P90 in a Strat ... whatever next?

We have a new 'pickup mule' in which to test prototypes ... a 20 year old old Strat copy that actually has never been played. Here it's seen hosting our custom designed humbucker sized P90 ... the Oil City HP90
Here's what it sounds like ... a p 90 in a Strat funnily enough

Clips of our pickups!

Been mucking about recording some samples of our pickups and this is the first out of the hat

Hard Man Telecaster neck pickup

Recorded direct into Guitar Tracks Pro using Amplitube 3 modelling and the 'Fender Super-Sonic' patch ... I think this gives a pretty close representation of what the Hard Man is like clean through a Fender combo.


Triple Blues Strat set
Here I work through the five switch positions from Neck to Bridge .... 'Oh Suzy Q ....'

Thames Delta Tele Bridge
Playing a bit of 'Hammer of the Honkeytonk Gods' appropriately enough.

One Pickup is cool

A little test for all you guitarists out there. It really is all in the hands: use one pickup and no tone control for a while. Learn how to get different tonalities by picking at different points on the string ... use pinch harmonics, rakes, bends ... all the stuff you can just do with your fingers. No delay, flange, chorus ... even abandon your overdrive if you dare ... Just use you. It takes real thought about what you're playing, and real commitment to the emotion behind the notes ... but I guarantee that a couple of weeks practising like this will improve your playing a hell of a lot.

A bit of a demo 2 ... er ... and three!

I really should script these things!

Ho hum!

Tele's are naturally less noisy than Strats!

Seen a couple of posts on forums recently blaming certain brands of single coil Strat™ pickups for being really noisy with regard to 60 cycle hum. Well, I don’t normally leap to the defence of other pickup manufacturers … especially those who get their products made cheaply in the Far East … but with the normal ‘shielding’ and wiring plan of a Strat™ hum is part of life … and more to do with your environment and amp settings.

Some single coil designs are particularly prone to hum … like the P90, but the Strat™ pickup as such is actually relatively quiet. The problem lies in the normally unshielded control cavity and the ‘earth loops’ created with the standard wiring.

The answer is ‘star grounding,’ that is having an earthed conductive ‘cage’ around all the wiring created by a properly screened cavity and pick guard, and having all the earths running back to this – see this article http://www.guitarnuts.com/wiring/shielding/shield3.php

Don’t blame the pickups … blame a more genteel age of guitar design and more sedate stage volumes!

As a post script to this post, so to speak, many companies sell copper tape that can be wound around a Strat™ coil then earthed to pretty well completely eliminate hum … but beware! Firstly the delicate windings should be protected by ordinary tape before the copper shielding is applied … secondly you may well change some of the essential character of the pickups when you do this. I know professional guitar technicians do this on the big star’s guitars … but usually this is just for high volume stage use.

Fixing the Jackson Christian Olde Wolbers signature guitar. Part 2

Well the Jackson has been christened 'Old Wobbler' as I can't be bothered with her real model designation ... and it gives a nod to how trashed the head was when she came into the workshop. .

Titebond was syringed into any cracks ... held open with convenient screwdrivers ...

Then I did a juggling act, holding all the fractured bits together, while wrapping the whole shooting match in cling film so that it wouldn't stick to the jig.

Time passed by ....

..... so slowly

Can't beat a cuppa!

Clamps off ... and ... well it admittedly doesn't look any prettier than before ... but it is now solid and in one piece! Next job? Well, I'm waiting to hear back from a guy who makes water-slide transfers as the Jackson logo has taken a hell of a beating and really needs replaced. Some joker in the States quoted me fifteen bucks for the 'decal' and twenty five bucks delivery! Thanks, but no thanks Bub! Will probably use black epoxy filler to loose the cracks in the thick poly finish ... and depending how the repair feels after 24 hours I may let in some cross-repair mahogany 'biscuits' to toughen the joint up.

Then it will be hardware time ... all black and nothing fancy ... followed by putting one of our prototype humbuckers where the EMG 81 would have sat.

Fixing the Jackson Christian Olde Wolbers signature guitar.

Well, largely due to the use of mahogany on a pointy headstock design we have a rather sad Jackson here. When it arrived the headstock was still attached … just ... but with a horrible, long splintered break parallel with the bass side of the neck going through the ‘D’ tuning machine hole.

The break may well have to be ‘completed’ to allow a proper gluing surface for the repair. While the head was in one piece(ish) however, I took the opportunity to make up a clamping jig that will keep the pieces aligned and provide a toe-hold for my favourite lever action clamp! A bit of wizardry with my tenon saw and some scrap softwood and ply and we have this:

One ply face is fixed and one tightens down with woodscrews so that it just holds the headstock back and front. One end of the jig presses against the ‘heel’ of the head and the ‘toe’ is a snug fit against the other so that when a clamp is tightened u between the ‘shelf‘ I’ve cut and the bass side of the head (this is a reverse headstock) everything will be forced into line.

The best glue for this job is Titebond … main stay of instrument builders for years. If I’d intended for the joint to be taken apart I’d have used their ready prepared ‘hide glue’ as it can be ‘steamed’ apart quite easily … as it is I want this joint to take the rock and roll lifestyle for many years to come so I will use their ‘original’ aliphatic resin wood glue. This stuff is seriously strong, cleans up with water and sands easily. Never, never, never use either Super Glue type adhesives or PVA wood glue for this sort of job: Super glue is not good on porous materials, and is easily 'jolted' apart by a blow. PVA dries with an 'elastic' consistency and joints under shear force will 'creep' out of alignment over time.

This afternoon I'll jump in and fix the break ... showing you how to stop the head firmly gluing itself to the jig (with a bit of luck!)

Oh, an example of the beautiful ebony fingerboard and superb fretting that make this neck worth saving!

Continued here http://theguitarweasel.blogspot.com/2012_02_01_archive.html