Waxing pickup didn't work

[Albionic]

hi guys

i stated in a previous thread that i was having feedback issues and knocks against the guitar come through the amp on my kent armstrong mini humbucker bridge pickup.

so i decided it was time to learn to wax a pickup. the procedure went well and after an hours cooling feeling pleased with myself i re fitted the pickup only to find the problem still persists.

anyone got any ideas what i should try next?

 

[winny pooh]

Maybe the wax was too hot when you pulled it out and it ran out. Use the double boiler and get it just above the "liquid" melting point, pop in the pickup, tap to get the air out, switch off the heat & let the wax cool until the edges of the pot start solidifying a fair bit. Then pull it out. You can also use rubber tubing on the attachment screws instead of springs to cut down on vibrations. You should also use a combination of paraffin & bees wax if I remember right.

 

[Albionic]

Maybe the wax was too hot when you pulled it out and it ran out. Use the double boiler and get it just above the "liquid" melting point, pop in the pickup, tap to get the air out, switch off the heat & let the wax cool until the edges of the pot start solidifying a fair bit. Then pull it out. You can also use rubber tubing on the attachment screws instead of springs to cut down on vibrations. You should also use a combination of paraffin & bees wax if I remember right.

that sounds very likely i did not let the wax cool at all before taking it out and it did seem that all the wax ran off thanks for you reply i will have another go tomorrow.

 

[bingy]

Your waxing may not be perfect but a thing I do quite regularly is:
Cut a piece of closed cell packing foam to fit under the pickup.
Leave it slightly taller than the distance between the bottom of the pickup and the bottom of the cavity.
Crank the pickup down on to the foam 'til snug.
I've had this work many times... it leaves the pickup un-altered and is way less hassle.
(Not that anything is wrong with potting.)
You may want to control microphonic feedback without choking microphonics.
There's twang in there.

 

[Albionic]

Thanks I'll give the foam packaging idea a go also I'll try rubber tube instead of the springs. I would like to try the potting again as well. I'm pretty sure Kent Armstrong pots all his pickups it's not the most twangy bridge pup in the world anyway.

Im sort of using it as a test dummy to try things as im considering going down the more traditional single coil route in the future

 

[tap4154]

Seems I remember reading that stacked pups/humbuckers don't do well when mounted in magnetic steel (non-stainless steel) bridges. Something about the magnetic steel mass screwing with the magnetic field of the stacks pups.

After all, most HBs are usually just mounted into the body.

(I was assuming this was a stacked pup mounted in a Tele bridge, but looking at KA pickups now, it's probably not, so nevermind?)

 

[Albionic]

Seems I remember reading that stacked pups/humbuckers don't do well when mounted in magnetic steel (non-stainless steel) bridges. Something about the magnetic steel mass screwing with the magnetic field of the stacks pups.

After all, most HBs are usually just mounted into the body.

That may be the case but the feedback/microphonics hasn't always been there so I may have caused it by messing with pickup height

 

[tap4154]

That may be the case but the feedback/microphonics hasn't always been there so I may have caused it by messing with pickup height

What I was referring to was a stacked HB in a Tele bridge. A SC is fine, but I read that putting stacked coils in could can lead to microphonics if the bridge is magnetic steel.

 

[Albionic]

well i used foam in the cavity changed the springs for rubber tube and rewaxed the pup this time leaving it to cool pretty sure i got a good covering this time.

i'm still hearing every knock against my guitar through the amp if i use a bit of gain especially if i turn up the volume to full travel quickly a loud clonk comes out the amp.

i understand this is par for the course to some extent with teles but it never used to do it.
i guess its time for a new pup (unless theres anything else i can try?)

 

[Rob DiStefano]

there is wax potting and then there is vacuum wax potting.

i do both, and the vacuum method will eliminate the microphonics far better/faster than just a wax bath and the hope that the wax will displace all of the internal coil air.

however, there is something to be said about the lively tone of a *slightly* potted, and somewhat microphonic, single coil pup.

