tom
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Post by tom on Jul 30, 2009 10:33:38 GMT -5
Hello Everyone ! I'm relatively new to the board and this is my first post ! My question relates to shielding a 1981 Strat. This is a friend's guitar and is my first foray into strats and shielding the beast ! I'm good with my hands and following directions, but not well versed with some of the "theory", so I thank all of the "experts" here in advance for the help ! It was built in 1981 and the SN is S992421. It has 3 single coils, VTT, a 5-way switch, fully shielded pickguard, and micro-tilt neck (FWIW). The wiring looks pretty standard, but I have yet to come across a diagram that it matches it exactly. * All pu grounds are soldered to the volume pot * All pu hot leads are soldered to their respective switch positions * Both ground loops from V-T and from T-T are present * V pot has a braided wire soldered to the shell and soldered to the jack ground and the "hot" wire from the middle terminal to the jack "hot" (both are insulated together) * Both T pots have the "standard" wiring to each other and to the switch But here is what I haven't seen. . . 1) Soldered together on the V pot is the string ground (which is soldered to the claw) and another wire that goes from the V pot to the control cavity and is soldered to a connector that is screwed into the body. 2) There is also another wire that is soldered to that same connector that runs from the control cavity to the jack cavity and is soldered to another connector that is screwed into the body there. 3) On the V pot, the upper terminal is bent back against the shell and soldered there, but there is also a wire soldered to that same terminal that is then soldered to a connector at the base of the 5-way switch. So my questions are in terms of shielding the beast (in addition to 'why is it wired this way ??!') are . . . 1) What do I do with these "extra" grounds (in the control/jack cavities) ?? 2) What do I do with that "switch" ground ?? Sorry. . .long post to explain a simple concept ! And two more while I'm here. . . 3) I will be putting in a SD JB Jr. in the bridge - do I need to reverse any of the leads or just wire as per the instructions ?? 4) The capacitor reads "? Z 5 V" ".05 M" "100 V". Any need to change it ?? I look forward to your replies. I can probably post some pics if necessary. Thanks ! ;D Tom
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Post by newey on Jul 30, 2009 12:57:51 GMT -5
Tom- Hello and Welcome! From your description, it sounds like the Strat in question has already been shielded to some extent through the use of electrically-conductive shielding paint in both the control cavity and the jack cavity. The wire screwed into the side of the cavity, and the similar wire to the jack ground, are the clues that this was done. The wires connect the shielding-painted surfaces to ground, just as per the QTB procedures. In fact, the original QTB procedure discusses the use of shielding paint as a means of shielding, in addition to copper tape and aluminum foil methods. This may have been a Fender factory shielding job, or it may have been added later. If added later, that would explain why you can't find a matching diagram! Fender has been using shielding paint on some models for a while now, but I don't know if they started back in the 1980's or not. If the body color or finish extends into the cavity, this would indicate that the shielding paint was applied before the finish- a factory job. If the cavity is a different color than the rest of the guitar, then it could be a later addition- or not. If the guitar is not particularly noisy for a single coil Strat, and if there is already some shielding in place, adding additional shielding may not have much effect. We have had a lot of discussion about whether ground loops are really that much of an issue as far as generating extra noise. The consensus seems to be that they usually don't make much difference. I'd leave the grounds be. ChrisK discussed grounds loops in this post on the use of the blocking capacitor: The Blocking Capacitor
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tom
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Post by tom on Jul 30, 2009 13:38:19 GMT -5
Hi Newey.
Thanks for the reply.
Fender has been using shielding paint on some models for a while now, but I don't know if they started back in the 1980's or not. If the body color or finish extends into the cavity, this would indicate that the shielding paint was applied before the finish- a factory job. If the cavity is a different color than the rest of the guitar, then it could be a later addition- or not.
The body color DOES extend into the cavities (even the neck pocket is painted). Although it is not "finished" like the body, the screws/wires I mentioned are covered with paint, indicating to me that they were put in place before the paint was applied - possibly ??
