Garage Sale 1964 Fender Twin Reverb!

[Hiatt1991]

Hi guys. I was browsing my local craigslist adds and I stumbled upon a Fender Twin Reverb. The add didn't say a lot about it except that it wasn't a "newer one". I was skeptical at first because the grill cloth and tolex looked absolutely mint. There was also no mention of how old it really was. Anyways, I had nothing to do so I decided to go take a look at it and man was I blown away. The man I bought the amp from was in his late 70s/early 80s. He said he owned it since the early to mid 70s and acquired it from a friend. He said used it to play the fiddle and never messed around with the tremolo or reverb controls. After checking the chassis numbers, the transformer codes, and tube chart number stamps, I determined that it is a 1964 Fender Twin Reverb made in June. The man said he never replaced the tubes as he didn't play it much. It has all original vintage orange label RCA tubes except for one USA made Tung-Sol 12ax7 but it appears to be quite old as well and of the same era. I have yet to inspect the inside because I am currently waiting for the electrolytic capacitors to drain (I cant stop playing it). The man I bought it from said he never changed anything or had it serviced. He said it mostly stayed in his home with the dust cover on it it and boy can you tell that he didn't use it. There is EXTRMELY little wear on this amp. The faceplate looks like it was made yesterday along with everything else with it. The chrome chassis straps, handle covers and tilt legs have very little if any corrosion on them and still have a very bright luster to them. The amp came with the original footswitch, owners manual and he graciously wrote me a bill of sale.

My questions are where should I proceed with the amp. Does anyone know what a fair value for it is? I don't really plan on selling it but I would still like to know its value for insurance purposes. Also, it makes no strange noises and everything works on it. I live about 2 hours from the closest amp tech who I trust (Lowell @ Hunt Amplification in Phoenix). Should I take it down to him and have him inspect it? Lastly is there anything I'm missing? I don't think anything has been replaced but I'm not completely sure. Below are some pictures! Sorry for the poor quality. My current phone is on its way out.

 

[Ilduce]

OMG! That's sweeeeeeet! Congrats! Maybe one day I'll be so lucky!

 

[redeyedjim]

Nice score! Looks gorgeous

 

[swiveltung]

that is sweet for sure. If you are flipping it I would bet some Star's Tech will buy buy it for his Guy!

 

[Faraldi]

Sincerely epic find.

The fact that it was in a dry climate probably added to it's great condition (I know, Mr. Obvious).

Congrats man.

 

[DaveKS]

Daamnnn..... That look like it's been in a time capsule. Your probably looking at $2k easy with condition that's in, that's a museum piece.

 

[superdave2001]

DAMMIT, why don't these things ever happen to me?!?

Congrats man, that's a great find!

 

[Blue Strat]

Great find! Congrats.

First thing I'd do is a cap job, bias check and all around electronic check out.

 

[R.S.Fraser Sr.]

OP, that's an interesting phrase to choose for your query...
"Does anyone know what a fair value for it is? "

Does that admit that what YOU paid was unfair?

 

[Brooks]

i hate you and the priceton amp yard sale guy!

 

[lestera34]

Well I'm pretty jelly at the moment.

 

[guitarvc]

If it is indeed all original it is probably worth between 3-4K, as most of the beat up ones I see here in Austin from that time period go for 2-2500. What a find! Great amp. Those RCA tubes should be RCA Blackplates I believe, and if so they fetch 100-150 a piece. The only downside to those amps is when the tubes go, you will need to replace them with NOS American made tubes, RCA or Sylvania...otherwise the tone will change, not for the better. I had a 68 Twin with Sylvania 6L6 tubes and when they were replaced with Russian tubes it sounded dead. I sold the amp before I knew any better. You scored!

If I were in your shoes I would try to get a set of the appropriate preamp tubes and power tubes for later and just play it. Best clean tones and reverb you can get. Great pedal platform too.

