head high.

Comments

[asdterror]

Thanks to everyone who voted! :)

[Sam the Wizer]

I can't tell if you left it open or otherwise accounted for heat disapation. Isn't that a concern with those two tubes running high voltages?

[asdterror]

The only holes I blocked on the sides of the case are those busy with power and phone sockets. I didn't take many pictures that show this, but the fourth picture of step six and the first of step seven do. Thanks for bringing it up--can I call you "Sam"?-- I should have mentioned it to begin with. Ventilation is important for any amplifier, valves in particular. I'll add a fine brass mesh (touching bare metal to ground it) behind the holes to knock off radio waves if I notice the amp sounding like Carl Kasell. Thanks for your questions!

[Sam the Wizer]

Sam is fine. Very cool. I've been working on this http://www.instructables.com/id/The_ValveLiTzer_Low_voltage_Tube_Booster/ and have been having a hard time designing a case that protects the tube while providing adequate ventilation. I'm going to put your methods to use. Thanks!

[asdterror]

Be sure to post a picture!

[old man Jane]

Sick. Sick!

[asdterror]

Thanks. You could always gut it and use it to hold your bowcaster ammo. I look forward to the tubes lighting up, too! I am going to post another instructible detailing the construction of the tremolo circuit. The two projects are independent and I wanted to emphasize the versatility of the power supply. Most tube circuits use those voltages, and most effects (and preamps) can be done with two tubes. I wonder though if I should have left those dire warnings for page three? :)

[jeff-o]

That looks very cool indeed. I look forward to seeing it with tubes installed!

[wisewmn]

Frickin' AMAZING! I want one and I don't even play the guitar!!!!!