icastle

[quote name='Mod_Machine' post='1101283' date='Jan 24 2011, 08:02 PM']Hi - GT85 is similar to wd40 but leaves a coating of teflon to aid lubrication, unlike wd40 which is just a disperser. eg in mountain biking its great for levers, cogs etc as displaces the dirt and moisture that cause rust but leaves teflon down which helps lubricate and reduces wear. Surely the switch being a slider is a moving part running over a sensor, or completing, the circuit?[/quote] It is but the problem is that lubricants might be either conductive or produce a film over the contacts which stops them from working as effectively as they should. [quote name='Mod_Machine' post='1101283' date='Jan 24 2011, 08:02 PM']It thought the earth was the length (originally a long piece of solder) running from the volume control to the bridge? (its been cut in the pics)[/quote] That was just the earth to the bridge. The main earth comes from the jack socket and is then soldered to the back of the pots in a chain. It also connects to the bridge and, in your case, the metallic bodies of the selector switches as well. All metal parts on the bass should end up being earthed at some part in the circuit (even the strings because they are in contact with the bridge which is also earthed!) [quote name='Mod_Machine' post='1101283' date='Jan 24 2011, 08:02 PM']I now understand by what you mean by dodgy soldering - explains why my mates soldering looks so much better on the jack socket he soldered in front of me![/quote] Yep In fairness to the ghosts of the Jedson soldering iron wielders, I don't think this left the factory in the state it currently is in. I suspect that someone has been in there before you [quote name='Mod_Machine' post='1101283' date='Jan 24 2011, 08:02 PM']So best is to change the cables and re solder pretty much everything as a standard = not hard.[/quote] Yep I'd just pull the whole lot out and start again. The pots are just bog standard pots (about £1.50 each), the switches are bog standard DPDT slider switches (about £1.50 each) and a metre of single cable is less than a quid. You've already got a new socket so that can be desoldered and used again easily. So £10 would buy you all the parts, a bag of chips and enough left over to buy a packet of elastoplast just in case... [quote name='Mod_Machine' post='1101283' date='Jan 24 2011, 08:02 PM']If im doing that is there somewhere else better to solder the slider switch earth - or is it not really needed?[/quote] Well I'd put it back there on the grounds that it was there in the first place, it was awkward to solder it there and must have had a purpose. The chances of making a good solder connection to a bolt are pretty slim so I'd probably use some little solder eyelets: So, the bolt comes through the scratchplate, through the switch mounting hole, through a little serrated washer, through the eyelet, through another serrated washer and then the nut goes on. It is also possible to solder earth cables directly onto the side of the switch but it can be fiddly to get right if you aren't used to it. [quote name='Mod_Machine' post='1101283' date='Jan 24 2011, 08:02 PM']This is supposed to be a very simple passive job and i know that when other people have taken Jedson to guitar techs with noise they have regularly been told it has been miswired at factory.[/quote] Yeah, I've heard talk about this miswiring thing but haven't been able to track down any specific detail about it. Looking at your wiring photos, quality issues aside, the cabling looks like it's running to the right places so I don't think you have that problem.

[quote name='bumnote' post='1101236' date='Jan 24 2011, 07:30 PM']That top cab weighs 25 kgs and there appear to be no side handles[/quote] Well spotted! That's a bit of a big oversight I hope they've at least put a single one on the top instead...

[quote name='Mod_Machine' post='1101099' date='Jan 24 2011, 05:38 PM']Oh - and when you say the soldering looks suspect what do you mean (just messy or wrong places?) , and how would that impact in what way? (sorry for niave questions but the resto project is supposed to get me involved and find out things that previously i didnt know but was too afraid to ask at fear of looking stupid!)[/quote] There's nothing stupid about asking questions - stupid is not asking questions when you should Solder joints should be shiny and well formed over both the wire and the surface it is being joined to. Essentially a good rule of thumb is to treat every bad joint as a potential way to add noise to the overall circuit. Also, on your selector switches I notice that the earth lead is soldered directly onto the switch retaining bolt - the chances of that making a good electrical contact are very slim - best option would be to use a little eyelet to fit the bolt if the switches need to be earthed.

