History and Timeline of the Peavey Bandit

This forum is for talking about all kinds of Peavey guitar amplifiers.
Post Reply
User avatar
tele twister
Member
Posts: 1183
Joined: Sun Sep 15, 2013 9:38 pm
Location: Illinois, USA

Re: History and Timeline of the Peavey Bandit

Post by tele twister » Sun Aug 10, 2014 9:45 pm

ClaudeBenjamin wrote:Can't thank you enough for this history, really good information for us "bandit-holics!"
Hello, my name is tele twister and I am a Banditholic…
DSCN1691.JPG
DSCN1691.JPG (253.96 KiB) Viewed 10952 times

User avatar
GennyFan
Member
Posts: 1879
Joined: Fri Feb 05, 2010 2:11 am
Location: Dallas Texas USA
Contact:

Re: History and Timeline of the Peavey Bandit

Post by GennyFan » Mon Aug 11, 2014 1:32 am

tele twister wrote:Hello, my name is tele twister and I am a Banditholic…
Nice collection! Looks like you're a Stereo Chorus 212-oholic too! :P

triguy
Member
Posts: 2337
Joined: Fri Sep 12, 2008 10:11 pm

Re: History and Timeline of the Peavey Bandit

Post by triguy » Mon Aug 11, 2014 4:54 pm

tele twister wrote:
ClaudeBenjamin wrote:Can't thank you enough for this history, really good information for us "bandit-holics!"
Hello, my name is tele twister and I am a Banditholic…
DSCN1691.JPG

They say the first step is admitting you have a problem . . . :wink:


Triguy

User avatar
tele twister
Member
Posts: 1183
Joined: Sun Sep 15, 2013 9:38 pm
Location: Illinois, USA

Re: History and Timeline of the Peavey Bandit

Post by tele twister » Fri Aug 15, 2014 11:38 pm

Here are some Bandit Fun Facts;

The Bandit (50w) sports Switchcraft jacks, full size board mounted pots, a die cast metal Peavey logo, an Accutronics reverb unit made in Geneva, IL, a 9 foot power cord, and weighs 40 lbs.

The Bandit 65 also sports Switchcraft jacks, full size board mounted pots, a plastic logo, an Accutronics reverb made in Cary, IL, a 7 foot power cord, and weighs in at 42 lbs.

The Bandit 112 Non-Teal has those black box jacks, miniature board mounted pots, plastic logo, Accutronics made in Cary, IL, a 7 foot cord, and weighs 42 lbs. 52 lbs when you put a Scorpion Ultra in it like I did, HA!

The Bandit 112 Silverstripe has black box jacks with metal inserts, miniature board mounted pots, plastic logo, Accutronics made in Cary, IL, 7 foot cord, and tips the scales at 45 lbs.

Confession. I get a kick when that yellow tag is still on the cord. TEE HE.

User avatar
tele twister
Member
Posts: 1183
Joined: Sun Sep 15, 2013 9:38 pm
Location: Illinois, USA

Re: History and Timeline of the Peavey Bandit

Post by tele twister » Tue Aug 26, 2014 8:06 pm

Okay, I was daydreaming today and just had to jot this down before my brain melted. Please correct me by PM so I can edit this for accuracy. I know there are some overlaps. I'm just trying to keep a simple overview.

1. Bandit - (the elusive Gunsmoke) 50W, Eminence speaker, 1980-81
2. Bandit - Gray and black, 50W, Scorpion, 2 PRE, 1 POST, channel FTSW req, 1981-83
3. Bandit 65 - Black, 65W, Scorpion, 1 PRE, 2 POST, channel FTSW req, 1983-87
4. Bandit 75 - Black, 75W, Scorpion, channel FTSW not req, 1987-88
5. Bandit 112 - Black, 80W, Scorpion, no BODY control, 1988-89
6. Bandit 112 - Teal, 80W, Scorpion, BODY control, 1989-92
7. Bandit 112 - Teal, Speckled, 80W, Sheffield, 1992-95
8. Bandit 112 - Silver, Transtube, 80W, Sheffield, EXT SPKR jack, 1995-99
9. Bandit 112 - Red, Transtube II, 80W, Sheffield, last USA made, 1999-2004
10. Bandit 112 - Red, Transtube II, 80W, Blue Marvel, 2004-06
11. Bandit 112 - Cyclops, Transtube III, 80W, Blue Marvel, SPKR SIMUL OUTPUT, 2006-present
Last edited by tele twister on Wed Aug 27, 2014 3:49 pm, edited 1 time in total.

