A mostly zinc-free, brassy build!  ;)     It does look pretty darn good though!

  Yep, Speedball can always be added later. I'm running a stock Crack right now and it still makes the HD6x0's sound awesome. I've been rolling tubes instead of just putting the Speedball in right away.

  The O2 will drive them just fine in low gain. High gain will cause distortion.   That said, I do prefer using my Crack compared to my O2 or C421 with the HD650's. They all drive them fine however.

  Oh I know!   Its on the list of things to get. 

I found the 6AS7G/5998 to be more microphonic and pick up more noises. I'm back to using a 6080WB. Seems to pick up less noise. I should have probably got the speedball instead of a quick collection of tubes.

  Uhm.... Yes..  darn 180 degree bends slowing down my electrons!

Finally tried a couple different tubes in the stock crack.   Sylvania 6080WB, Phillips 6080WB and a RCA 6AS7G black plate.  Sound differences don't seem huge but the Phillips 6080WB does seem to have a tiny bit more clarity in the trebles and top end. The 6AS7G takes the aesthetic looks for...

A crimp on connection would work - the ones that have a round eye. You could then use a longer bolt and just use a nut to attach it to the chassis.

  I've noticed that its not 'fully cured' yet. When the amp is hot, its not tacky to the point of leaving finger prints but the plate doesn't feel fully dry. At room temp its a nice smooth happy finish. It does seem to be getting better as you suggested. 

  Thanks!   Hadn't really thought about it. Its rustoleum primer + paint. It is a textured finish and not a gloss. It hasn't seem to shown finger prints or scuffs yet. What do you recommend?

I agree! My only fear is that if I die, my wife would sell all my possessions for what she thinks they are worth (because I've low balled the price to keep the peace) .

I thought that too, but all of the pics of Raytheon 6080WB that I could find show both of the upper circular plates as having little standoffs around the circumference.. Whereas this tube only has them on the lower of the upper plates.

I'm pretty clueless when it comes to this stuff.. I've tried to find out the make but so far have come up empty handed. At first I thought maybe Sylvania, then maybe Philips..  But I'm not sure.    Does anyone here recognize this tube? The second pic shows a very very faint 6080 WB but beyond...

I've noticed that my setup is pretty microphonic when tapping the chassis plate. Not a big deal - don't touch it!  :)

My Mom came over to have a small lunch & tea.  I had mentioned I had finished assembling an amplifier and showed it to her. Next thing you know she was trying out the HD650's & Crack. It was supposed to just be one song, then she was pretty amazed and continued to hog my laptop for over an hour...

  I've been using a standalone ODAC and its been good so far. I don't know if there is an 'agreed' upon best.

  Painting the transformer? Its laquered so you'll need to take that into account.  Or are you talking about the bell housing for the transformer?

    I think almost anyone could build one if you follow the directions implicitly. They were very well written and have enough theory and information to get you started. I would recommend a little practice soldering but that is as easy as getting some wires and practice attaching things. At...

  Just finished my Crack and have been testing it with my HD650's. Pretty sure I'm in love. Purely subjective but I'm liking it compared to my O2 and C421. Link to build pics but its mostly boring: http://s86.photobucket.com/user/syphen606/library/Bottlehead%20Crack%20Build?sort=2&page=1

Just some basic tubes. GE 6080WB and HP 5963 (Sylvania)   

                Well, I ended up with some more time this evening that wasn't expected and it was smooth sailing. Turned it on for the first time and took all my measurements. Everything looked good, so I plugged in a sacrificial set of cans to see if there was noise. So far...

  Here is today's progress. I have some errands and other things to do, so I'll have to come back tomorrow.                  

Test fitting and gluing!   I can almost start the electronics assembly in earnest.  

  I used to work for an electronics company that specialized in LED lighting products..  I was in engineering and frequently had to hand solder and hack job prototype boards together. We did have a reflow setup and a fairly large dip soldering unit..  But more often then not on new product...

  I don't know the answer as my Crack isn't assembled yet, but looking at the resistors that it comes with (5W), there will be some good heat being thrown out. The top plate will help as a bit of a heat sink.