If the guitar is not particularly noisy for a single coil Strat, and if there is already some shielding in place, adding additional shielding may not have much effect.
This guitar is VERY noisy . . .
We have had a lot of discussion about whether ground loops are really that much of an issue as far as generating extra noise. The consensus seems to be that they usually don't make much difference. I'd leave the grounds be.
So would applying cooper tape to the cavities and performing the STB be a waste of money and time ??
Should I just put the JB Jr. in and leave all as is ?? Thanks.
Tom
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Post by newey on Jul 30, 2009 14:59:46 GMT -5
If it's that noisy, using the QTB procedures may be of some benefit.
The existing shielding paint will not help much unless it is connected electrically to the shielding on the back of the pickguard, which you will be doing following the QTB procedures.
From your description, this sounds like a factory job, unless the guitar was refinished at some point.
You should decide if you want to use the safety capacitor or not- this decision has nothing to do with the shielding in and of itself.
If not, there is no need to eliminate the ground loops, and you can continue to use the back of the pot as the grounding point, as ChrisK discusses in the link I gave you.
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Post by sumgai on Jul 30, 2009 17:32:51 GMT -5
tom, Hi, and to the NutzHouse! Your Strat is completely stock, no mods have been applied that I can perceive. But sadly, when it comes to shielding, Fender still has yet to apply a full-spread shield to the back of the pickguard. The paint-shield within the cavity is not what I personally call "good enough", but some folks are happy with it, and leave it alone. You can apply the "Quieting the Beast" job right over it with complete success. But, be sure to remove any screws and other metal artifacts before applying the material. In order, I'd try simply applying a layer of copper shielding to the underside of the pickguard first. If the improvement is not enough, then go for the full meal deal - I'm sure you'll be singing the blues for other reasons, once that's done. ;D Leave everything else alone, wiring wise. Ground loops within the guitar itself have not been proven to be harmful to one's tone, nor to one's safety. As far as inserting the JB is concerned, I'd say that following the instructions will give you the best chance of getting the tone you're looking for/expecting. (I'm talking about being in phase with the remaining two pups.) If the combination sounds are thin, then you'll simply reverse the JB's leads, and that should be the end of the story. HTH sumgai
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tom
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Post by tom on Jul 30, 2009 20:28:25 GMT -5
Thanks guys. I agree that it appears to be completely "stock". It doesn't appear to be anything but "factory". Soo. . .what I am hearing is. . .that the factory "shielding" (aluminum) on the pickguard may not be adequate ?? And, at this point, it might be easiest to just apply copper shielding right over top of that, reinstall all of the components "as is", put in the JB Jr. per the instructions, and see what we got ??! That would certainly be easier and less time consuming !! Tom PS The aluminum shielding does cover the ENTIRE back of the pickguard. . . PPS Am I correct to assume that completing the complete STB mod (in general) is unnecessary ?? It's just the feeling I'm getting. . .
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Post by newey on Jul 30, 2009 21:08:45 GMT -5
By "STB" I assume you mean "QTB". If, by "complete mod", you mean eliminating the "ground loops", that is not necessary. Nor is the safety capacitor necessary for effective shielding- whether it is helpful for safety is another issue.
As far as the aluminum shielding on the whole back of the pickguard, coupled with the shielding paint in the cavity, that "good enough" solution is apparently not good enough in this particular guitar. So, I'd recommend doing it as long as you have the guitar apart anyway.
Make sure that your cavity shielding goes "up and over" the sides so that it contacts the pickguard shielding at several points where a pickguard screw will hold the two shields together, thus ensuring continuity between the pickguard shielding and the cavity shield. The lack of that is one of the weak spots in the factory shielding- the cavity shielding is not connected to the pickguard shielding except, perhaps, via a circuitous route through the shells of the pots.
Of course, adding the humbucker may help quiet things a bit as well.