User avatar
GennyFan
Member
Posts: 1879
Joined: Fri Feb 05, 2010 2:11 am
Location: Dallas Texas USA
Contact:

Re: History and Timeline of the Peavey Bandit

Post by GennyFan » Wed Aug 27, 2014 2:09 am

tele twister wrote: 5. Bandit 112 - Black, 80W, Scorpion, no BODY control, 1988-89
6. Bandit 112 - Teal, 80W, Scorpion, BODY control, 1989-92
7. Bandit 112 - Teal, Speckled, 80W, Sheffield, 1992-95
Seems like good information, thanks for narrowing it down.

I spoke to someone who was with Peavey at the time I making the initial post, and I was told, "There was a lot of development going on at the time of the Bandit 112. Just because they share a manual and have similar cosmetics doesn't mean they're the same on the inside...." Or something to that effect.

If someone at Peavey can confirm or elaborate on your categories of Bandit 112, that would be great. But I'm not holding my breath.

Good info about the jacks and pots being full sized on the 65, but not on the first Transtube. I wonder what the Bandit 75 looked like. I've owned a couple, but never opened them up to look.

BowerR64
Member
Posts: 36
Joined: Mon Sep 08, 2014 2:50 am

Re: History and Timeline of the Peavey Bandit

Post by BowerR64 » Sat Dec 06, 2014 4:21 am

What are some problems with the bandits? I have a blue stripe "solo series" 112

Here is what it does, sometimes when you turn it on it sounds like its at half power. If i hit the power switch kinda hard when i rock it like really hammer the switch like im doing a string hammer i get the right volume.

My first thought was just a dirty switch? but could it be the transformer starting to flake out?

I got it off the local craigslist for $15. missing the scorpion speaker wich doesnt bother me i planned to make it into a head and running it threw a 4X12 cabinet.

BowerR64
Member
Posts: 36
Joined: Mon Sep 08, 2014 2:50 am

Re: History and Timeline of the Peavey Bandit

Post by BowerR64 » Wed Dec 17, 2014 12:11 am

I think there may be different versions of the silver stripe bandit also or something was going on with it.

I just got one and it had an issue so i took all the knobs off to clean the control pots (that fixed it) anyway when i went to put the knobs back on i had 3 knobs that were different they are black with a little white arrow, all the others have a little silver band at the end.

I didnt realize it when i was prying them off i guess i didnt pay attention to em. Once i went to put em back on i wasnt sure why there was only 3 then i noticed on the face there is 3 controls that have a bold white font so i put each one on the Volume Pre gain and Post gain

So today i decided to search more about the bandit and the different flavors because i have 2 now so im going to have to try the red stripe one next. I noticed that some of the silver ones ive seen in images have all knobs the same with the silver band and some have the little white arrow on a few controls also. They seem mixed up usually they are pre and post but ive seen them on random eq controls also. Could be some one took them off like i did.

Im wondering if at the time peavey was running out of knobs and the "new"replacement were the white arrow version.
Attachments
peavey knobs.JPG
peavey knobs.JPG (129.08 KiB) Viewed 10423 times

User avatar
GennyFan
Member
Posts: 1879
Joined: Fri Feb 05, 2010 2:11 am
Location: Dallas Texas USA
Contact:

Re: History and Timeline of the Peavey Bandit

Post by GennyFan » Wed Dec 17, 2014 3:36 am

BowerR64 wrote:...I noticed that some of the silver ones ive seen in images have all knobs the same with the silver band and some have the little white arrow on a few controls also.
Howdy, and welcome to the forum. Sorry I missed your earlier post, I'm not here as often as I used to be.

Regarding the knobs, they consist of a black and silver aluminium cap which is pressure fitted to the plastic knob body. If the metal caps come off, it exposes the white plastic triangle underneath. All of those knobs have a white plastic triangle under the cap. Not sure why Peavey did this, but it's a cool piece of Bandit trivia.

Unfortunately, Peavey no longer has any of those knobs in stock. I tried to order some a few years ago, and learned they were "unobtainium". :idea:
BowerR64 wrote:What are some problems with the bandits? I have a blue stripe "solo series" 112

Here is what it does, sometimes when you turn it on it sounds like its at half power. If i hit the power switch kinda hard when i rock it like really hammer the switch like im doing a string hammer i get the right volume.

