Liberator

[Hsb]

For my birthday, my wife got me a Liberator pot as one of my gifts. I planned on putting it in my 1994 Iceman, yeah the rare reissue. I was test fitting it the other day and the hole in the body is just a little too small to get the threads of the Liberator through. I could ream the hole a little bit more to get it to fit. Basically the threads on the pot wont fit through the factory hole.

If I reamed out the hole, A) would I be able to put the old pot back in if I decided to take the Liberator out and B) what would that widened hole do to the value of the guitar?

In this case, would you install the Liberator or should I see if I can fit into one of my other guitars?

 

[nexion218]

That's prolly an issue of metric vs imperial. I'm guessing the Liberator comes with SD branded pot (which are by the way my fave, each 500k I tested thus far was between 490 and 510), which will have a wider shaft (3/8"? Not sure), the Ibby (as most Japanese stuff) will be routed for metric stuff.

I have seen small plastic collars sold for the puropse of retrofitting metric pots in the larger holes, but the difference is so small that I think if youre lucky those clawed washers would keep the smaller shaft in place.

Dunno bout the value... But if you dondecide to ream, get a proper reamer and go very slowly, because chipping the wood and/or lacquer will surely hurt thenresale value!

 

[Mincer]

Yeah a washer would keep it there. My thought is that you'd love the Liberator so much that it wouldn't come out, though. It is remarkable for swapping pickups.

 

[beaubrummels]

I did the same thing with my Jackson. I just twisted it in so the hole became threaded. My experience reaming pot holes is it started to make it uneven, not round anymore. The old pot goes back in and has a washer and nut, so it doesn't matter if it's slightly larger.

 

[ErikH]

With a proper reamer or rat tail file, it could be done easily enough. What you have to be careful of is chipping the paint around the hole. If it does, it could be small enough to not be a concern to being a concern. So, be careful there.

 

[Hsb]

Thanks guys, I need to return she got me as its defective, but once I get the new one back, Ill get installed