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tom
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Post by tom on Jul 30, 2009 21:36:41 GMT -5
By "STB" I assume you mean "QTB". Yes. . .I meant QTB !!! (had "Shielding" on the brain !! ) If, by "complete mod", you mean eliminating the "ground loops", that is not necessary. Nor is the safety capacitor necessary for effective shielding- whether it is helpful for safety is another issue.Yes, that's what I meant. I am currently building a strat project from scratch and this current "project" interrupted that, so I figure I could make the "trial run" of QTB on my buddy's guitar !! As far as the aluminum shielding on the whole back of the pickguard, coupled with the shielding paint in the cavity, that "good enough" solution is apparently not good enough in this particular guitar. So, I'd recommend doing it as long as you have the guitar apart anyway.
So, do you think I even need to put copper shielding over the current aluminum or just leave it as is (as long as I shield the cavities properly) ?? Of course, adding the humbucker may help quiet things a bit as well.[/quote][/b] Agree !
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Post by newey on Jul 30, 2009 22:29:35 GMT -5
Unless the current aluminum shielding goes to the edges of the pickguard, such that a pickguard screw makes contact with it, you'll need to add some shielding to the edge areas so as to be able to get continuity with your cavity shielding. And whatever you add must also be in continuity with the existing aluminum portion as well. And, if you have to add shielding to some of the pickguard, might as well do the whole thing. Might help, can't hurt, not particularly expensive, so why not? BTW, I wouldn't bother with shielding the output jack cavity either, I'd just leave the connection already there to the shielding paint. It can be tricky to use copper tape or foil in the confines there, and if the tip part of the phono plug ends up touching the shielding, you'll hear a distinct lack of output- as in none.
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tom
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Post by tom on Jul 30, 2009 23:00:06 GMT -5
The aluminum shielding goes all the way to the edge of the pickguard and is in excellent shape, so I'll probably use it as is. (Not a big deal to change it, but I see no need to and I won't have to disassemble everything !).
So, looking ahead, would I solder the "cavity" grounds (the ones that are screwed into the body in the control and jack cavities) to the star ground (instead of the V pot body where they are now) ??
Same deal with the (mystery) wire that goes from the high V pot terminal to the 5-way switch ?? (in other words, move it from the V pot to the star ground ?? (if I understand it from the QTB instructions - I believe it's described under Step 18 if I recall correctly. . .)
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Post by newey on Jul 30, 2009 23:17:26 GMT -5
Again, both SG and I think you should just leave the grounds as they are. Just screw the screws back in through your new cavity shielding.
The procedure for "star grounding" as described in the QTB instructions is really only necessary when the safety cap (so-called) is used. The back of the volume pot is also a "star ground" if all the grounds collect there- and, as ChrisK points out in the link, the ones to the tone pots don't really matter.
The "mystery wire" is probably just there to ground the frame of the 5-way switch, I'd leave it as is.
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Post by sumgai on Jul 30, 2009 23:53:01 GMT -5
tom, newey reads me 5 x 5, loud and clear. However, I'd like to point out one thing: If you do a butt-load of work all at once, in the name of saving time/effort/etc. and then experience a problem, where do you start troubleshooting? It's usually best to do one project at a time, making sure that it works as advertised before moving on to the next project. In this case, I think I'd go for installing the JB first, just because it's easier, and gives more gratification per effort. Once that's set up and running just fine, then get into the shielding aspect. I've seen what Fender calls a "full shield" on the underside of a pickguard. (I've got one of those too, made in 2005.) I don't like it from two standpoints: It depends on making its ground contact through a star-type lock washer, meaning that the electrical contact points are few and small - not very trustworty, to say the least. I also don't think it covers a large enough area to be useful. Fender was thinking "save a buck, cover what looks good". I'm thinking "make sure the job is done, even if you have to spend an extra penny or two. Going back in to make corrections is much more expensive!" The fact that the shielding material is aluminum is a non-starter for me, but that's me personally. It does work in most cases, for most players, but again, I'm all for spending the extra shekels in the first place (I mean, using the more expensive copper), and not have to go back in to do a repeat job. (Which just wastes the time/effort/cost of the aluminum. ) I suppose that since I'm proposing that you do this "monster mod" in stages, then you certainly don't lose anything by trying an all aluminum solution first. (You aren't contemplating using copper in the cavity, and butting that up against an aluminumized pickguard, are you?! That would be a genuine Romper Room No-No!!) If that all-aluminum plan doesn't work, then you're only one more stage to completion, pulling the aluminum and installing the copper. And just for the record, in order to "empty" the pickguard, you don't need to unsolder anything! You simply unscrew the pickups and selector switch, pop off the knobs and unscrew the control shaft nuts, and you're done! Easy as pie! ;D HTH sumgai p.s. Do you know that the easiest way to remove the Volume and Tone knobs is to use two guitar picks on opposing sides, gently levering them upwards?