My first thought was just a dirty switch? but could it be the transformer starting to flake out?

I got it off the local craigslist for $15. missing the scorpion speaker wich doesnt bother me i planned to make it into a head and running it threw a 4X12 cabinet.
Could be a dirty switch. I doubt it's the transformer, but with an amp that old, anything's possible, especially if it's been abused.

My guess is that there's a bad solder joint somewhere, and/or the switch needs to be cleaned. I can handle basic cleaning, but for trouble shooting and resoldering/replacement of the occasional jack, pot, or switch, I'll hire my local amp guru. He likes older Peavey amps, so for a typical Bandit, he'll charge me his usual 1 hour bench charge ($55) plus parts, but then he warranties the amp against future failures for LIFE... 8)

I've had him retrace the solder on a Special 212, a Revolution 112, a couple Yamaha G100's, and two silver stripe Bandits. One of the Bandits he fixed starting doing a little volume drop thing after about 3 years, so I brought it back to him and he fixed it under warranty. Apparently a component had come loose on the board... He found it in less than 5 minutes. It happens.

If you're good at that kind of thing you could do it yourself, but I'm not, and paying $55 to get a lifetime warranty is worth it to me.

User avatar
ironjose
New Member
Posts: 1
Joined: Wed Dec 17, 2014 10:46 am

Re: History and Timeline of the Peavey Bandit

Post by ironjose » Wed Dec 17, 2014 12:03 pm

GREAT info...

I love my Bandit... my friends and I call it the "Bandido"... its a tank... nothing can stop it !!!

Is the best investment I have done with my gear... I used to use a multi effect with and straight to the Return Input but now I´m using stompboxes and it sounds Killer...

Not sure if I should get the Latest version and use them as a Stereo Rig... or search for an oldie...

User avatar
tele twister
Member
Posts: 1183
Joined: Sun Sep 15, 2013 9:38 pm
Location: Illinois, USA

Re: History and Timeline of the Peavey Bandit

Post by tele twister » Wed Dec 17, 2014 5:31 pm

ironjose wrote:GREAT info...

I love my Bandit... my friends and I call it the "Bandido"... its a tank... nothing can stop it !!!

Is the best investment I have done with my gear... I used to use a multi effect with and straight to the Return Input but now I´m using stompboxes and it sounds Killer...

Not sure if I should get the Latest version and use them as a Stereo Rig... or search for an oldie...
Welcome Ironjose.
Here's some old school for ya (1982);
Bandito.JPG
Bandito.JPG (148.88 KiB) Viewed 10402 times

BowerR64
Member
Posts: 36
Joined: Mon Sep 08, 2014 2:50 am

Re: History and Timeline of the Peavey Bandit

Post by BowerR64 » Fri Dec 19, 2014 12:31 am

I dont think mine is a transtube, the solo series bandit 112 doesnt have the same sound as the silver and red ones.

Maybe i have a newer version of the teal stripe bandit? It doesnt have the "T-dynamics like the red and silver version and those sound way better IMO.

The way the emulated tube compression or something is different. It still sounds good but not as close.

Now i have a transtube rage 158 and it does a better job IMO then my teal stripe bandit. Odd i know but that one has "IT" as well. for a small 15 watt amp when hooked to a 4X12 cabinet like i do with all the rest its a darn good sounding amp also. Dont over look those little jems, i got mine for $35. and these 3 transtubers are the best money ive spent on gear so far.

Im curious to try some more, envoy, express, even that transefx one looks interesting.

To bad peavey didnt make a silver stripe transtube with stereo chorus 212 now THAT would be an amp to die for! 60-80 watts a side, stereo send and retuen and speakers outs.... oh my. Only problem is it would have to be sold with a western flyer to transport it. lol
GennyFan wrote:
Regarding the knobs, they consist of a black and silver aluminium cap which is pressure fitted to the plastic knob body. If the metal caps come off, it exposes the white plastic triangle underneath. All of those knobs have a white plastic triangle under the cap. Not sure why Peavey did this, but it's a cool piece of Bandit trivia.

Unfortunately, Peavey no longer has any of those knobs in stock. I tried to order some a few years ago, and learned they were "unobtainium". :idea:
Cool so if i pop off the rest of the caps on the other knobs ill have all of them matching! cool idea!

