The Steel Guitar Forum

Hey there! I picked up an 8 string Fender lap steel a couple a months ago and I think the pots need replacing. The tone knob cuts out sometimes when I turn it and it is really tight making it tough to do the tone knob trick. I really need that trick as it’s essential to the sound of the old Hank songs I’m trying to learn. I’m not sure what steel I have as there are no markings on it. It’s blonde and seems to be a single neck stringmaster.

Would a regular 500+K guitar tone knob work as a replacement? I know the steel is old and I’d rather not replace anything on it that I don’t have to but I need it to work properly so I can play it. Thanks for any advice!

You could make an attempt to clean and lube the pots before replacing them. A shot of Caig DeoxIt may do the trick:

I would do as Jack has advised!!! In fact I would do it several times
Joe Elk Central Ohio

Thanks for the replies guys. I’ll give that stuff a shot. Do I need to remove the pot before I use this stuff?

Hey there, couldn’t find the deoxit d5 locally so I used some contact cleaner and it definitely helped. I was a little worried because I got the knob stuck but it cleared it up. Still not as smooth as I would like but it’s definitely more usable now. Thanks a lot for the tip!

Here's one trick I use. You might find a syringe and needle, fill it with your contact cleaner, and squeeze some of the stuff between the pot's shaft and threaded collar. Then "exercise" the pot like crazy. Of course you have to get the knob off the pot first. Good luck!
Joe

Thanks for the reply! I have been using the contact cleaner for the last few days but it’s frozen and will not move at all. I bought a 250k CTS pot and I’m gonna open it up and take a look.

Does the contact cleaner you're using have a lubricant in it? Contact cleaner without a lubricant can freeze up a pot. That's why most of us specifically recommend Deoxit D5 or something comparable that has a lubricant. There must be somewhere near Minneapolis that has Deoxit or something like that. Radio Shack or another electronics store? Some music stores carry it also. Surely you have a Guitar Center in Minneapolis - Guitar Center Link

If it's a vintage Fender steel, I strongly suggest you exhaust all options to fix the pot before you replace it, up to and including disassembling the pot (with it still soldered to harness) to see what's wrong.

Thanks Dave, I’ll hold on replacing it. I’ll order some deoxit. I went to a Guitar Center that said they had it but the actually did not.

The steel is an old Fender but it’s pretty beat. All the fender logos are missing and the finish is worn. It’s definitely player grade so I’m not worried about resale or anything. Sounds great! Here’s a pic

As long as I have it open I figured I’d share some pics. Everything appears original mind you I’m no expert.

Hey Steven,
Maybe try heating the pot up a little with a soldering iron with the Deoxit in it to bust the oxidation loose before you replace it. Then again, I have a player Stringmaster that I wouldn't hesitate a minute to replace anything but the pickups (would rewind those) to keep it playing. This guy in Calif. sells some premium components, 'The Art of Tone' is his online shop. His CTS 250K audio taper 30% vintage taper pots are a favorite of mine.
Have Fun,
Joe

That looks like it is an old enough one that it has a 1 Meg tone pot, probably audio taper. Measure resistance on the outside lugs of the pot and it should measure roughly 1 Meg with pot in full CW position. Move to mid point and measure again. If it measures 500 K then it's a linear taper. Otherwise it should measure below that for an audio taper.

Thanks for the replies. I'm not at home but I'll pull out the multimeter and soldering iron when I get home. I located some dioxit about 20 miles away that I'm gonna go pick up. I'm gonna try to save that dang pot!

Hey everybody! I got the deoxit and got the pot moving again. Thanks for all the advice!