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tom
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Post by tom on Jul 31, 2009 9:17:29 GMT -5
Again, both SG and I think you should just leave the grounds as they are. Just screw the screws back in through your new cavity shielding.OK. . .sounds good to me ! The procedure for "star grounding" as described in the QTB instructions is really only necessary when the safety cap (so-called) is used. The back of the volume pot is also a "star ground" if all the grounds collect there- and, as ChrisK points out in the link, the ones to the tone pots don't really matter.Ahhh. . .see, grasshopper didn't know that was only the case when using the capacitor. . .me learny lots !! The "mystery wire" is probably just there to ground the frame of the 5-way switch, I'd leave it as is.[/quote][/b] Done and done ! ;D
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tom
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Post by tom on Jul 31, 2009 10:06:47 GMT -5
However, I'd like to point out one thing: If you do a butt-load of work all at once, in the name of saving time/effort/etc. and then experience a problem, where do you start troubleshooting? Agree. . . It's usually best to do one project at a time, making sure that it works as advertised before moving on to the next project. In this case, I think I'd go for installing the JB first, just because it's easier, and gives more gratification per effort. Once that's set up and running just fine, then get into the shielding aspect.True. I guess in my haste to get this guitar done (since my friend has a "gig" coming up soon) and move on to my OWN project, I was looking for the one shot deal. But I agree with what you are saying. . .makes sense. I've seen what Fender calls a "full shield" on the underside of a pickguard. (I've got one of those too, made in 2005.) I don't like it from two standpoints: It depends on making its ground contact through a star-type lock washer, meaning that the electrical contact points are few and small - not very trustworty, to say the least. I also don't think it covers a large enough area to be useful. Fender was thinking "save a buck, cover what looks good". I'm thinking "make sure the job is done, even if you have to spend an extra penny or two. Going back in to make corrections is much more expensive!"Agree. . .I guess that's why I was looking at the "all at once slam dunk" ! The fact that the shielding material is aluminum is a non-starter for me, but that's me personally. It does work in most cases, for most players, but again, I'm all for spending the extra shekels in the first place (I mean, using the more expensive copper), and not have to go back in to do a repeat job. (Which just wastes the time/effort/cost of the aluminum. )No, I agree. I have the capacitor, all of the copper shielding supplies and the copper pickguard shield (from Monte Allums) for my own project and I would certainly use it for this project if need be and then purchase new stuff for mine. I just want to do the best, most effective, time efficient job that I can do - but I see your point in doing it in stages. I suppose that since I'm proposing that you do this "monster mod" in stages, then you certainly don't lose anything by trying an all aluminum solution first. Correct. Just a little time. . . (You aren't contemplating using copper in the cavity, and butting that up against an aluminumized pickguard, are you?! NOT ANYMORE !! (That was my next question - copper cavity with aluminum pickguard Grasshopper learning more. . . !). That would be a genuine Romper Room No-No!!) If that all-aluminum plan doesn't work, then you're only one more stage to completion, pulling the aluminum and installing the copper.I wasn't planning on shielding the cavity with aluminum and then redoing it with copper if it didn't work. I would just switch the aluminum pickguard shield to the copper one if I decided to shield the cavity (with copper). . . And just for the record, in order to "empty" the pickguard, you don't need to unsolder anything! You simply unscrew the pickups and selector switch, pop off the knobs and unscrew the control shaft nuts, and you're done! Easy as pie! ;DYeah, I'm aware of that. Was just hastily looking at it as another step in the process. ;D There is "sort of" a time constraint. p.s. Do you know that the easiest way to remove the Volume and Tone knobs is to use two guitar picks on opposing sides, gently levering them upwards? Thanks for the tip ! So what I'm hearing is. . .(just for completeness sake). . . 1) Put the JB Jr in, leave all wiring as is, reassemble, make sure it's working correctly, and see how noisy everything is (I'm guessing it WILL be. . .) 2) If noisy, copper shield the cavity, copper shield the pickguard (go over the aluminum or remove it ?), leave all wiring as is, reassemble, and see what I got at that point. . . It doesn't make sense to shield the pickguard with copper WITHOUT shielding the cavity at all, right ?? (If it does, in fact, have the shielded paint). Thanks again ! Tom
