These are my new pickups:


Experience-type, gray fiber bobbin




Bridge pickup



I've looked at the Squier bullet wiring schematic, and it said that the pots are 500k ohms. The pickups that I got are vintage-style, so that would be too sterile, and I need 250k. Where would you find cheap pots?

Also, is it fairly simple, since I don't use the middle pickup that often, to wire the bridge pickup to the middle tone control?

Thanks.

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CURRENT RIG:
2008 Squier bullet stratocaster modified with Rumpelstiltskin pickups -> Dunlop GCB-95 Original Crybaby -> Fender Vibro Champ XD

"Could you take the stain from this pair of pants, and put in on this pair of pants?"

I think this would be the right question for Martian...


MARTIAN!!!!


-The Screamin' J

_________________
CURRENT RIG:
2008 Squier bullet stratocaster modified with Rumpelstiltskin pickups -> Dunlop GCB-95 Original Crybaby -> Fender Vibro Champ XD

"Could you take the stain from this pair of pants, and put in on this pair of pants?"

You rang?

Forget the Squier schematic. And you are surely correct, you need 250K Audio pots. Cheap pots are a waste of time and money as for a dollar or so more (per pot), you can get CTS or Fender brand and the reliability and durability therein. Believe me, you'll be glad you did. And while your at it, get and use a decent .047 or .05 microfarad capacitor.

Lastly, yes, it is extremely simple to wire the bridge to the middle control. If you look at a stock Strat's wiring, you will notice on the right side of the pickup selector switch that there is one and only one unused terminal. Unsolder the white wire from the lower tone pot's terminal on the selector switch and solder it to this aforementioned unused terminal. That's it.

Congrats and enjoy!

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You dig?

I feel more knowledgeable on guitars just for reading this post

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"There is more to life than increasing its speed." Mahatma Gandhi

Owner of:
-2008 American Standard Strat in Candy Cola Red
-Vibro-Champ XD
-Fender CD-60 Acoustic (Sunburst)

Excellent!!

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You dig?

Oh... wow... well then... um...

Today I went to a family friend who's an electrician and an expert with a soldering pencil. Long story short: left the house with a pretty decent, six string electric guitar, came back with two strings and a pickup position that does not work. I don't think it's his fault; he's been doing similar things before the Soviet Union broke up (way before). The neck and middle positions are fine (might I add that these new AlNiCO pickups are absolutely delicious, as far as I could tell with a two-string test), but the bridge position just doesn't sound. At all. We've tried the old neck in the bridge, old bridge, new bridge, tried putting in the two new pickups in their respective positions, all three originals, and came to the conclusion that for now, the two new ones in the neck and middle are the best choice. If my memory is right, we've taken the guitar apart 'bout 8 times. And broke a total of four strings before we left at 11:40 at night.

Might I add that I don't think I longer fear taking the pickguard off a guitar!



Maybe something wrong with the switch?

Thanks.


-The Screamin' J

_________________
CURRENT RIG:
2008 Squier bullet stratocaster modified with Rumpelstiltskin pickups -> Dunlop GCB-95 Original Crybaby -> Fender Vibro Champ XD

"Could you take the stain from this pair of pants, and put in on this pair of pants?"

Nnote that a soldering expert isn't necessarily a diagnostician.

Your remaining possibilities:

Have you performed a, "dry run" with the bridge pickup to make sure it works?

If you wired a tone pot to this bridge pickup, have you ensured the continuity is correct?

Yes, the switch could very well be fried and/or there are blobs of solder in it where they shouldn't be and/or the contacts are not mating on the switch for the bridge selection.

Lastly, pictures, please?

_________________
You dig?

Yeah, I'll get them up as soon as I bring my guitar in the house.



-The Screamin' J


P.S. You changed your avatar! +1 for poiting out the obvious...

_________________
CURRENT RIG:
2008 Squier bullet stratocaster modified with Rumpelstiltskin pickups -> Dunlop GCB-95 Original Crybaby -> Fender Vibro Champ XD

"Could you take the stain from this pair of pants, and put in on this pair of pants?"

Yes, +1 for you!

I was looking through the avatars last night purely out of boredom. I came upon this one, remembering back in the late 60s/early 70s when I saw four of those Strats in that color, new at the store on 48th St (NYC) where I always bought my Strats from. I had remembered too, that with any Strat I had bought back then, they always came with the bridge cover. And on top of these memories of that store, it was there that I met Roger Glover and Ritchie Blackmore of Deep Purple, the first bonafide rockstars I'd ever seen up close and personal, spoken with and shaken hands with. So, you can see how this avatar is a real nostalgia thing for me as even the store is long gone.

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You dig?

Cool, Martian.

Here are the pictures:









Hum...

I've noticed that one of the red wires that goes from the volume pot (which the afforementioned electrician found to be 250k ohms, not the 500k ohms as stated on the Squier schematic) that goes to terminals 4 and 5 (simultaneously) is burned, or something. Otherwise my dad's looked at it under a magnifying glass, and we can't find anything amiss. At least anything we can see.


-The Screamin' J

_________________
CURRENT RIG:
2008 Squier bullet stratocaster modified with Rumpelstiltskin pickups -> Dunlop GCB-95 Original Crybaby -> Fender Vibro Champ XD

"Could you take the stain from this pair of pants, and put in on this pair of pants?"

Aaron is a great guy. You should see/hear his Rumplecaster!

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Being able to play and enjoy music is a gift that's often taken for granted.

Don't leave home without it!

The pictures are somewhat blurry. However, from what I can deduce, the wiring appears to be correct but that switch is indeed, fried! Replace it with a premium one like this:

http://accessories.musiciansfriend.com/ ... sku=361211

Definitely not like the one you have there.

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You dig?

How do you know that the selector is fried? Because only the bridge pickup doesn't work, that's it.

I'm getting new strings and pots as well.


-The Screamin' J

_________________
CURRENT RIG:
2008 Squier bullet stratocaster modified with Rumpelstiltskin pickups -> Dunlop GCB-95 Original Crybaby -> Fender Vibro Champ XD

"Could you take the stain from this pair of pants, and put in on this pair of pants?"

By its warpage and the amount of solder on it at one time or the other.

_________________
You dig?

I am thinking it is wired wrong. All you had to do is take a small piece of wire and solder a jumper from the middle tone wire lug on the switch to the empty lug next to it leaving the middle tone wire where it is. You now have tone control for both middle and bridge pickups.

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The strongest reason for the people to retain the right to keep and bear arms is, as a last resort, to protect themselves against tyranny in government.

Thomas Jefferson