Does anyone know what this is??? Hurry

[_john]

I'm rebuilding an amp and when I took out the head unit, the inside of the cabinet was shrouded with some kind of metal-tape. Does anyone know where I can get this or what it's called. I have already tryed Home Dope and Radio Shack. I guess it's to either keep the inside of that box static free or protect it from heat. I want to start putting the amp back together so Im in a hurry.

A picture....

[moonpie]

Air conditioning folks have a metalized tape.
Appears to be a foil backing. A friend used it to seal the updraft pipe on my gas water heater.

[Tele-Bob]

Just make sure that all the strips you apply are all electrically connected to eachother. You can take a small, narrow strip of tape and stick it face to face with a larger, wider one. Then stick that across the seam where the tape runs side by side in the cabinet. This will give you continuity between strips of tape and help keep noise out of the amp.

[telecast]

It looks like a heat sink. Many amp manufacturers installed them, ever see a piece of metal window screen stapled inside an old Fender? Traynor used them, Ampeg did too. It's designed to spread the heat from the amp evenly across the cabinet. Just staple a pisce of aluminum screen in the same locations on the new cab and go with it.

[FrankJohnson]

I always thought that it was shielding to keep uinwanted radio freq out....

(Dumb-ASS FRANK)

[NeoFauve]

The SFDR I just sold had a sheet of aluminum stapled into the top/inside of the cab.
Would staples make a good connection across seams of that tape?
I'd be nervous the glue could dry up and peel away from the wood, and maybe short something out, so I'd shoot a few staples into it anyway.

[_john]

I saw a tape at home depot they use for weatherstripping doors, it is metallic but since I diddn't know the purpose of it on the amp I wasn't sure if that tape would work.

Anyone know where I can get paper thin sheet metal??

[FrankJohnson]

The foil tape in my HRD peeled back - it was held in place by adhesive, but when I removed the chasis, it got damaged and peeled back some.

I really believe that the purpose is shielding......
http://www.rru.com/~meo/Guitar/Amps/...shielding.html

[FrankJohnson]

BTW -

Here is a similar tape in copper - Stew Mac
http://www.stewmac.com/shop/Electron...pper_Tape.html

[telecast]

Frank, I aways figured it was shielding too, but I've never seen a single amp with wires going from the chassis to the metal sheet. Unless the manufacturer is depending on metal-metal contact for the ground, then it would make sense.

Fender used window screen in theirs, just staple it in place and go.

[skywriter900]

i have aluminum screen stapled in my showman..ive heard of people using thin aluminum flashing, or you can buy rolls of self adhesive metal duct tape from a heating and air conditioning supply company. Be prepared its very pricey.... but its good stuff, its designed to resist expanding and contracting on fiberglass board heat ducts, and when ya stick it on it isnt coming back off very easily

[_john]

i have aluminum screen stapled in my showman..ive heard of people using thin aluminum flashing, or you can buy rolls of self adhesive metal duct tape from a heating and air conditioning supply company. Be prepared its very pricey.... but its good stuff, its designed to resist expanding and contracting on fiberglass board heat ducts, and when ya stick it on it isnt coming back off very easily

I ended up getting 2" metal (it's called foil on the package) duct tape
from a part of home depot I hadn't looked in before. It looks identical to the original stuff in the amp 'cept a little thinner.
After reading franks links though it makes perfect sense that it's for shielding. Why else would Fender sell aluminum backing for their pickguards? I was just going to layer it side by side until I covered the entire area maybe I'll double up along the edges to make a tight fit.

If I end up getting interference noise somewhere down the line I can alwaysgo over it with window screen. But what kind? that thick aluminum stuff?

[FrankJohnson]

Frank, I aways figured it was shielding too, but I've never seen a single amp with wires going from the chassis to the metal sheet. Unless the manufacturer is depending on metal-metal contact for the ground, then it would make sense.

Fender used window screen in theirs, just staple it in place and go.

Don't quote me on this.....or go ahead.......whatever......

I think it is frequency/signal shielding, not grounding........sort of like a physical barrier.....

Or it could be to make dumbasses like us guess.......

[Wilko]

It is shielding. Always best to have it connected. Usually the contact by screwing in the chassis is enough. Almost all fender amps have it. Even my old BF amps have metal lining the tops of the cabs.

[_john]

there is a ground in the power cord. Is that grounded to the circuitry somehow and then the circuitry box grounds to the metal lining?

My fender m-80 just has that metal lining. No grounds going to or coming from it.

[Wilko]

Usually the chassis comes in contact with the metal lining somewhere. That way, the whole thing chassis, and therefore grounded. Rarely are they soldered or wired to the shield though.

[_john]

Exactly. So do you think it will be allright to put the tape on and put the head unit in? Because the head unit will be touching the foil tape?

[photoweborama]

Just make sure that all the strips you apply are all electrically connected to eachother. You can take a small, narrow strip of tape and stick it face to face with a larger, wider one. Then stick that across the seam where the tape runs side by side in the cabinet. This will give you continuity between strips of tape and help keep noise out of the amp.

That is exactly what I do when I use this stuff to shield guitars.