Telecaster Pots/Switch on a Strat?

[ready2go]

I was thinking about replacing the pots on my strat and installing a 3-way switch on it. Would you see any problems in using a telecaster pot/switch set on a strat? I would need to buy an additional pot, but this would still be more economical.

My plan with a 3-way switch is to disconnect the middle pickup (since I don't use it) and have the middle position of the switch be a combination of neck & bridge pickups. The two tone controls will be assigned to the neck pickup and the bridge pickup (instead of the mid PU).

I don't really know what I'm doing (as you can tell ) so I'm not sure how complicated or simple the operation would be. Any help or input is greatly appreciated.

[ChrisK]

Well, easy is.

If you use this drawing, with the exception of using one tone pot as a middle blender, and instead use it as a bridge tone pot, you'd have what you are asking for. I'm not sure about the popularity of this wiring scheme, but some guy in a garage band from Seattle named Jim seemed to like it back in the day.

Rewire the switch as shown in the drawing for the neck (Pu 1) and bridge (Pu 3) pickups.

Leave the middle pickup in place, there are some interesting things that can be done with it, especially if you use 500K tone pots and/or push pull pots.

Your strat most likely has a common 0.022 uF cap shared between both tone pots. It also most likely already had one tone pot connected to the neck pickup (Pu 1). Leave both the tone cap and the ground connections on the two tone pots in place. Rewire the neck tone pot wire that went to one side of the Strat switch directly to the connections for the neck pickup (Pu 1) on the new switch. Wire the corresponding connection for the bridge tone pot to the corresponding location for the bridge pickup (Pu 3) on the new switch.

Since the 3-way Fender switch is electrically identical to the 5-way Fender switch except for the number of mechanical detents, you could use the existing switch. The old #2 and #4 positions will work just like the #2 position on the Tele switch (#3 on the Strat switch) if you reuse the switch.

Since Tele pots work the same way as Strat pots ('cept there ain't numbers on the knobs), you could/should reuse those as well.

[ready2go]

Thanks. That looks very good.

[ready2go]

I just thought of something. If I do only install the bridge & neck pickups, would it be wise to have one of them reverse wound? For example, use the mid. pickup on the neck?

[ChrisK]

Clever is.