Guitar Pickup Repair - I Got Lucky!

Seymour Duncan STL-2 Telecaster bridge pickup repair. Got lucky on this one. Usually have to do a full rewind, but there was just enough wire to make this go smooth and easy.
Closeup splicing in this video: • How to Splice Magnet W...

[@RideAcrossTheRiver]

Yup, my old STR-2 had start wire loose and it got bumped. Luckily, it got just a wide notch to it. I secured with a drop of clear lacquer. That pickup suffered a lot of abuse over years of playing, but it's on its second Tele!

[@thomasmussari2819]

I am so glad I saw this video. It worked perfectly for me .Thank you!!!

[@guitar_md]

So glad to hear this! I have a new splice video on the way as well. Same concept, but I've found tying a knot over the exposed lead wire with a new piece of magnet wire to work as well. It can be very useful if the wire is too short to splice to. Tie the knot, then apply a dab of flux and a tinned soldering iron -- and good to go with a new lead. Excited to get that one up. Thanks for the support!

[@harrydebusk7639]

I have to do a similar thing. This gives me a clear idea of what to do. Thanks!!

[@guitar_md]

Sure thing! If you want to see a closeup of wire splicing magnet wire, I have a newer video here: kzbin.info/www/bejne/q3bTeHt_qbCqjdk Much easier to do with longer strands of wire like that, but it's the same concept. I only wish I had gotten a closeup of the splice on this particular job, but same idea. Thanks for the comment!

[@burrencrawler]

Awesome, i hope that works for me, thanks!

[@guitar_md]

So glad it could help! Let me know if it works, would love to know. Thanks for the comment!

[@burrencrawler]

@@guitar_md still struggling with it, I have the feeling wax may be stopping me from being able to pull it out but im nervous to use the heat gun in case i melt either the bobbin or the coating on the wires (which would cause them to short) will a small amount of heat do it or does it need to be like "hot" to free the wire from the wax?

[@guitar_md]

@@burrencrawler A small amount of heat should do it. Wax will be completely melted around 145-150 degrees, so it doesn't take much, and that will be nowhere near hot enough to strip the insulation off the wire.

[@daxnoxlc3791]

happened to my center single coil, it was so bad made the cable was GLUED to the copper wire! like, inside of it, but now, i have the end and the start accesible, cant make it sound (work) again tho...

[@daxnoxlc3791]

Ive just put everything together and the pickup is working... Not really, it's only picking extremely high Frequencies, 4th, 5th and 6th doesnt sound at all. Just the 3 first and sounding like having a high pitch pedal in it... Is it worth saving it or do i better Buy a new one?

[@guitar_md]

Replacement is usually the best option if you can afford it. Same with pickup rewinds -- sometimes I can repair pickups, but if the break isn't obvious on either the start or finish lead, a rewind is the way to go.

[@buzzedalldrink9131]

does the flux and heat of the iron penetrate the insulation on the wire,or does the insulation need to be scraped or removed before soldering? thanks

[@guitar_md]

For poly nylon coated wire, the soldering iron is enough to strip the insulation off. It's also called solderable polyurethane but they'll usually list it as poly-nylon. For plain enamel or formvar coated wire, it needs to be scraped first. You can use sandpaper or a razor blade, sandpaper being the safer of the two, and easier to use when there isn't much wire available. Just a light couple passes with some 320 grit should do it, might even be able to get away with less aggressive paper but I've used 320 in the past with good results.

[@buzzedalldrink9131]

@@guitar_md thank you for that info. I built a few PAF copies using 42 plain enamel coated wire. I sanded it very lightly with a small piece of 1000 grit sandpaper. I’ve never seen anyone solder wires without scraping or sanding so your video surprised me but now I know it was due to the type of wire / coating . Thank you very much the response and videos. I am subscribed!

[@guitar_md]

@buzzedalldrink9131 Thanks so much! I have a lot more content on the way. Next up is my "knot splice" technique video. I've only needed to use it a few times and it is very delicate work, but that's the next pickup related video I have scheduled to upload. Always more on the way. Been meaning to make an updated humbucker winding video as well. Someone recently informed me of a great method for making humbuckers that I never thought of before: Using copper tape instead of pigtails. Basically the copper tape goes over the coil and the magnet wire leads solder on to copper tape instead of hookup wire pigtails. And the 4 conductor wires are soldered directly to the respective copper tape pieces as well, directly. Genius. I haven't tried that method yet but it seems brilliant. The pigtails and wiring are what take me the longest. I can wind humbucker bobbins very quickly but the pigtailing and wiring is a royal pain. That method nearly bypasses all of that hassle. Excited to try it sometime soon.

[@buzzedalldrink9131]

@@guitar_md I look forward to it !! thanks again

[@dontknowy]

what kind of flux?

[@guitar_md]

Nokorode is my favorite brand of flux. Been using it for almost 20 years now