 

[Hiatt1991]

OP, that's an interesting phrase to choose for your query...
"Does anyone know what a fair value for it is? "

Does that admit that what YOU paid was unfair?

Yah I do feel a little guilty about getting it for the price I did. I did inform him that it was worth quite a bit more than he was asking for it but he didn't seem to mind much and said I can deal with selling it if I wanted to get money out of it. I figure its worth in between $1500-2k but I honestly don't know. That's why I wanted to ask you guys.

 

[Hiatt1991]

Great find! Congrats.

First thing I'd do is a cap job, bias check and all around electronic check out.

I just emailed my tech and he told me to send him some pictures of the insides. If the electrolytics appear to be blistering or leaking, he said we should change them but it doesn't make any noise or hissing and it doesn't run hot or anything. When I open it up ill post some pictures.

 

[Hiatt1991]

If it is indeed all original it is probably worth between 3-4K, as most of the beat up ones I see here in Austin from that time period go for 2-2500. What a find! Great amp. Those RCA tubes should be RCA Blackplates I believe, and if so they fetch 100-150 a piece. The only downside to those amps is when the tubes go, you will need to replace them with NOS American made tubes, RCA or Sylvania...otherwise the tone will change, not for the better. I had a 68 Twin with Sylvania 6L6 tubes and when they were replaced with Russian tubes it sounded dead. I sold the amp before I knew any better. You scored!

If I were in your shoes I would try to get a set of the appropriate preamp tubes and power tubes for later and just play it. Best clean tones and reverb you can get. Great pedal platform too.

Wow you really think its worth that much? That's waaay more than I was thinking. I didn't know those tubes were so valuable. My tech has a pretty steady supply of NOS tubes so I guess Ill have to spend some more money soon

 

[Blue Strat]

I just emailed my tech and he told me to send him some pictures of the insides. If the electrolytics appear to be blistering or leaking, he said we should change them but it doesn't make any noise or hissing and it doesn't run hot or anything. When I open it up ill post some pictures.

Less than 25% of the bad caps I've replaced showed any visible signs of problems.

Replacing 50 year old electrolytic caps is considered general maintenance. You don't wait for your engine to seize before changing your oil. Even if you're not getting noise or hum (which is the only thing you'd get from electrolytic caps) they can suck power from the amp.

 

[65DuoSonic]

Very cool. The tube chart states 7355 instead of usual 6L6GC. I think that is a rare version, or they just used up the 7355 charts and shipped it with the 6L6s. Supposedly there are different transformers for the two versions. There was a thread a while back with a TR having that tube chart. Hogy seemed to know a lot about them; maybe he will chime in.
https://www.thegearpage.net/board/i...ets-his-first-twin-reverb-pics-added.1513778/

 

[Hiatt1991]

Very cool. The tube chart states 7355 instead of usual 6L6GC. I think that is a rare version, or they just used up the 7355 charts and shipped it with the 6L6s. Supposedly there are different transformers for the two versions. There was a thread a while back with a TR having that tube chart. Hogy seemed to know a lot about them; maybe he will chime in.
https://www.thegearpage.net/board/i...ets-his-first-twin-reverb-pics-added.1513778/

I've heard mixed things about those tube charts indicating 7355 tubes. From what I read they are just associated with the earlier models but the amp has 6L6GCs in it but I don't know a whole lot about vintage Fender amps. Thanks for the info!

 

[Beng2040]

Wow, that's a gorgeous example. I wouldn't sell it unless/until you need the money. That is an absolute gem right there and those sound sooo good. At least enjoy it for a while. You scored on that one!

 

[bratch]

Rot in hell.

I mean congrats, and never sell that amp. My opinion is that this amp will climb in value even if the vintage gear market slides a bit. This is an iconic amp and rarely do you see the Twin in that condition. Twins were for professionals, and they got used. Those Jensens, too.

The tubes are probably fine, right?

Never mind, I can't talk to you right now until I've calmed down a bit.