Installed new pickups -and sumthin' just ain't right

[Powers]

So I am proud to say the first time I installed new pickups on my tele it fired up and everything sounded great. After lots of deliberation over why the neck bucker sat up way to high, I found out I am an idiot and was using the wrong screws/springs. So I take off the pickguard (69 thinline, pickguard includes neck pup and all controls), put on the right screws, and set it back.

Now when I plug it in, I get a terribly bassy sound. A sound like the tone is rolled all the way back, and the treble is all the way down on my amp. I figure I just knocked something loose on the controls while taking off the pickguard, but I looked and poked all around, couldn't get it to sound right. Also, now both pots scratch a little when I turn them, and the volume goes down to zero at like halfway back instead of all the way back.

Anyone have any ideas?

[mellecaster]

Originally Posted by Powers

Anyone have any ideas?

Seems like you messed sumptin up when you put it back...kinda tough to troubleshoot thru a computer.

[milocj]

Being as they are humbuckers, did they have the braided shield type of leads? It sort of sounds like you might have the shielding touching a pot where it shouldn't. Maybe the lead dress shifted when you reworked the mounting.

Like Mellecaster said, though, it's hard to troubleshoot without seeing it.

[texaslonghorn]

Recheck ALL of the solder joints - one may have worked loose a bit from the activities. Make sure none of the wire insulation is burned thru from the soldering iron accidentally touching it, or is otherwise cracked, etc. Make sure nothing (as mentioned above -- like shielding or a ground) is touching something it shouldn't.

[Powers]

Ok, so I just took it apart to take a picture, and when I set it down the bridge pickup started sounding normal. I poked at the wires and couldn't get it to mess up again, so I'm not sure what the actual problem was - good news is that it works! Thanks for the help, guys, I'll take a couple of pictures next time if it comes up again.

Matt

[Deaf Eddie]

Sounds like you might have pinched or bent the tone cap leg, so that it made contact straight to ground instead of going through the tone pot. That would make the guitar sound like the tone pot was on "0" full-time. Also, it could have been touching a humbucker's lead, if yours have the vintage-style braided-metal-shield leads.