User avatar
GennyFan
Member
Posts: 1879
Joined: Fri Feb 05, 2010 2:11 am
Location: Dallas Texas USA
Contact:

Re: History and Timeline of the Peavey Bandit

Post by GennyFan » Sun Dec 21, 2014 12:53 am

BowerR64 wrote:
GennyFan wrote:
Regarding the knobs, they consist of a black and silver aluminium cap which is pressure fitted to the plastic knob body. If the metal caps come off, it exposes the white plastic triangle underneath. All of those knobs have a white plastic triangle under the cap. Not sure why Peavey did this, but it's a cool piece of Bandit trivia.

Unfortunately, Peavey no longer has any of those knobs in stock. I tried to order some a few years ago, and learned they were "unobtainium". :idea:
Cool so if i pop off the rest of the caps on the other knobs ill have all of them matching! cool idea!
I guess you could do that... Or just buy some generic knobs that all match each other, and then salvage the ones with aluminium caps. I bet you could sell your remaining aluminium capped knobs right here on this forum for more than than the price of a complete set of new knobs with a different design.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/5Pc-15x15-Hard- ... 1242708479?

lionheart
Member
Posts: 810
Joined: Sun Mar 11, 2012 3:02 pm
Location: Lincoln UK

Re: History and Timeline of the Peavey Bandit

Post by lionheart » Sun Dec 21, 2014 7:54 am

The difficulty I found is getting hold of knobs that fit the 5mm splined shaft on the silver stripe series of amps - most that are for sale are for 6mm shafts and are readily available, the 5s are much harder to come by. I sold four well battered knobs on eBay in the UK and got £1.00 each for them, they had their silver caps but were totally shot, devoid of most of the black coating and badly dented too. Up until the recent closure of the Peavey UK parts and distribution centre we could get the genuine ally capped items for £0.70 each in the UK. I bought some this year for a refurb job and sold the shot ones I replaced them with for more than the new items cost !

TomasJ
New Member
Posts: 1
Joined: Mon May 04, 2015 4:09 pm

Re: History and Timeline of the Peavey Bandit

Post by TomasJ » Mon May 04, 2015 5:06 pm

***History and Timeline of the Peavey Bandit***

The Bandit

(1980) The very first Bandit was only made for one year. As subsequent versions became available, the original Bandit came to be known as the "Gunsmoke Bandit" because the font used to silkscreen the logo on the front of the amp resembled the font used in the opening credits of the popular 60's television show, Gunsmoke. The Gunsmoke Bandit was made in Meridian Mississippi USA and had a power rating of 50 watts RMS. It came equipped from the factory with a 12" guitar speaker made for Peavey by Eminence.


Solo Series Bandit (manual not available... Send me a message if you have one you can scan!)


(1981-1983) The Solo Series Bandit soon followed the Gunsmoke Bandit and incorporated a variety of improvements, most notably a much improved sound. The Solo Series Bandit was made in Meridian MS USA and came equipped with Peavey's proprietary guitar speaker, the Scorpion.
Hello, new member here. I've been a regular visitor to this forum for a couple of years, but I haven't registered until now.
By pure coincidence, a couple of days ago I found the original manual for my first amp ever. Back in '82 my parents bought me (I was 14 at the time) a real guitar amplifier. It happened to be a Solo series bandit. The manual have been lost since many years ago, or at least so I thought. Going through a stack of vintage fishing gear catalogs, I found the original manual :D. I clearly remember that when I got the amp and studied the manual, I noticed that the amp on the front page had a different logo compared to my own.

The reappearance of my long lost manual made me dig out the amp again and plug it in. Made me feel like fifteen again! Unfortunately, my first eletric guitar, a Hagstrom "Partner" from 1979, is gone. Number two, however, is still around. In '84, I took ALL my savings and bought a 1977 telecaster that my local music store had lying around unsold for a couple of years. Everybody wanted superstrats back then, so nobody cared for the poor tele (except me). It still did cost a fortune for a Swedish teenager... It feels a little weird today when even guitars from the seventies are considered "vintage". Yes, I bought it new and I'm the only owner. I'm also responsible for ALL the battle scars. No relicing here. So, tele+bandit it was yesterday. Just like '85 again! And I was really surprised how good it sounds! Of course, except for a crackling volume pot, it still works perfect. It will probably be around after 30 more years. After playing for some time, I ended up behind the computer and found this thread.

So, to make a long story short. I don't thínk there ever was a manual specifically for the solo series. My amp was probably made in '82 or '83, and it came with a manual from 1980 with a gunsmoke logo amp on the cover.

Post Reply