[quote name='Mod_Machine' post='1101093' date='Jan 24 2011, 05:34 PM']Hi, Original plan was to replace the pickups and all wiring, but i dont now want to replace anything i dont have to. There is no noise at all when selected, so with my 'mechs' head on ill start with the cheapest thing and work backwards, replacing all the cabling, then up the 'chain' of replacements to get rid of the noise. Not a rush for me to remove as a) a resto only when both switched to off and i never switch my pickups off anyway. I think ill get a much better idea as to how bad the sound is once hooked up to an amp now i have strings etc on. As for cleaning the switches - i know that WD40 is a bad idea as doesnt lube - but would GT85 work (leaves a layer of teflon)?[/quote] I'd personally go for a proper switch cleaner, but then I have a can here and the WD40 is out in the workshop - so that's an easy option WD40 would do at a push, not sure what GT85 is so I'd give that a miss - switches don't have lube in them anyway

[quote name='fryer' post='1101083' date='Jan 24 2011, 05:27 PM']Anyone seen the video of Sparks - Strange Animal. Ron still has the same expression on his face.[/quote] Perhaps his other one is at the dry cleaners..?

[quote name='clauster' post='1100808' date='Jan 24 2011, 02:16 PM']Not hear of them either. But that head looks like the b4st4rd love child of an RH450 and an old HH head to me [/quote] +1 Methinks that Mr HH had a fling with Miss TC without wearing bubble wrap...

[quote name='Mod_Machine' post='1100885' date='Jan 24 2011, 02:54 PM']Hello, Doing an old jedson tele bass resto. Iwas well aware before buying that the two main issues are tuning/intonation and noisey electrics. [url="http://basschat.co.uk/index.php?showtopic=119103"]http://basschat.co.uk/index.php?showtopic=119103[/url] The intonation seems to have been sorted by acknowledging that the bridge is supposed to be a floating space roller bridge, but for some reason they were bolted to the body when manufactured. However the electronics are another kettle of fish. I havent played it yet - however all elctrics seem fine (supple wires etc) and i have replaced jack socket. Certainly appears to be wired up acoording to a standard pasive wiring diagram. Without it being attached to the bass i plugged into an amp (all pickups and electrics are held to the scrath plate) to see if noisey when nothing going through it. With either one or both single coil pick ups selected you can hear when i 'knock' or 'touch' the pick up with a small screw driver/biro etc. These are un noisey though will get a better idea when attached to bass and an earth run to the bridge. However when i slide the two independant selectors to the 'off' position it becomes noisey! the pick ups dont pick up anything it just gets a bit 'hissy'. Any ideas whats causing it and how to erradicate? (The thread above includes pictures of the electronics if it helps)[/quote] When you slide the switches to the off position you are detaching the pickups from the live side of the circuit and leaving the live side 'floating' at the switch so you will get a little bit of noise creeping in. Looking at the pics you posted previously, quite a lot of that soldering is looking decidedly suspect - if you are removing the pickups from one end of the electronics 'chain' then the rest of the chain going back to the jack socket should be considered as suspect. As it's a pretty simple wiring setup, if it was me I think I'd just replace the pots, slider swiches and cabling with new - they're all 'off the shelf' parts instead of 'posh' guitar parts, so not an expensive option...

