Tele Neck pickup cutting in and out

gusman2x

I inherited a 70s telecaster (my back doesn't thank me), and since it's been in my possession, the neck pickup has been very quiet, and doesn't react to any changes in the tone knob. The bridge works fine. The middle potion behaves just like the neck position.

So, I pulled the switch cavity, and gave everything I could a good skoosh of switch cleaner. The pots are enclosed in big square plastic boxes, so I couldn't real get to them. However, I think it's actually the neck pickup, or it's wiring that's at fault. When playing, if I wiggle the pickup, then the volume increases to normal levels, but drops again when I stop. I pulled the pickup to see if there wearer any obvious breaks in the soldering, but ca't see any. 

Does this wiring look OK? I'm not really comfortable to de solder and resolver the connections anyway, but wanted to know what you guys think?

http://i372.photobucket.com/albums/oo168/gusman2x/IMG_7500_zpse697d533.jpg

streethawk

Can't tell. But I'm no electrician!

Could be a dodgy solder joint or you could have a worn wire somewhere along the line, or the bit of exposed wire from the black pickup lead is touching something it shouldn't?

I advise buying a 10 quid soldering kit off amazon, watching a youtube vid on soldering, practising on a piece of junk and getting stuck in. Eventually you'll happen upon the issue!

GuitarMonkey

The soldering looks okay but a bit of insulation wouldn't go amiss to stop the two sides shorting, which I imagine is the cause of the problem.

gusman2x

GuitarMonkey said:

The soldering looks okay but a bit of insulation wouldn't go amiss to stop the two sides shorting, which I imagine is the cause of the problem.

Some electrical tape wrapped round the two soldered joints from the pickup and wires connected to the switch?

Thanks guys

ICBM

That wiring is definitely not original or correct. If the two loose ends are shorting against each other, or against any shielding paint in the cavity (I can't tell if there is any or not) that would kill the tone when the contact is being made. If a full short it would kill the output completely, in fact.

Before you do anything - the pickup is not original to the guitar, it's either older or newer. It should have black and white plastic wiring going right to the pickup. The black and white cloth wire either means a newer replacement, something like a Duncan 'Vintage' pickup, or a much older pickup which could be worth a fair amount, so don't go messing about with it until you know which!

Can you take another pic of the whole of the bottom of the pickup?

impmann

Looks like a Duncan to me... old Tele pickups don't have that amount of wax/resin on them. If it is, its probably 10000 times better than the original nasty 70s Tele pickups IMHO...

At the very least, those bare connections need insulating. The plastic covered cable looks a bit weedy/grotty too. If it were mine I'd be rewiring the whole guitar to ensure it's 100%. If you aren't confident to do it, it shouldn't cost the earth at a good tech - where abouts are you?

ICBM

impmann said:

Looks like a Duncan to me... old Tele pickups don't have that amount of wax/resin on them.

I thought so too, but i wouldn't want to mess it up if it turns out to be a really old one .

impmann said:

The plastic covered cable looks a bit weedy/grotty too. If it were mine I'd be rewiring the whole guitar to ensure it's 100%.

That's the original 1970s plastic wiring, and hence valuable . Actually there's nothing wrong with it - you don't need much thickness for the microamps in a guitar circuit.

Tape over the connections at the very least though.

The problem is a short not an open circuit if it sounds muffled and makes the middle position the same, anyway.

gusman2x

ICBM said:

That wiring is definitely not original or correct. If the two loose ends are shorting against each other, or against any shielding paint in the cavity (I can't tell if there is any or not) that would kill the tone when the contact is being made. If a full short it would kill the output completely, in fact.

Before you do anything - the pickup is not original to the guitar, it's either older or newer. It should have black and white plastic wiring going right to the pickup. The black and white cloth wire either means a newer replacement, something like a Duncan 'Vintage' pickup, or a much older pickup which could be worth a fair amount, so don't go messing about with it until you know which!

Can you take another pic of the whole of the bottom of the pickup?

ICBM said:

That wiring is definitely not original or correct. If the two loose ends are shorting against each other, or against any shielding paint in the cavity (I can't tell if there is any or not) that would kill the tone when the contact is being made. If a full short it would kill the output completely, in fact.

Before you do anything - the pickup is not original to the guitar, it's either older or newer. It should have black and white plastic wiring going right to the pickup. The black and white cloth wire either means a newer replacement, something like a Duncan 'Vintage' pickup, or a much older pickup which could be worth a fair amount, so don't go messing about with it until you know which!

Can you take another pic of the whole of the bottom of the pickup?

Hope these pics are OK.

