DIY: Replacing Strat Single-Coils with Humbuckers

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Here’s a DIY project for tone chasers: how to turn a $199 single-coil Squier Bullet Strat into a beefy humbucker-voiced 6-string, with coil-splitting in the neck pickup.
If you try this project yourself, you’ll need three Seymour Duncan JB Jr. pickups, a Pure Tone Multi-Contact Output Jack, one .022MFD orange drop capacitor, two 500k CTS potentiometers, a push/pull pot DPDT on/on switch assembly, 60/40 rosin core solder, 22 AWG non-shielded PVC-insulated circuit wire, heat shrink tubing, small zip ties, and a set of your favorite guitar strings. For tools, Dave uses a Hakko Soldering Station, small clippers, small round-nosed pliers, a Phillips screwdriver, a 1/2" nut driver, a strip of painters or masking tape, and a small jar with a lid. A Stratocaster circuit schematic will also come in handy for reference. You’ll also need to brush up on your soldering skills. (Consult “Soldering 101: A Step-by-Step Guide” at premierguitar.com to get on the good foot.)
Step one will be removing and stripping the pickguard, and then cutting wires within the circuitry so the new components can be put into place. Since this is an S-style guitar, much of the work will be done on that pickguard, which helps simplify the process. Installing the pickups-in this case, Seymour Duncan JB Jr.’s-is simple. You might need to do some routing on the pickguard to accommodate the new pots. Duncan’s JB Jr.’s come with about 10 inches of four-conductor circuit wire already attached. Strip off about 3" of that wire’s outer casing. Then you’ll see red, white, black, green, and ground wires. Peel about 1/2" of casing from the tips of each of those smaller, color-coded wires. For the neck pickup, the green and bare wire are tied together and attached to ground-soldered to the top of the middle (tone) pot. Dave carefully explains each step. For a written version with photos, see “DIY: Hot-Rodding a Squier Bullet HT” in the May 2023 issue or at premierguitar.com. There's also a companion video, specifically focused on replacing the output jack. Got a question for Dave? Go to scalemodelguitars.com.
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© Copyright Gearhead Communications LLC, 2023
00:00 - Intro
00:20 - Project Overview
00:50 - New Seymour Duncan Pickups and CTS Pots
01:14 - Removing Pickguard & Looking Inside
01:56 - Removing Stock Knobs, Pots, and Pickups
02:48 - Why We're Upgrading the Pots
03:38 - Installing New CTS Pots & 5-way Switch
06:05 - Checking Pickup Cavities & Pickguard
07:12 - Attaching JB Jr's to Pickguard
08:52 - Wiring New Pickups & Pots
10:51 - Potentiometer & Tone Control Basics
14:13 - How to Wire a Volume Pot
15:46 - Wiring Push-Pull Pot
18:22 - Wiring Coil-Split Humbucker
22:05 - Pickguard Wired & Ready to Install
22:52 - Connecting Pickups to 5-way Switch & Tone Control
34:55 - Soldering Pickups to Hot and Neutral Connections
38:16 - Re-Installing Wired Pickguard to Stratocaster Body
39:06 - Testing Pickups, Pots & Coil-Split
39:55 - Tone Control for Strat Bridge Pickup
40:42 - Conclusion
#guitar #diy #howto #guitarrepair

[@louiscarrollmusic-lcm5331]

I’ve needed something like this for ages. My plan is to swap out the PUPs on my Parallel Universe Tele/Strat. Thanks heaps for the walk through!!

[@premierguitar]

Glad it helped!

[@themac62]

okay this guy is the best by far on the internet...not even close. I learned more in 1 vid they so many combined.

[@robertpurdy4452]

You gave me the best description on how the pots work. I knew how the legs were attached but the explanation about how you wire them differently as volume and tone pots and why, how the capacitor works on a tone pot, etc., was a huge tip for me. Thank you!

[@Ottophil]

Ive learned to stop hating the hum. I used to be afraid of single coils. But now, i think of the hum as part of their tone

[@PC160]

You do know you can take care of that, right? Shielding, etc., work.

[@Ottophil]

@@PC160 sheilding doesnt help much. But yeah. Personally i use a strong gate.i use way more gain than a little foil or paint can stop

[@howUdoin66]

wow great video!! this probably the most comprehensive video i've seen on this topic. now i really understand how pots work!!

[@hanovergreen4091]

Thank You! I'm too much a noob to benefit from all of this, but I picked up few things here and there I would have without this video. Much appreciated! Best Regards and Best Wishes!

[@echopathy]

Good command of language, man. Helpful ~~>

[@cortarelva]

Only Premier guitar could get me to watch some dude do a rim job!