[quote name='razze06' post='1100816' date='Jan 24 2011, 02:18 PM']I've got this Ibanez SR800LE, made in japan, bought it new in 1991 or so (bought it on the same day I bought BSSM by RHCP). For a long time it lived in my parents' house in Italy, and when I picked it up I found that the pot that pans betwen the pickups doesn't work anymore. The repair guy said he couldn't fix it, as the pot is infact a much more complicated piece of kit, with a circuit board attached to it. My question is: where can I buy the replacement part? Is there an dealer that has old ibanez parts? Anyone has got one spare? Let me know, it's a lovely bass that has been ill for a long time and wants to come back to full health![/quote] Ibanez keep a stock of parts. My first port of call would be the UK distributor: Headstock Distribution Ltd. Unit G1 Coombswood West, Steelpark Road, , Halesowen, B62 8HD, UK Tel.+44 (0)121 5086666 mail: [email protected]

[quote name='dougie' post='1100380' date='Jan 24 2011, 06:30 AM']....would have led to grief from the wife n kids and probably an ASBO too...thanks again [/quote]

[quote name='Schnozzalee' post='1100333' date='Jan 24 2011, 12:27 AM']I can't even imagine 29 in a room!![/quote] Course you can - you've seen carpet before surely?

[quote name='dougie' post='1100277' date='Jan 23 2011, 11:13 PM']Im picking a job lot of amp/cab gear this weekend,Im told theres 2x300w 18" Fane speakers in it that the cones are ok on but have"seized voicecoils"anyone heard of this and what causes it??[/quote] The rear section of a loudspeaker has a tube shaped former with a precision wound coil around it. The coil is dunked in a laquer to prevent the windings from slipping as the speaker moves in and out. If the speaker has a 'seized coil' then it has generally been overpowered at some point in its life and the laquer has melted and sometimes some of the windings will slip down the former. This stops the speaker from moving in and out smoothly and poor performance and sound quality will be heard. In anticipation of the obvious question, no you can't - it'll need a recone

[quote name='flyfisher' post='1100291' date='Jan 23 2011, 11:28 PM']Electrolytic capacitors (usually in aluminium cans) can fail and even "pop" sometimes, releasing a very distinctive smell that's almost impossible to describe and also impossible to forget.[/quote] Also a sticky residue around the base (do NOT be tempted to lick your fingers - just trust me on this!) or cotton wool type fluff all over the place.

[quote name='flyfisher' post='1100280' date='Jan 23 2011, 11:17 PM']On that note, my lawyer has advised that I should point out that using your tongue is not a safe substitute for a good multimeter when trying to measure potentially dangerous voltages inside electronic equipment. Just in case someone out there didn't realise.[/quote] Yep. Takes ages to dig your fillings out of the plasterwork if you do that Incidentally, if anyone is about to use a 'multimeter' that looks like this.... don't

[quote name='LukeFRC' post='1100169' date='Jan 23 2011, 09:39 PM']I can guess this is the same place when I was speaking to them about refreting my warwick were insistent that their super hard steel frets where what I wanted rather than warwick brass frets....[/quote] And probably absolutely nothing to do with the fact that it was the only fretwire they had to hand of course...

Looking at the pics it looks like the A string isn't sat on the bridge saddle - certainly something down that end has gone awry looking at the angle the string is running at. Also, that E string needs a restring - it needs to be wound around the machine head post 2 or preferably 3 times if you want to get it to stay in tune (I always go for 3 but you might not have enough string length as you've already trimmed it).

[quote name='voxpop' post='1100074' date='Jan 23 2011, 08:38 PM']This is what makes bass playing fun...............the never ending expense and the continual state of confusion. [/quote] Any day with a Y in it does it for me...

[quote name='Jean-Luc Pickguard' post='1100068' date='Jan 23 2011, 08:34 PM']Surely you'd only be able to toast very small slices of bread & the strings would get in the way when they pop up?[/quote] Croutons?

[quote name='Buzz' post='1099646' date='Jan 23 2011, 02:09 PM']Also EMG's are normally epoxed into the casings, so you won't be able to seperate them to replace them.[/quote] I'd be more inclined to leave them alone and try and track down covers to fit over the top of the existing casings if at all possible.