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Post by newey on Jul 31, 2009 11:06:46 GMT -5
Just go over it. And no, it doesn't make much sense to do the guard without the cavity, unless you just want to try that for time saving. But I expect you'll be back in there doing the cavity in the long run. Again, the problem is the poor interconnection between the shielding paint in the cavity and the foil on the guard.
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Post by angelodp on Jul 31, 2009 11:08:48 GMT -5
Can you post a few pics of your guitar. I would like to see what is going on if possible.
best ange
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tom
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Post by tom on Jul 31, 2009 11:18:22 GMT -5
Just go over it. And no, it doesn't make much sense to do the guard without the cavity, unless you just want to try that for time saving. But I expect you'll be back in there doing the cavity in the long run. Again, the problem is the poor interconnection between the shielding paint in the cavity and the foil on the guard.
Gotcha.
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tom
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Post by tom on Jul 31, 2009 11:20:20 GMT -5
Can you post a few pics of your guitar. I would like to see what is going on if possible. best ange Hi best ange. I just read the thread for image posting. I'll try to get to that tonight, schedule permitting ! Tom
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Post by angelodp on Jul 31, 2009 11:28:56 GMT -5
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Post by sumgai on Jul 31, 2009 12:20:32 GMT -5
Just go over it. And no, it doesn't make much sense to do the guard without the cavity, unless you just want to try that for time saving. But I expect you'll be back in there doing the cavity in the long run. Again, the problem is the poor interconnection between the shielding paint in the cavity and the foil on the guard.Two schools of thought here..... One says that it's OK to cover the old aluminum with new copper. I've done this, and I don't recall any customer ever coming back with a continuing problem. But..... The other school says that making contact between two dissimilar metals creates a galvanic junction. IOW, there's a voltage flowing between the two materials. Exactly how all this occurs is not the point, and the effects on our circuitry and pickups, hum-wise, are non-existant, to be sure. The low-lying problem is rooted in electrolysis, whereby the electrical activity will eventually breakdown the materials right at the points of contact across the junction. Meaning that over time, both one or both materials will disintegrate. How much time? Dunno. Prolly many decades, but I'm not a chemist...... Me, for myself, I always leave the old stuff and cover over it entirely - I ain't afraid o' no ghosts! ;D Posted for informational purposes only, YMMV! Now, to address the issue of differing materials between the cavity and the pickguard..... In essence, you aren't covering one with the other, you're depending on one contacting the other to carry a signal (the hum that we are shunting to ground). Now the galvanic conduction between the two materials gets in the way of our desires, thanks to the fact that if there's a voltage, there're also current and resistance. Read that last word again.... big oops, eh? Even if it's "just a few ohms", it's still a resistance, and not desirable at all. If it's more than that, then it's time to call Houston, because we've got a problem. Personally, I suspect that more than one thread we've seen in the past was related to this problem, without our being told by the poster what he/she used for the shielding material(s). BTW, this also applies to those alleged shielding paints. In another forum (a Yahoo Group, in fact), I participated in a conversation revolving around this very topic, shielding paint. Another fellow had done extensive testing of the contents of various paints on the market. He found that they all had some content percentage of copper, or silver, but that they all were lacking in real shielding ability. Using several Strat bodies, he'd move the same pickguard (shielded with copper) from one body to the next, and measured the hum. Starting with measuring the hum in a body fully shielded with copper foil, and assigning that level as a 100% reduction of hum, he found no paint that would get within 70% of that level of reduction. It's faster to apply, usually easier, usually less messy, and about the same cost, so why not use it? Because it doesn't do the job, that's why. Let me repeat my mantra: If you want to do the job twice, go right ahead, be my guest! Me, I'm gonna do it right the first time, and get back to gigging! ;D HTH sumgai
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tom
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Post by tom on Jul 31, 2009 13:31:45 GMT -5
Yep, I mentioned him earlier in the thread. That's what I have. Good stuff !