 

[Albionic]

Im actually beginning to think that potting the bridge to the body may do the trick I loosened the bridge screws before practice to have a look at the wiring and I didnt screw it back all that tight as I didnt want to strip the screw threads and thats when it all went wrong. So I may get away with screwing it down tighter if not I'll get the wax out for under the bridge.

Anyone try the scn noiseless pups? im looking at one used but I hear they prone to microphonics

 

[Rob DiStefano]

if you plug the guitar into a live amp, then lightly tap on the pickup with a finger tip. and hear that metallic "boink" come through the amp, the pup is microphonic and that can be cured with *proper* wax potting. if the bridge itself is slightly loose or there is some air gap 'tween it and the body, that usually manifests in squeel at high gain/volume - not usually a direct microphonic issue.

 

[tap4154]

Yes, vacuum potting might do it. I just installed an old OV bridge pup that was SUPER microphonic when I got it, but after vacuum potting it's fine now, and still very twangy.

 

[Albionic]

if you plug the guitar into a live amp, then lightly tap on the pickup with a finger tip. and hear that metallic "boink" come through the amp, the pup is microphonic and that can be cured with *proper* wax potting. if the bridge itself is slightly loose or there is some air gap 'tween it and the body, that usually manifests in squeel at high gain/volume - not usually a direct microphonic issue.

Ah that's interesting I will try tapping on pickup I do get noise through amp when I tap the guitar body when I up the gain a bit. im assuming vacuum potting is not something that I can do myself?

 

[Rob DiStefano]

use an 80/20 blend of paraffin/bees wax, in a double boiler at 150/160F, let the pickup sit in that bath for 40 minutes or so.

if that doesn't cure the microphonics, vacuum wax potting will. i use a quart mason jar sitting in a pot pf water, with a 3/8" bolt that's 1" long that's bolted and epoxy glued into the metal jar lid. the bolt has a 3/32" hole drill from top to bottom. slip on a reasonably long rubber hose to the protuding bolt. fill the jar 1/2 way with the wax and after it's melted to 150/160F, put in the pup and screw on the lid. turn off the heat source. there are more than a few ways to remove the air from within the jar. i use a manual car vacuum pump that has a mercury pressure gauge, so i know precisely how much vacuum i'm creating. i've also used an air pump run on the deflate mode. however, as crazy as this will sound, you can use yer mouth to suck out the air, then crimp the hose with a small spring clamp and that will work just fine - i love it when low tech works. in less than 10 minutes the pup's coil will be thoroughly saturated with wax. remove, wipe down, cool off, solder in and enjoy.

 

[Albionic]

use an 80/20 blend of paraffin/bees wax, in a double boiler at 150/160F, let the pickup sit in that bath for 40 minutes or so.

if that doesn't cure the microphonics, vacuum wax potting will. i use a quart mason jar sitting in a pot pf water, with a 3/8" bolt that's 1" long that's bolted and epoxy glued into the metal jar lid. the bolt has a 3/32" hole drill from top to bottom. slip on a reasonably long rubber hose to the protuding bolt. fill the jar 1/2 way with the wax and after it's melted to 150/160F, put in the pup and screw on the lid. turn off the heat source. there are more than a few ways to remove the air from within the jar. i use a manual car vacuum pump that has a mercury pressure gauge, so i know precisely how much vacuum i'm creating. i've also used an air pump run on the deflate mode. however, as crazy as this will sound, you can use yer mouth to suck out the air, then crimp the hose with a small spring clamp and that will work just fine - i love it when low tech works. in less than 10 minutes the pup's coil will be thoroughly saturated with wax. remove, wipe down, cool off, solder in and enjoy.

That sounds pretty straightforward I'll try it that way im pretty sure im gonna fit a new pickup but I would like to fix the issue with this one just to prove I can do it and as practise for future projects. Thanks for the instructions

 

[Albionic]

ok for the moment i've used the coil tap wires to wire it in as a single coil using only one side of the pickup its not great but it will do a job till i get a new one and feeed back and microphonics greatly reduced