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Topic: Old Pots vs. New Pots |
Dennis Murphy
From:
Florida, USA
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Posted 25 May 2008 1:31 pm |
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| I am re-building an old Gibson BR-9 lap steel. I have all the electronics out and I am about finished with the wood work and painting. Before I took out the pots there were very scratchy and cutting out (especially the volume). I do not care about original equipment at all, I will play this again myself. My question is: should I spray the old pots and try to re-use them...or chuck them and buy new ones? What is the advantage of using the old pots? If there is no advantage I would rather buy new ones, that way I will not have to remove everything to change them if the spraying does not fix the problem. Thanks for any responses. |
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Roger Shackelton
From:
MINNESOTA (deceased)
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Posted 25 May 2008 2:50 pm
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Hello Dennis,
I am not a guitar tech, but the old pots will become scratchy again in the future. I vote for new pots and your problem is solved. 
Roger |
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Lee Jeffriess
From:
Vallejo California
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Posted 25 May 2008 2:52 pm
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Dennis,try cleaning them with DE OXIT 5, then use there lube.
If that doesnt work then the carbon track is wasted and, they will also probably measure with a different resistance.
Gibson, used 500K I think?.
I generally replace pots on guitars, even though they where better quality back then, after that many years they could go south at any point.
Its just one less thing to deal with.
Lee |
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Dave Bader
From:
Pennsylvania, USA
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Posted 25 May 2008 5:31 pm
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Dennis
I just rebuilt a BR-9 and I love it. The pots where ok in mine but wired in a weird fashion. Rewired the volume pot. I had to replace the cap and pickup but the rest of it was mint. I don't know what kind of wood they used but it is very loud acoustically. I rigged a tele pickup temporarily and will either get the P-90 rewound or replaced. Sounds great with the tele pickup though. String spacing is a little wide. Mine came with the matching amp which needs work. These things are still priced pretty cheap so I wouldn't have a problem replacing parts to make it a player.
Dave |
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Mitch Druckman
From:
Arizona, USA
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Posted 25 May 2008 6:35 pm
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| If the old pots are no good I would replace them with new ones, BUT I would not chuck the original ones. Keep them in the guitar case or somewhere safe for your future enjoyment or if you decide to sell the guitar someday. IMO it is nice to have the original parts even if they are worn out. |
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Bill Creller
From:
Saginaw, Michigan, USA (deceased)
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Posted 25 May 2008 7:14 pm
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| I use the simple method...when in doubt throw them out. I see that Weber VST (the speaker guys) have pots that turn easy or hard. If you use your pinky finger for volume swells, the easy-turn type would be the one to have. I've had two BR9s, they are a decent guitar. If you can, measure the value (resistance) across the outer terminals of the old pot to check the value in ohms, and get one to match. |
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