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tom
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Post by tom on Jul 31, 2009 13:59:20 GMT -5
Just go over it. And no, it doesn't make much sense to do the guard without the cavity, unless you just want to try that for time saving. But I expect you'll be back in there doing the cavity in the long run. Again, the problem is the poor interconnection between the shielding paint in the cavity and the foil on the guard. Two schools of thought here.....
One says that it's OK to cover the old aluminum with new copper. I've done this, and I don't recall any customer ever coming back with a continuing problem. But.....
The other school says that making contact between two dissimilar metals creates a galvanic junction. IOW, there's a voltage flowing between the two materials. Exactly how all this occurs is not the point, and the effects on our circuitry and pickups, hum-wise, are non-existant, to be sure. The low-lying problem is rooted in electrolysis, whereby the electrical activity will eventually breakdown the materials right at the points of contact across the junction. Meaning that over time, both one or both materials will disintegrate. How much time? Dunno. Prolly many decades, but I'm not a chemist......
Me, for myself, I always leave the old stuff and cover over it entirely - I'm not afraid of no ghosts! ;D
Posted for informational purposes only, YMMV! Now, to address the issue of differing materials between the cavity and the pickguard..... In essence, you aren't covering one with the other, you're depending one contacting the other to carry a signal (the hum that we are shunting to ground). Now the galvanic conduction between the two materials gets in the way of our desires, thanks to the fact that if there's a voltage, there're also current and resistance. Read that last word again.... big oops, eh? Even if it's "just a few ohms", it's still a resistance, and not desirable at all. If it's more than that, then it's time to call Houston, because we've got a problem. Personally, I suspect that more than one thread we've seen in the past was related to this problem, without our being told by the poster what he/she used for the shielding material(s). BTW, this also applies to those alleged shielding paints. In another forum (a Yahoo Group, in fact), I participated in a conversation revolving around this very topic, shielding paint. Another fellow had done extensive testing of the contents of various paints on the market. He found that they all had some content percentage of copper, or silver, but that they all were lacking in real shielding ability. Using several Strat bodies, he'd move the same pickguard (shielded with copper) from one body to the next, and measured the hum. Starting with copper being a 100% reduction of hum, he found no paint that would get within 70% of that level of reduction. It's faster to apply, usually easier, usually less messy, and about the same cost, so why not use it? Because it doesn't do the job, that's why. Let me repeat my mantra: If you want to do the job twice, go right ahead, be my guest! Me, I'm gonna do it right the first time, and get back to gigging! ;D HTH sumgai No ghost fear here, either. . .bring it on, Casper !! Let me repeat my mantra: If you want to do the job twice, go right ahead, be my guest! Me, I'm gonna do it right the first time, and get back to gigging! Agree !! That's why I originally wanted to do it ALL at one time. . .the RIGHT way. . . ONCE ! But I certainly see the merit in doing it in a step like fashion in order to make it easier to troubleshoot along the way if there is a problem. You can bet, however, that I will being performing the QTB mod (from the ground up, that is (capacitor and wiring included) in it's entirety with my OWN project !