Yeah I thought it a bit strange that the pickup had cloth wiring, but plastic for the rest of the wiring. The guitar is a 74 (I think) It was my father in law's. He died about 25 years ago, so it's certainly not been tinkered with in that time. I believe he was quite handy though, so he may well have done some things himself. There appears to be no shielding in any of the cavities. 

http://i372.photobucket.com/albums/oo168/gusman2x/IMG_7502_zpsdeaea0c9.jpg

http://i372.photobucket.com/albums/oo168/gusman2x/IMG_7504_zps2d8b9864.jpg

http://i372.photobucket.com/albums/oo168/gusman2x/IMG_7505_zpscf8c8e69.jpg

http://i372.photobucket.com/albums/oo168/gusman2x/IMG_7507_zpsea8f105c.jpg

It's INCREDIBLY heavy I've often wondered if he made the body himself. The burst looks pretty authentic though, so maybe not. And I guess heavy fenders were common in the 70s

gusman2x

Don't know why the pics are shooing as links.I did exactly the same as last time

GuitarMonkey

The body looks (from the limited pictures) like the real deal. I think the paint in the neck pocket is an addition and the pots are definitely not original.

gusman2x

@ICBM Do the above pics shed any light on the origin of the pickups? I tried wrapping all the joints i could see in electrical tape, but it's just the same. Interestingly, i think it's to do with the pickup cover. When i pull up on the cover, kinda 'lifting' it, the signal comes through.

gusman2x

impmann said:

Looks like a Duncan to me... old Tele pickups don't have that amount of wax/resin on them. If it is, its probably 10000 times better than the original nasty 70s Tele pickups IMHO...

At the very least, those bare connections need insulating. The plastic covered cable looks a bit weedy/grotty too. If it were mine I'd be rewiring the whole guitar to ensure it's 100%. If you aren't confident to do it, it shouldn't cost the earth at a good tech - where abouts are you?

I'm in Manchester. I've actually just dropped off a jag with Steve the Manchester Guitar Tech in Wythenshawe, so I'll ask him for a price when I pick up my Jag.

gusman2x

I should maybe just have a go at rewiring it myself though. Would be pretty handy to be able to do it, and I guess it ca't be that hard.

ICBM

gusman2x said:

@ICBM Do the above pics shed any light on the origin of the pickups? I tried wrapping all the joints i could see in electrical tape, but it's just the same. Interestingly, i think it's to do with the pickup cover. When i pull up on the cover, kinda 'lifting' it, the signal comes through.

It does actually look more like a very old Fender one than a Duncan or other modern pickup, although I can't be sure. Be careful!

It could be the cover - if the tab beside the wire hole is cutting into the cloth and shorting. The best way to fix that would be to remove the two short pieces of cloth wire (even if they're original to the pickup) and solder the plastic wire directly into the eyelets… but this is not a job for an amateur if you think the pickup might be something valuable.

Lixarto

Any chance of pictures of the whole guitar?

ThePrettyDamned

If you're really concerned, ask @theguitarweasel, he's a top chap and may be able to help.

gusman2x

I inherited the guitar from my late father in law. I never actually met him as he died when my wife was little. It's also where I got the Vibrolux, which is just sublime.

http://i372.photobucket.com/albums/oo168/gusman2x/Guitars/IMG_0419_zps194594aa.jpg

http://i372.photobucket.com/albums/oo168/gusman2x/Guitars/IMG_0421_zpsdbb3c941.jpg

http://i372.photobucket.com/albums/oo168/gusman2x/Guitars/IMG_0422_zps7a0ce94c.jpg

 

Apart from the neck pickup not working at them moment, it's a really nice guitar to play. I've maybe set the action a bit low, so it does need a bit more tweaking. ONly downside really is the weight. It's well over 12lbs if memory serves me correctly. However, rahter than worry about that, I've decided to just play it and enjoy it.

ICBM

It's a '77. These are indeed often ludicrously heavy - over 12lbs wouldn't actually surprise me. I had one that must have been not far off that.

Not sure if the 6-saddle bridge is original, but it does look like a real Fender one. They used them on Tele Customs and Deluxes at that time I think, but not the standard model.

Vibroluxes are wonderful amps - I also had a '77 one of those, all original down to the valves. It had an original factory defect too - a wire not soldered into an eyelet, so every now and then it would jump in volume, like a solo boost you didn't ask for! Until I fixed it. QC at Fender was a bit ropy then...

gusman2x

ICBM said:

It's a '77. These are indeed often ludicrously heavy - over 12lbs wouldn't actually surprise me. I had one that must have been not far off that.

Not sure if the 6-saddle bridge is original, but it does look like a real Fender one. They used them on Tele Customs and Deluxes at that time I think, but not the standard model.

Vibroluxes are wonderful amps - I also had a '77 one of those, all original down to the valves. It had an original factory defect too - a wire not soldered into an eyelet, so every now and then it would jump in volume, like a solo boost you didn't ask for! Until I fixed it. QC at Fender was a bit ropy then...

That's what I thought when I checked the serial, but somone elae said to be careful of the serial numbers and to pull the neck. It's got a weird set of info on it. It says P301, 1574. That's why I assumed it was 74. I did think that the horrid tuners might be too new for 74 though. It could well be a parts bin guitar. If you look at the picture of the bridge on the body, you can see a slight gap on the treble side where the bridge doesn't cover the routing. I guess this could be an indication that the bridge is not native, or just shitty QC I guess.

http://i372.photobucket.com/albums/oo168/gusman2x/IMG_7501_zps1414fdc8.jpg

Lixarto

Thanks for the photos!

Lovely looking thing.

gusman2x

Lixarto said:

Thanks for the photos!

Lovely looking thing.

No Worries man. Yes, the black guard on SB is a great look. The neck is just about my favourite of all my fender guitars too. Need to get the wiring sorted so I can start enjoying it properly.

 

@ICBM If the pickups are older, waht age do you think they are? Are old pickups from teles worth a fair whack? I wouldn't sell them, but I'd be interested to know