[quote name='flyfisher' post='1099745' date='Jan 23 2011, 03:41 PM']The point of this ramble is to highlight that you don't always need to be an electronics expert to fix music gear. Because of the life our gear tends to lead, the majority of problems are mechanical - jack sockets, cables, and in this case a broken PCB track. A bit of careful examination and common sense, plus being a bit handy with a soldering iron, can work wonders.[/quote] +1 I spent a few years as a service tech and then service manager for a sound and lighting company and what you say is pretty accurate in many cases. The problem with internet as a support medium is that you can never judge the electronic expertise or experience of the person you are talking to. I'm always happy to explain how to do something to the nth degree but I'm always very aware that I may be sending someone down a path that they might get halfway down and fall off! I'm by no stretch of the imagination a 'sensitive' person, but I'd hate someone to make a dreadful mistake and make things ten times worse because I either forgot to mention one thing that I thought was obvious or made incorrect assumptions about experience and ability. So - if I come across as condescending on occasion when discussing technical practicalities (as I'm often accused of being in 'real life'), it's never done in malice - I'm just trying to make sure I'm not making things potentially worse for the OP...

[quote name='CXIII' post='1099664' date='Jan 23 2011, 02:29 PM']The cutting out seems to happen when I press the flat/shape button while amp is on (but not all the time) and I also noticed recently that if it does cut out cranking the input dial up to full seems to get everything going again.[/quote] Intermittent faults are the absolute pits. Taking a stab in the dark and assuming your EVO is out of warranty... You could narrow it down - try tapping around that input control and give it a little 'wiggle' the next time the amp dies to see if it miraculously comes back to life - if it does then chances are you've got a bad joint in the area you were tapping. If so, you (or someone else) needs to get to the underside of that board and check that the connections from the pot are well soldered - in fact I'd just remove the original solder and resolder it again just to be sure.

Unless anyone on here has actually done this customisation themselves, your best bet would be to email the store ([email protected]) and ask them to measure the internal width, height and depth of the pickup cover and compare that to the EMGs fitted to your bass... EDIT: You do realise that you're going to have to make screwholes in the front face of the bass to fit these?

[quote name='Jigster' post='1099313' date='Jan 23 2011, 08:39 AM']I ask because I've heard it said but really never quite known - and is it a bad thing: for example: are low output p'ups less suited to gigging?[/quote] Nah 'Low output' is a relative term. If low output pickups were no good for gigging then the Strat would never have taken off and stood the test of time...

[quote name='Shockwave' post='1098314' date='Jan 22 2011, 02:20 AM']Our current cats are about a year and a half to two years old so something similar to that, Preferably male, colour not an issue. Are they house cats, or do they have access to outdoors? Ours are house cats, as outside area aint that safe! Its a real long shot, but cute pictures could sway my Mrs.[/quote] Ah. These are outdoor cats - they have access to a stupidly large back garden and the fields beyond that...

I use hardcases for all of mine.

[quote name='Charla' post='1098677' date='Jan 22 2011, 02:40 PM']I'm not electrically minded and I need a centre indented tone pot for my Sandberg: what do I need and where can I get one?[/quote] You're probably not going to find centre indented pots in your local Maplin type shops but they are pretty easily available from online retailers. There are a couple of bits of information that are needed to be able to order the right one though. 1) What model of bass is it? 2) How many wires are going to the pot you want to change? 3) What value is the pot? On the back or side of the pot there will be some numbers - they'll look something like '250KA' or '250KΩ A'. 4) What physical size and shape is it? Pots come in lots of shapes and sizes - is it round or square and what sort of diameter is the main body of the pot? (no point trying to fit a 1" diameter pot into a space that'll only accomodate a 1/2" diameter pot) 5) Is the pot mounted on a scratchplate or through the body of the bass? (pots come with short or long shafts - too short and you'll not be able to do the nut up, too long and the tone control will sit proud of the other controls). 6) The shaft that the control knob fits to - is it a 'notched' metal shaft with a split down it's centre or a plain round shaft? (important if you want the original control knob to fit back on properly). Let us know the above (or post some pics of the interior of your bass) and we'll be able to point you at exactly the right pot first time