guitar surgery
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Posted on Feb 18, 2004 07:21 pm
fortymile
Member Since: Jan 18, 2003
anyone ever change out the electronics in your guitar? my strat has a bad volume knob (currently held stock-still with duct tape) which i need to replace. i also need to replace or clean my pickup switch. the neck position doesn't work at all.
it's been a while since i looked inside the guitar. a few years ago when the problem developed i took a peek but didnt see how to get the knob OUT. i can soldier ok. i think i trust myself to install a new knob. but i didnt see how to remove the old one. i guess you just pull real hard on the silver knob on top? and it comes off? then you can slide the knob's post out of the body? but i also seem to remember that the electronic part of the knob (the potentiometer itself) was anchored in the wood somehow? might be wrong about that. i just remember twiddling with it and giving up because it seemed firmly held and i didnt want to start surgery by yanking real hard on the diseased organ. that didn't seem right.
if anyone's ever done this, maybe you could tell me what's up with this.
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MinkusMazBane of All ExistenceMember
Since: Mar 27, 2003
Feb 18, 2004 08:13 pm yeah. if it's a standard strat-style knob, it will pull right off the potentiometer. if it's a metal one, it might have a tiny screw that keeps it tight in there. after that, you unscrew a nut from the potentiometer (the pot's shaft is threaded), and then it comes out easily. no forcing, no grunting, no destruction. good luck!'
good site if you want to learn more about your guitar's electronics and attempt some modifications and improvements that i can attest are incredible:
www.guitarnuts.com/index.php
Feb 18, 2004 10:44 pm i don't know what a standard style strat knob is. my guitar is a 1991 squier strat and the knobs are shiny, heavy silver. i will try to pull them off. i will also look for a screw. thanks.
(man, that article on that site about electrocution is scary. i am reminded now of that winning halloween story. i can't say i fully understood the article, though. the one thing i took from it was to buy a tester device.)
what incredible mods did you make through that site, minkus?
MinkusMazBane of All ExistenceMember
Since: Mar 27, 2003
Feb 18, 2004 11:04 pm shielding (quieting the beast) concepts, t-riffic and s-tastic stuff. the main two things that struck me are the shielding and the crazy tone megaswitch stuff. i've done mods like that on my guitars and on those that a few of my friends have...i blended a few together to do a nashville tele that belongs to my friend mike. you could say that it's now silent, but deadly! it just gives you the ability to maximize what your guitar can do. awesome for recording stuff.
Feb 18, 2004 11:56 pm Minkus, this guitarnuts site is NUTS!
MinkusMazBane of All ExistenceMember
Since: Mar 27, 2003
Feb 18, 2004 11:59 pm it's CRAYZAY!
flame...bringing sexy backMember
Since: Jul 01, 2002
Feb 19, 2004 07:01 am CRAZY GO NUTS!
TadpuiI am not a crook's headMember
Since: Mar 14, 2003
Feb 19, 2004 09:04 am Yes, there should be either a flat-head or a hex-head screw in the side of each of the knobs that will release their grip on the post. I think that removing the knob will reveal a nut and washer on the post that will allow the pot to be pulled out through the access plate on the back of the guitar.
flame...bringing sexy backMember
Since: Jul 01, 2002
Feb 19, 2004 09:09 am it was exactly that on my strat copy tad, though obviously it was a copy. sounds about right though. mark where the wires were soldered, cos theres often a spare tab on the pots ive found...
Feb 19, 2004 12:28 pm no, no screws on my git knobs. i'm gonna yank 'em later today.
Noize2uCzar of MidiAdministrator
Since: Apr 04, 2002
Feb 19, 2004 08:17 pm Yes guitar nuts is a great site. Ive had it in the links for a year now.
And forty, make sure you use good soldier it pays. And make sure the connections are clean to start with. Hit Radio Shack and get a soldier wick, it will pull the old soldier off the parts.
Feb 19, 2004 08:49 pm hey can you tell me what a soldier wick is? and a heat sink? i believe that the last time i tried a major circuit construction i killed it by not using a sink. no one's really ever explained this to me, but i'm assuming it's a little alligator clip that routes heat away, right? do i need to use one of those?
MinkusMazBane of All ExistenceMember
Since: Mar 27, 2003
Feb 19, 2004 09:04 pm like noize said, the solder wick pulls the old solder off of the terminals so that you can put fresh solder on when you make the connection. you need a heat sink if you are going to hold the soldering iron on the part for a long time. with this type of application, just remember that the longer you leave the iron on, the more likely you are to destroy the part. you shouldn't need a heat sink though.
