Three way switch problem -- AAUUUGGH!

Todd Weger · From: Safety Harbor, FLAUSA

OK, so I'm rewiring my new 3-way switch on a 1960 Stringmaster. Should be a piece of cake, right? There are only three wires (two pickup leads, and a V/T knob lead). Just follow the wiring diagram, and voila'! -- or should be.

So how come when I use this wiring schematic (http://home.insight.rr.com/steelgtr...D8Pictorial.gif) to wire up my Stringmaster, it only works with the V/T neck p'up, but I have to have the other neck's p'up connected to the first neck's p'up to get rid of ground buzz, and make it work (it also has them both on, too).

IOW, I can't seem to make the fatter (front) neck's p'up work without somehow linking the back neck's p'up in with it. This cuts the ground hum, and they both work. Huh?? I used both the Stringmaster diagram, and the schematic that came in with the switch. That front neck p'up just doesn't want to work, unless it's somehow coupled with the back neck's pickup, too. So what I get are: back neck position, works. Middle position, only back neck p'up works. Front neck, nothing (unless I directly couple it with the back neck's pickup, too), making them both on.

This should be an easy repair, and one of which I've done on a Telecaster with no issues like this whatsoever. Arrrrgghhh!
Could it be a faulty switch? Seems it still doesn't address the issue of that front p'up only wanting to give signal when coupled with the back one.

I called Stew-Mac, and they're sending me another switch, just in case this one being bad is the problem.

What am I doing wrong here?!

Mahalo.
TJW

------------------
Todd James Weger --
1956 Fender Stringmaster T-8 (C6, A6, B11); 1960 Fender Stringmaster D-8 (C6, B11/A6); Regal resonator (C6)

Todd Weger · From: Safety Harbor, FLAUSA

This might help clarify what I posted above:

I just decided to try holding the wires together, to see exatly what's going on. I held the back neck's pickup lead wire to the volume/tone knob's wire. That pickup works fine. Then, I held the front neck's pickup lead wire to the V/T knob. No worky... however, when I bring in the back neck's pickup lead wire, and hold all three together, both neck's pickups work.

Shouldn't the front neck's pickup work by itself when connected to the V/T knob wire? What's causing it to want to have the pickup lead connected to it, too?

grumble grumble...

Ron Victoria · From: New Jersey, USA

I recall when I changed that tele style switch a few years ago, it had 6 lugs which confused me. I finally had someone show me with a cont. tester that you need jumpers on some of the lugs. This may or may not be your situation, but these switches can surely be frustrating. Good luck.

Ron

basilh · From: United Kingdom

The two pickups are really just a twin coil humbucker the way Fender wired them.. You can select the
bridge coil on its own but not the other.. It's Bridge or both..

Todd Weger · From: Safety Harbor, FLAUSA

Thanks. No, I realize that. What I mean to say is, I held the back neck's pickup lead wire (IOW, the neck's combination of the two single coil p'ups) to the volume/tone knob's wire. That pickup set works fine. Then, when I hold the front neck's combination (of the two single coil p'ups) to the volume/tone knob's wire, that neck's pickups won't work. However, when I combine both neck's pickup lead wires, and hold all three together, both necks pickups work.

A friend of mine suggested that I do this:

Take your multi meter and set it to K-ohms. Measure each pickup's DC resistance by disconnecting the pickups wires from any pots, switch, etc. and touch them to the probes of you meter. Hot wire to red, ground to black. You'll see the DC resistance of the pickup. I would guess anywhere between 6K and 10K for those pickups. Sounds like you know the back neck's pickups are good, so I would measure it first. If one of the pickups measures way low (or open), you have a dead pickup. If that is the case, send it to Jason Lollar for a rewind.

Does this sound like a reasonable possibility for that front neck's pickups not working when I wire them to the V/T knob wire by itself?

Thanks again.

[This message was edited by Todd Weger on 08 January 2006 at 01:14 PM.]

Paul Arntson · From: Washington, USA

IMHO, I agree with checking the pickups' resistance before proceeding. I think that is excellent advice. Otherwise, you could spend a lot of time chasing it down. To clarify the quote:

Open = extremely *high* resistance, like the same as not touching anything to the probes.

Shorted condition = extremely *low* resistance, like close to what you get when touching the probes together.

The next thing you could do is to verify with the ohmmeter what the contacts on the switch are really doing when you cycle it, as Ron said.

If the contacts are different from the schematic you are wiring from, change the schematic according to what you read on the switch. Jumpers may indeed be required to do the job.

Best of luck. -Paul

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