[@michaelruiz3167]

Explanations seen very good, but I didn’t understand why your camera angles and hands were blocking a lot of the work as for being new to this kind of work it would be helpful to see better the work that was being done. Thanks.

[@juancortezmusic]

Well done video! 👏 👏👏

[@mikestroud9969]

Good stuff. Thanks man. 😎👍👌💯🎸🎸

[@3rdmm]

"Stacked humbuckers" is a misnomer. These aren't stacked, but are related to Rail humbuckers, except Duncan makes some side-by-side, single coil-sized, Rail-type humbuckers with screw poles instead of the rails. Duncan also makes actual stacked strat pickups.

[@gkol69]

Exactly! Stacked are Dimarzio HS-2 and Duncan Fury, for example. These are single-coil-sized humbuckers.

[@DMSProduktions]

Correct, these are NOT 'stacked'!

[@rebeldog7372]

I've found that if you use colored tape to mark each pickup and their wire ends, it makes it easier after you've zip tied up.

[@johnnyresistance]

that was great, cheers for that! i've been wanting to do exactly that kind of project that with a cheap strat rather than my USA ones. do you find the solder fumes annoying? thinking i might have a fan trying to blow them away. thanks again.

[@Raul1971xxx]

Better than a 5 way switch is a three on-off switch for every pickup.. You have there more sound capabilities.

[@carpathus]

Was that a thin lightweight Bullet Strat body? If so, it's surprising the new parts fit without digging out some wood.

[@stevewebber3410]

What pick up would you put in the middle position? A bridge one or a neck

[@oli_action1256]

Hey. What if you only want to swap out the bridge pickup? How will that work with the pods? Can I still use the original 250s or is 500 still recommended? Thanks

[@echopathy]

how long do those rubber gaskets last? do they dry rot like old wwii rubber?

[@710clique9]

how much do you charge for this exact job on an old squire I have laying around? Please advise, thanks in advance! after I supply you the parts.

[@jeffreycash3662]

With all due respect to your experience...why isn't this job a "pug and play" job? Having universal connectors, etc. Components that do not require soldering.

[@jeffallen3382]

I've talked with Seymour Duncan's tech department and they said all of their single coil sized humbuckers are designed to be used with 250k pots. NOT 500k pots. They said the vast majority of these pick ups are out into guitars that already have 250k and they specifically designed these to work with 250k.

[@robertprady885]

Why don't you have a battery screwdriver?

[@premierguitar]

More DIY Videos: bit.ly/DIYPremierGuitar Subscribe to PG's Channel: bit.ly/SubscribePGKZbin Win Guitar Gear: bit.ly/GiveawaysPG Don't Miss a Rundown: bit.ly/RIgRundownENL Merch & Magazines: shop.premierguitar.com Shop StewMac parts, tools, and supplies!: stewmac.sjv.io/Py0nBq

[@DMSProduktions]

I wrote a 1 chord song:WANT the TABS? LMAO!

[@ileutur6863]

I'd prefer your 1 chord song ro the crappy jokes you lesve under literally every gear video

[@DMSProduktions]

@@ileutur6863 You! You're like a rash!

[@DMSProduktions]

As MANY have already stated, those are NOT 'stacked' pick ups!

[@JimInCincy]

QUESTION Have you ever installed 10 position switch (from Great Britain) ? * ! * ? JimInCincy.....

[@waxman9550]

just get a Seymour Duncan Antiquity Hot and put it in the bridge - if you want a LP get a LP.

[@WindsOfNeptune]

I’m pretty sure those Duncan single coil-sized humbuckers are voiced to be paired with a strat’s stock 250k pots , though. Just sayin’

[@DMSProduktions]

Then don't!

[@cortarelva]

3 jb style pickups? Why? Were they on sale 3 for 2 or something?!! Why not just use the standard single coil in the middle position and combine the wiring to split the coils like an ibanez? That's what I would do and save the cost of one pickup. Also would go for a little 59 for the neck as the JB is too hot for that.

[@cortarelva]

Better yet for just a little more go for the everything axe loaded pickguard that will save you a bunch of work.

[@baradalamasa]

😅 I believe these aren't stacks, I owned a Dimarzio DP423 Injector. This is a stacked one. The coils are stacked, not side by side and they shared the same pole piece

[@alexcorona]

P90s single coils actually sound better with 500k pots…..

[@gkol69]

These pickups are not stacked, they're single-coil-sized humbuckers. Stacked have one coil on top of the other, like Dimarzio HS-2 or Duncan Fury.

[@DMSProduktions]

We know!

[@TheeIronJedi]

All the time commitment and you don’t even play it at the end

[@DMSProduktions]

Yeah, a TAD disappointing!