Archtop tailpiece ground

TINMAN82

I took the plunge today and decided to install a new neck pickup in my Eastman AR503CE. My soldering skills are crap but it’ll be a while before I can reach a tech.

I removed the Seth Lover and installed a Sunbear 59 PAF (which Stuart slightly modified for me). It’s soldered to the volume pot and works well.

However, in the process I’ve managed to detach the tailpiece ground wire from whichever pot/ jack it was attached to. Thankfully it’s still attached to the tailpiece. This must be a ground for the strings, although I have to say I’m not noticing any obvious (new) hum since doing the mod.

Would this tailpiece ground usually attach to the input jack or tone pot? Either way it seems ridiculously short and barely reaches the f hole. Won’t be an easy fix I fear, although perhaps it’s not needed anyway.

chickenbonejohn

As long as the earth (ground) wire goes to a common earth it's OK, so the lug on the jack socket or back of a pot is fine.

ICBM

If the rest of the electrics are *really* thoroughly shielded you may not hear much more noise (buzz, not hum) without it. Try sitting near your computer with it and take your hands off any metal hardware and see if you can hear any extra noise - if so, you do need the ground connection.

TINMAN82

chickenbonejohn said:

As long as the earth (ground) wire goes to a common earth it's OK, so the lug on the jack socket or back of a pot is fine.

Does it have to be the back of the pot rather than a lug?

The 3rd lug on the tone pot has nothing attached but has been tinned. I wonder if that’s where it came from...I didn’t remove the input Jack to install the new pickup, only the two pots.

ICBM

No, it needs to be a ground. Back of the pot or the centre barrel of the jack, or the outer braid of any traditional braided cable.

... which it doesn’t seem to have, given the bare single core wiring there. This guitar is definitely not even shielded, let alone thoroughly.

TINMAN82

ICBM said:

No, it needs to be a ground. Back of the pot or the centre barrel of the jack, or the outer braid of any traditional braided cable.

... which it doesn’t seem to have, given the bare single core wiring there. This guitar is definitely not even shielded, let alone thoroughly.

The humbucker lead is braided and I grounded the braid to the volume pot. Currently have the tailpiece off and guts out. Needs a new ground wire. In for a penny...
thanks for the advice 

ICBM

I think when they fit them at the factory, a long wire is fed through from the hole at the tailpiece, soldered to a pot, then pulled back and cut to the right length at the tailpiece... leaving it too short to easily pull it out through the f-hole when working on the electrics. It will be a good idea to leave more slack in the new one.

TINMAN82

ICBM said:

I think when they fit them at the factory, a long wire is fed through from the hole at the tailpiece, soldered to a pot, then pulled back and cut to the right length at the tailpiece... leaving it too short to easily pull it out through the f-hole when working on the electrics. It will be a good idea to leave more slack in the new one.

That makes a lot of sense and seems the only logical explanation. They’ve fanned out the wire and used the metal tailpiece to squash it against the body, no solder at that end. Picking up some smaller calibre wire tomorrow as the stuff I had was too thick for the drill hole.

The pickup change would’ve been easy had it not been for this hiccup!

On a plus note what little time I had with the new pickup seemed very promising. Cheers.

ICBM

TINMAN82 said:

They’ve fanned out the wire and used the metal tailpiece to squash it against the body, no solder at that end.

That's normal, there's no real need to solder it - even if you have an iron powerful enough. I like to poke the end of it down one of the screw holes to make absolutely certain of a good contact where corrosion can't get to it.

TINMAN82

ICBM said:

TINMAN82 said:

They’ve fanned out the wire and used the metal tailpiece to squash it against the body, no solder at that end.

That's normal, there's no real need to solder it - even if you have an iron powerful enough. I like to poke the end of it down one of the screw holes to make absolutely certain of a good contact where corrosion can't get to it.

Jobs a good un’, guitar back together and working fine. Didn’t read your screw hole trick in time!

I don’t notice an obvious difference through the amp (I’m playing very clean though) but there’s no longer a buzz when I reach through the f hole and touch one of the pots, as was the case before. Presumably that buzz was because I was touching the un-grounded strings with my other hand.

ICBM

TINMAN82 said:

Didn’t read your screw hole trick in time!

I wouldn't worry about it, probably 99% of guitars just have the wire trapped under the tailpiece and they're fine.

TINMAN82 said:

I don’t notice an obvious difference through the amp (I’m playing very clean though) but there’s no longer a buzz when I reach through the f hole and touch one of the pots, as was the case before. Presumably that buzz was because I was touching the un-grounded strings with my other hand.

Yes. I assume that's not something you do in the course of playing normally though .

TINMAN82

ICBM said:

TINMAN82 said:

Didn’t read your screw hole trick in time!

I wouldn't worry about it, probably 99% of guitars just have the wire trapped under the tailpiece and they're fine.

TINMAN82 said:

I don’t notice an obvious difference through the amp (I’m playing very clean though) but there’s no longer a buzz when I reach through the f hole and touch one of the pots, as was the case before. Presumably that buzz was because I was touching the un-grounded strings with my other hand.

Yes. I assume that's not something you do in the course of playing normally though .

Only when I’m checking my dodgy solder joints are still intact!