Can a Pickup be Waxed with the Cover On???

LesPaulRules

LesPaulRules

New member
This might be a stupid question, but I'm curious if I can wax a pickup while leaving the cover on?

The pickup in question is a Musician's Friend Seth Lover Bridge/50 Anniversary model (Alnico 5 mags. See my avatar). I like the sound of the pickup, output measures 8.71k so it has enough oomph. This pickup actually reminds me of a more open sounding, slightly hotter 59b.

If the pickup sits in a double boiler long enough, it seems the wax should penetrate enough to kill a little of of the feedback I'm getting. Even if the coils are taped (which they should be) some wax will at least flow between the two coils. If only a slight amount of wax gets in there, will it help to control feedback? (The kind of feedback you tend to get from non waxed coils with a chrome cover soldered on).

I'll assume the sound of the pickup will change slightly with a wax job, and that's ok.







P.S. As a side note, I removed the cover from the Seth Anniv neck model and to my surprise.... Found Double Creams!!! Yeah. This pickup is the perfect match for my double cream BroBucker. Tone, balance, and looks are just perfect. I'll have to get a picture up.
 
Re: Can a Pickup be Waxed with the Cover On???

You mean "potting" and not "waxing" ?

Well, it's actually recommended (and quite usual) to pot the pickup with the cover on, to avoid microphonics from the cover vibrating ;).

Correct me if i'm wrong!

-Erlend
 
Re: Can a Pickup be Waxed with the Cover On???

Yes, I mean potting.

There was a hot chic walking by while I was writing this post. For some reason, potting turned in to waxing. LOL
 
Re: Can a Pickup be Waxed with the Cover On???

Well, it's wax potting. :D

Yes, it can be done with the cover on but that is usually/sometimes the second/last step. First they're dipped in the wax without the cover on to get the wax in the coils, then dipped again after the cover is put on.

I don't recommend putting it in the wax after the cover is on though. You'll end up with a pickup in a brick of wax, literally. Just don't wipe off the wax from the top of the coils and just put the cover on and solder it to the baseplate. Make sure to clamp it down well too. If it's loose, even after being soldered, it can make the pickup squeal.
 
Re: Can a Pickup be Waxed with the Cover On???

You can also put tape or some other vibration dampener on top of the pickup before putting the cover on.
 
Re: Can a Pickup be Waxed with the Cover On???

LesPaulRules said:
If the pickup sits in a double boiler long enough, it seems the wax should penetrate enough to kill a little of of the feedback I'm getting.
Click to expand...

Are you trying to kill microphonics or feedback here?
 
Re: Can a Pickup be Waxed with the Cover On???

Microphonics are a common cause of uncontrolled feedback, KB ;)
 
Re: Can a Pickup be Waxed with the Cover On???

Zhangliqun said:
You can also put tape or some other vibration dampener on top of the pickup before putting the cover on.
Click to expand...

will using double-sided adhesive tape serve the purpose?
 
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