Thanks Simon, very helpful as usual. I did the continuity (beep) test on the switch and it seems ok. Sound from the pickups is patchy when I tap with a small screwdriver. At the moment the bridge pickup is dead. Volume and tone controls seem to work as best as I can tell. I have tested all connections with the beep test and they check out ok. I did have to join onto the pickup wires both earth and hot wire. Double checked those soldered joins and they appear ok. I'm a bit puzzled???
There’s a possibility that there’s a loose connection inside the pickup. It’s not going to be easy to tell, even if you do manage to take the cover off.
I’d either disconnect the pickup wires from its volume pot or break the wires at the join, then connect your multimeter to them. You should know what sort of ohm reading to get as you’ve measured them before. Tap the pickup and wiggle the wire and see if you loose the resistance reading at all. If so, the pickup is faulty.
I’ve just had a look at an old kit humbucker and I noticed a loose strand of wire poking out.
So I cut the solder blobs holding the cover on (it’s easier to cut them with a sharp knife than to try and desolder them).
The cover just then pulls off. This is what is underneath:
In this instance, the wire was part of the outgoing wire outer shield, so already grounded and not touching any signal cables and would just need cutting back. But you can see that the coil connections have been made under the tape wrap. There’s not a lot you could easily do, even if you could see a broken wire.
If the pickup looses connectivity when tapping or moving the output lead, then it needs replacing by Pit Bull. I doubt you’d need to send it back as it isn’t worth the postage and repair costs.
If the pickup seems OK, then it’s back to the wiring.
Thanks Simon, I will let you know how I get on.
Thanks Simon for all your help. Success at last! It was a faulty 3 way switch!!! I ended up replacing the 4 pots and the guitar sounds great. Had to do a little modifying on the nut and bridge to achieve a closer action. It's pretty smooth and great tone. Probably slightly less silky to play at the moment but maybe it will settle in with some playing. Thanks again for your advice and expert help.
Kind Regards. Lewis (Australia)
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