Freak Tele Wiring HELP [Archive] - Telecaster Guitar Forum
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Freak Tele Wiring HELP

JohnnyCrash
March 24th, 2006, 11:49 PM
OK, I've got a 3 pickup Telecaster... a Lil '59 bridge and two Strat single coils.

What I'd like to do is have three volume controls, one for each pickup, and have the switch select a "dark tone" via a tone cap (ala the '52 Telecaster).

I have a Tele control plate with 3 holes and a switch slot.

This would give me the option to blend in any pickup I want and/or run them all at once... I rarely use the tone control, so a set "dark" position is fine with me (or even no tone control at all).

The bridge pickup is a Lil '59, so that pot is a push/pull for coil splitting it.

Any suggestions on how to get this done?

I have no lcue what switch to use...

Johnny Caster
March 25th, 2006, 03:53 AM
A really simple way would be:

Normal 3-Way Switch
1:"Deep Rhythm", .1uF Cap
2:"Tone Down", .05uF Cap
3:Tone Bypass
Neck Volume
Middle Volume
Bridge Volume. With Coil Shunting push/pull switch.

This wouldn't allow for quick pickup switching though and you would have to be spinning a bunch of knobs, but it is very simple and would allow all the pickup combinations.

There are countless ways to do it, each having it's own disadvantages. What pickup settings do you think you would be using the most? Let me know, and I'll see if I can draw a diagram of it for you. Maybe, Deaf Eddie'll help you it seems complex switching is his bread and butter.

JohnnyCrash
March 26th, 2006, 07:18 PM
Got her wired up today.

Sounds cool to have all pickups on at once... like the old Spinal Tap guitar with a brick of pickups.

Real "Strat" middle position sounds, with a twangy bridge and a humbucker bridge with the flip of a switch...

The Lil '59 fits in VERY nicely.

I may just leave the tone switch out for now... I still need a 3way switch... I have a Strat switch... maybe I could use 3 caps and have some caps in series with the 5way... HMM...