Setting Up My Guitar - Help!

[jamesperkin]

Right, I've got all the bits:

Gibson Flying V
SD Pearly Gates neck
SD Custom bridge
Push/pull tone pot

And I'm ready to setup my guitar. Only problem is I've never done this before and have a few questions:

Firstly and most importantly, how on earth do you get the tone and volume knobs off the pots without breaking them?

Second, I'm wanting to set up my pickups and selector in the usual way but would like the push/pull pot to choose between the pickups being in or out of phase. Has anyone got a wiring diagram that could help me?

Finally, has anyone any other setup tips for a first timer?

Cheers
James

 

[CronoDL]

Re: Setting Up My Guitar - Help!

Just to be clear, are you trying to perform a setup on the guitar, or just changing the pickups and pots?

To get the knobs off, it's as simple as prying them out. If you don't want to damage the finish accidentally, put a cloth/t-shirt around the knob, and trying prying it evenly on all sides with your fingers. If that doesn't work, use a flathead screwdriver and pry it out slightly from one side (while keeping the cloth under it). It should budge a little, and getting the rest off should be easy

As far the wiring, I can't help, but I'm sure there are plenty of guys here that can. ArtieToo is great with schematics, and so is Tone4Days.

 

[Fritz6]

Re: Setting Up My Guitar - Help!

Right, I've got all the bits:

Gibson Flying V
SD Pearly Gates neck
SD Custom bridge
Push/pull tone pot

And I'm ready to setup my guitar. Only problem is I've never done this before and have a few questions:

Firstly and most importantly, how on earth do you get the tone and volume knobs off the pots without breaking them?

Second, I'm wanting to set up my pickups and selector in the usual way but would like the push/pull pot to choose between the pickups being in or out of phase. Has anyone got a wiring diagram that could help me?

Finally, has anyone any other setup tips for a first timer?

Cheers
James

Don't learn how to do this stuff on your main axe. I learned that the hard way. Cruise the forum as much as you can and get Erlewine's "How to make your electric guitar play great."

Practice on scrap wire and metal. Check with family and friends to see if they have any junk guitar/s lying around that they dont want.

If you can't find a free one, just buy a cheap squire and learn on that. Way easier to learn on something when your not worried about messing it up.

It can be frustrating in the beginning. But before you know it you'll be able to do set-ups and electronic work so well that you won't ever have to take your guitar to a tech again.