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Post by KIIMH on Jul 31, 2009 14:19:41 GMT -5
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Post by sumgai on Jul 31, 2009 16:56:21 GMT -5
By Gawd, I do believe that kylehead has finally earned his first Exalt! Nice job, k-head! ;D
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Post by sumgai on Jul 31, 2009 17:02:47 GMT -5
Tom, You can certainly go about the entire shielding project as one step, that'd be my recommendation. My thought, up above, was that you not combine that with an entirely different project, the installation of the JB hummie. Messing with the wiring for two different reasons can create a real clusterpuncture, should something go bump in the night. Even though the shielding/ground isolation job is not a simple 15 minute job, it's still all on the same page, so to speak. Finding errors is much easier when you aren't trying to keep track of two modifications at once. sumgai
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tom
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Post by tom on Jul 31, 2009 22:09:44 GMT -5
Tom, You can certainly go about the entire shielding project as one step, that'd be my recommendation. My thought, up above, was that you not combine that with an entirely different project, the installation of the JB hummie. Messing with the wiring for two different reasons can create a real clusterpuncture, should something go bump in the night. Even though the shielding/ground isolation job is not a simple 15 minute job, it's still all on the same page, so to speak. Finding errors is much easier when you aren't trying to keep track of two modifications at once. sumgai I understand. We're on the same page ! ;D I just got power back not too long ago after 3+ hours in the dark, so no pics tonight. I am working this weekend so hopefully I will get a chance to post a few pics for those who are interested and also to start working on this project before Monday. Tom
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tom
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Post by tom on Aug 1, 2009 11:59:10 GMT -5
Can you post a few pics of your guitar. I would like to see what is going on if possible. best ange Not sure if I am doing this correctly, but here is a link to a bunch of pics. . . s968.photobucket.com/albums/ae169/bucketpics2009/Tom (EDITed by sumgai to show the overall album instead of the slideshow - some computers (like mine) don't deal well with Photobucket's slideshow methods. )
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tom
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Post by tom on Aug 2, 2009 9:58:59 GMT -5
Hey guys. Just a brief update and a question as I'm doing this via Blackberry. . . I soldered the JB Jr. In last night...MAN, the leads on those are thin ! . I also put the copper shield on the pickguard. Right when I was about to reassemble everything, I got called in to the hospital, but I was determined to get that part done, so I was like a one man pit crew and I bolted the neck back on, put the bridge, springs, and jack back on, strung it up and tweaked it a little bit. . .all in about 10 mins ! I don't like to rush through things, but everything seems to be working as advertised - JB sounds great and is quiet and "hum" bucking ! One quick question. . .I have the tremolo ground soldered to the V pot (like it originally was). Since I'm not doing the "complete" QTB (with the ring terninal), after I shield the cavity, should the trem ground be screwed down with the rest of the body grounds or soldered to the V pot ?? That wasn't very brief, was it ??
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Post by newey on Aug 2, 2009 10:18:18 GMT -5
You can certainly reinstall it to the V pot if you like. However, when the cavity is shielded I like to screw it into the side of the cavity. It makes for one less wire to remove if you ever remove the pickguard again in the future.
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tom
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Post by tom on Aug 2, 2009 10:40:06 GMT -5
You can certainly reinstall it to the V pot if you like. However, when the cavity is shielded I like to screw it into the side of the cavity. It makes for one less wire to remove if you ever remove the pickguard again in the future. Yes, I'd rather have it screwed into the body too for the same reason. I just wasn't sure if it HAD to be on the V pot. Cool. Now, is it ever a problem to just cut a ground wire (that is soldered together with others) as close as possible and remove it as opposed to desoldering the whole thing, removing the said wire, and the resoldering the other grounds ?? Tom
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