Tele 4 way switching - beware of this problem.

Devil#20

Long post but didn't take as long to write as my wasted efforts today.

I wired in an Oak Grigsby 4 way switch into my testbed tele this morning. No neck on it at the moment so plugged into an amp to and tapped on the pickups to test is was working. 2,3 and 4 were fine but the bridge position only wouldn't work. I double checked the wiring and it all looked correct and I don't do bad solder joints so I was a bit stumped. Occasionally the bridge would kick in on position 1. Anyway, I unsoldered the switch and tested it on the bench and it checked out fine. I noticed there was a bit of slop in the switch lever and the wiper (more than I would like to see anyway) but didn't think that was really a big deal. Soldered it back in and same problem. Then I saw something that didn't seem right. There's 4 little raised pips and the switch rides them and drops in the gap (the detent if you like). However, on the neck position it wasn't and wasn't quite making it down the other side of the pip. The problem came with the free play in the switch. Although the bridge pickup selection gave a confirmatory engage click it was in fact clicking against the end of the control plate slot. So in order to fix this problem I'm going to have to lengthen the slot in the control plate which I'd rather not do to compensate for Oak Grigsby's shitty switch. If anyone else decided to do a 4 way switch on a tele just make note of my experience. I'd rather you learn from my experience and don't waste your time troubleshooting in the wrong place. 

Ideally I'd like a refund on the switch but that's not going to happen. So I have 6 options. 1) Buy another Oak Grigsby 4 way and find it's equally as crap and I've just pooped off another £12 and replicated the problem. 2) just wire it as a conventional 3 way 3) butcher the control plate slot (which then becomes a bodge (so not doing) or 4) mod the Oak switch by aralditeing the lever pivot to the mica holding the connector rail at the favourable end of the freeplay.5) purchase a CRL 4 way (no, they don't do them) or 6) buy a CRL 5 way and a suitable cap and wire it as a 5 way tele.

What would you do?

Alegree

I'd buy a 4 way compatible control plate. I've run into this problem before and found a supplier who manufactures longer slots.

Devil#20

Alegree said:

I'd buy a 4 way compatible control plate. I've run into this problem before and found a supplier who manufactures longer slots.

Wish I'd known of this problem rather than finding it out for myself. That's why I've posted this thread to hopefully prevent other people travelling the same route and not able to understand what's going on. So you can you buy plates with longer slots? Where from?

Alegree

Devil#20 said:

Alegree said:

I'd buy a 4 way compatible control plate. I've run into this problem before and found a supplier who manufactures longer slots.

Wish I'd known of this problem rather than finding it out for myself. That's why I've posted this thread. Can you buy plates with longer slots?

I have them, provided you want the import width.

Devil#20

Alegree said:

I have them, provided you want the import width.

Import width? wassat mean?

Alegree

Devil#20 said:

Alegree said:

I have them, provided you want the import width.

Import width? wassat mean?

34mm. USA is 32mm, if I remember correctly. It matters because the end slots into the pickguard cutaway (or not if they're mismatched).

CasperCaster

Finding that the slot isn't really long enough for the lever isn't an uncommon problem with Fender lever switches.

It can be caused by the thickness of the plate material and anything underneath it. Because of the angle of the lever at the outermost positions, a thicker material requires a longer slot, if it isn't to foul the switch, but manufacturers rarely make adjustments.

On a Strat, a proper separate aluminium shielding plate added below a Strat pickguard is very thin, but the combined thickness is sometimes sufficiently large enough to cause a problem where without the aluminium shielding plate there wouldn't be a problem.

Vintage Tele control plates are typically thinner than many modern ones, and therefore less likely to suffer the problem you are experiencing. 

@Devil#20 you missed the easiest solution. The old trick to resolve the problem is just to file a notch (or two notches if it fouls at both ends) into the shaft of the switch at the point at which it fouls the control plate - practically invisible since the switch tip hides most of the shaft, and easier and neater than trying to file the switch slot longer.

I hope that helps. 

ICBM

CasperCaster said:

@Devil#20 you missed the easiest solution. The old trick to resolve the problem is just to file a notch (or two notches if it fouls at both ends) into the shaft of the switch at the point at which it fouls the control plate - practically invisible since the switch tip hides most of the shaft, and easier and neater than trying to file the switch slot longer.

This. Easiest and best.

Devil#20

CasperCaster said:

Finding that the slot isn't really long enough for the lever isn't an uncommon problem with Fender lever switches.

It can be caused by the thickness of the plate material and anything underneath it. Because of the angle of the lever at the outermost positions, a thicker material requires a longer slot, if it isn't to foul the switch, but manufacturers rarely make adjustments.

On a Strat, a proper separate aluminium shielding plate added below a Strat pickguard is very thin, but the combined thickness is sometimes sufficiently large enough to cause a problem where without the aluminium shielding plate there wouldn't be a problem.

Vintage Tele control plates are typically thinner than many modern ones, and therefore less likely to suffer the problem you are experiencing. 

@Devil#20 you missed the easiest solution. The old trick to resolve the problem is just to file a notch (or two notches if it fouls at both ends) into the shaft of the switch at the point at which it fouls the control plate - practically invisible since the switch tip hides most of the shaft, and easier and neater than trying to file the switch slot longer.

I hope that helps. 

You're right. I figured this one out when I was about to go to sleep last night when I realised lengthening the slot would be a botch. Don't mind botching the switch but not the guitar infrastructure. Thanks anyway. You've just reinforced my thinking. It means of course the top hat will be that nearer the volume control. Probably not a problem though because I think it only needs a max 25 thou to sort it out. It occasionally worked. Haven't touched it todaydue to higher priority stuff to do.