Help me put my bass guitar back together

[linda barth]

I'll look for it. I'm also getting advice from my brother. He used to have a speaker business. I'll let you know how I do, but I may not show you...hahahaha.

Thanks

[linda barth]

David....

Here you go...

http://www.kingbass.com/soldering101.html

[linda barth]

Update. I'm still sanding and oiling. About the time I think I'm finished I see a spot I want to make smoother. UGH.

[linda barth]

I'm trying to start soldering. I've had so much going on and not a spare minute for this. I need to be un-interrupted.
I decided to put everything aside and try this. I think it will be calming.

I'm looking at the pickups. They have a couple of short wires, but not nearly enough to use and a couple of them are covered in fabric. What kind of wires can I use?

[David King]

Just about any insulated wire will work for you here Linda. Wire comes in a lot of sizes and bass guitars tend use stranded wire in either 22 or 24 AWG (American Wire Gauge). Back in the 1950-60s Fender and Gibson used cloth covered wire and it's still popular with the "vintage" crowd. To make soldering as easy as possible I use silver plated copper wire with a teflon jacket. Unfortunately the teflon requires special tools to strip the wire so it's a wash. I'd be happy to send to send you some pieces if that will help.

[linda barth]

I borrowed wire from the other bags. I am trying my original pickups. They were already soldered to each other and one was soldered to one pot. I soldered the other one to the other side of the same pot and then soldered both to the jack. Does it matter where they get soldered to the bridge? And tell me again about the ground. I guess that's it. I won't know if it works until I put the strings on....right?

[David King]

Think of the pickups and wiring as somewhat like a circulatory system. You need an artery to deliver blood and a vein to bring that blood back to the heart. The wiring is basically a loop. One pickup leads into the other which leads into the volume pot, the tone pot, out to the jack, (off to the amp and then back) to the jack via the ground where it connects back to it's starting point, the far end of the first pickup.
Along that way back the bridge gets connected to the ground too. The pickups are the heart, they get the electrons moving, you need to feed those moving electrons to the amp and them give them a way to get back to the pickups. If there's a break in the circuit or an inadvertent shortcut then system won't work.

[Mark Swanson]

You can test your wiring by plugging it into an amp at any time, once you get it all together. You don't need strings, just tap the pickups with a metal object like a screwdriver. It will make a healthy clunk, loud and clear from your amp if it's all working.

[linda barth]

Wow...this could be a new band concept....

Thanks

[Matt Madden]

David;

I found your description quite moving. Thank you.

Matt

[linda barth]

He was a heart surgeon in another life....or maybe this life. I'm sure you all must have day jobs.

I spent a couple of hours today trying to solder those little wires to the slippery bridge. Tried all I could think of. Sanded it several times. Are you sure I need to ground the pickups??? Is there another spot. I was thinking of adding something that they could attach to.

Any thoughts or wiseness to share?

[Peter Wilcox]

No need to solder the ground to the bridge. Just bring the wire through the hole from the control cavity to the bridge. Make sure there is 1" or so of exposed (uninsulated) wire at the end. You can just screw down the bridge on top of this, or stuff it in to one of the bridge screw holes for a more secure connection.

[linda barth]

You're my hero. I was just looking for alternative. I'll do it.

[linda barth]

Well, I've wired the bass twice with no success. All I got from the amp was a really loud buzz although I did hear a reaction when I thumped on it. This (3rd) try I'm doing it differently. I'm using a different diagram and I changed the jack for one from another bag. . I have attached the wiring diagram I am using and drawn over the wires with red and yellow.. All of the wires I have marked as red have been done.

Questions:

1. I'm having a hard time getting the wires to solder to the top of the 2 pots. Can I solder to the posts instead?

2. The original diagram had a very pale line drawn around the pots and jack. Not showing it connecting to anything. I have highlighted it in yellow. Is that something I need to do?

3. I have taken note of circulatory system reference and am wondering if I need to make a connection from the jack back up to the 1st pickup.

4. I only made one connection to the bridge (as shown in the diagram) . Is that enough?

[linda barth]

Also I forgot about the copper shield that was in the bass originally. I've attached a photo. It has solder points on the underneath.

Should I use this? Should I ground to it? Does it go on top of the electronics or underneath??

[linda barth]

I thought of another thing. Remember my pickups had all those wires connected? I attached a photo. I didn't use any of them this time. My photos show how they are attached to each other.

Should I have used those? it would require splicing on more as they are ot long enough to attach to the pops or jack.

[Peter Wilcox]

1) Your pickups (if they are good) should work as shown in your diagram with the red wires, as you rotate the volume pot, if your solder connections are good, though the tone control won't work, since you don't show a red wire from the volume pot to the tone pot. Before you do anything else, just solder the 2 pickup leads directly to the tip and sleeve of the output jack and plug it into your amp. You should get minimal hum, and a good solid thunk when you hit a pickup with a screwdriver. If not, then there is probably something wrong with the pickup (or, unlikely, the wires or the jack), though it tested OK with the meter.

2) The line outlined in yellow just shows the control cavity outline and does nothing electronically. Ignore it.

3) The shield goes underneath the pick guard between it and the pots. If you are able to solder the ground leads (and the volume pot lug and the tone cap ground lead) to the back of the volume pot, it doesn't need a separate ground wire.

Alternatively, you can solder the ground wires to the ground lug on the volume pot, but then will need to solder a wire from the ground lug to the shield. This will ground the pots cases too.

4) Don't use those other pickups (yet), unless you determine that the current ones are bad.

[Peter Wilcox]

Just thought of something - you said you were having trouble soldering to the pot cases. Is the 3rd lug of the volume pot (and the pickup lead) grounded to the jack sleeve? If not, this could be why the pickup doesn't seem to work.

[linda barth]

If I knew how to use this program I could make colors by my questions. I wrote ANSWER HERE instead down at the end.

When you say things like "pickup leads" and "tip and sleeve of the output jack" and "volume pot lug and the tone cap ground lead" I get a bit lost. Could you make a drawings showing where I need to make further connections.

Which one is the "ground lug on the volume pot"

Volume and tone are connected. I forgot to color.

These were my questions:


1. I'm having a hard time getting the wires to solder to the top of the 2 pots. Can I solder to the posts instead? ANSWER HERE


3. I have taken note of circulatory system reference and am wondering if I need to make a connection from the jack back up to the 1st pickup. ANSWER HERE


4. I only made one connection to the bridge (as shown in the diagram) . Is that enough?
ANSWER HERE

[David King]

1. I'm having a hard time getting the wires to solder to the top of the 2 pots. Can I solder to the posts instead? ANSWER HERE No you don't need to solder to the back of the pot, just solder to the ground lug and be done with it.


3. I have taken note of circulatory system reference and am wondering if I need to make a connection from the jack back up to the 1st pickup. ANSWER HEREThis connection is made via the ground, the jack sleeve, (AKA the jack ground lug) goes to the volume pot ground lug and back to the starting point of the pickup coil.


4. I only made one connection to the bridge (as shown in the diagram) . Is that enough?
ANSWER HEREYes you only need one wire going to the bridge, the bridge will then ground the strings which is what we are really worried about since they pass over the pickups and would act like a big noisy antenna if they weren't grounded.