Think I'm buying a 71 Twin tomorrow, things to look for?

[stamper]

Besides how it sounds? The owner said that he blackfaced the amp himself and it is all original except for speakers and a few replacement caps, etc. I'm a little weary of buying an amp that wasn't professionally blackfaced, though have no idea how to check if it was done right. If I dig the sound and there is no popping, hissing, spittering, or any other bad amp noises should I just go for it? I know this is the make and model I want, I just don't want to find out that something horrible was done to it after taking it home. I don't want to load a ton of money into an amp right after buying it...

So does anyone have a few tips?

[riffmeister]

Ask the seller to pull the chassis and show you exactly what he did. The work should look clean and tidy.

[Muzzy]

Great amp! I'd look for someone to carry it. Very heavy.

[stamper]

Great amp! I'd look for someone to carry it. Very heavy.

Ha! I already cancelled my gym membership, I'm just gonna walk around the apartment while carrying it.

[ford]

See if he has some earplugs also... ha

[wingwalker]

Look for a place to play it!

[smolder]

Ask the seller to pull the chassis and show you exactly what he did. The work should look clean and tidy.

What he said. Do a google image search before hand, it should help you understand what an original looks like. Have him walk through the mods. That amp should have a lot of blue blobby caps in it.

[stamper]

Thank you!

[Rumblefish]

Any respectable tech should be able to dial it in for you if there is anything lacking.The black face mods are usually pretty simple.

[harpinon]

I have seen old amps with transformers that looked real bad. Like the metal had melted a bit. Look closely.

[walterw]

yeah, i scored an early '70s pro for cheap; new tubes and speakers, some simple blackfacing, and it works great.

this era is before all the "ugly" stuff like master volumes and boosted output power, so you should be safe as long as the board hasn't absorbed moisture and developed the dreaded unfixable crackling. anything else should be easy to fix.

[zenas]

I worry about an amp that has been worked on by anybody. Professonal or not.
About all it takes to be a PRO TECH is a sign and some buisness cards.

Like the other guys said do some reserch and look inside.
Also know what to look for in speakers before looking at it. You don't want to find out after you buy it it's got MIC car woofers in it.