Soldering a pickup cover.

[C-Martin]

How hard is it to do this? and is it doable with just a iron? i dont have a gun... I've tried removing the cover of a Burstbucker i had and couldnt even make the solder soft if my life depended on it... The antiquity i bought comes with the cover removed and i was going to put it back on so im wondering if im even gonna be able to do it... dont think i want to mess with poting either since i might screw it up.. unless its relatively easy to do?



BTW If i want to test magnet swaping with the cover on, can i leave the cover unsoldered just for testing or will it move/fall off and create problems i dont want?

 

[greco]

Re: Soldering a pickup cover.

None of this is all that difficult, IMHO

Many forumbros suggest taking the covers off by gently/carefully cutting through the solder with a Dremel tool. Unsoldering (and soldering it back on later ) can be a pain as the pickup acts as a huge heat sink.

What wattage/ power of iron are you using?

Do not use an electric soldering gun.

I would suggest that you could temporarily hold the cover on with two-sided tape (can be bought at almost any hardware store...read Crappie Tire ...as you are in Canada ...LOL)

You can do a search on potting, or try the vault.

See what others say before doing the tape thing as they might have better ideas.

Dave

 

[MrMars]

Re: Soldering a pickup cover.

Why cant you use an electric soldering gun? sorry for the newb question

 

[Gearjoneser]

Re: Soldering a pickup cover.

I don't know what grade of solder they use to put on covers but the sh1t is like Iron!!! For that reason, you're better off sawing through it with a dremel tool saw blade.

As for installing covers, it's best to use sandpaper to scuff all the solder areas, and even wipe it with alcohol. Then drip some solder in the area and make sure it sets very solid. It's also a good idea to give the pickup a quick dunk in parafin wax, which you can buy on the cooking isle of any grocery store.

 

[greco]

Re: Soldering a pickup cover.

Why cant you use an electric soldering gun? sorry for the newb question

Welcome to the forum.

I can't give you a scientific/electronics based answer, but I believe that the reason is that the gun can pooch the magnets in the pickup. I have read more detailed answers to your question somewhere....just don't know where to direct you.

Someone else should will hopefully give a detailed answer.

Dave

 

[Zhangliqun]

Re: Soldering a pickup cover.

All solder irons and guns are electric.

 

[greco]

Re: Soldering a pickup cover.

All solder irons and guns are electric.

Agreed Zhang, but this warning about using guns has come up before. I'll see if I can find it.

Dave

 

[greco]

Re: Soldering a pickup cover.

Agreed Zhang, but this warning about using guns has come up before. I'll see if I can find it.

Dave

Zhang: I looked back over several threads from the past.

At one point you said that one could use a soldering gun or a cannon ...I had a good laugh at this.

Apparently some pickup installation instructions ( from SD ??) were saying not to use a gun because of the possibilty demagnitizing the magnets. You consistently disagreed with this...and I respect your opinion and knowlwdge for sure. You might remember these threads.

Other forumbros indicated that 100 to 200 watts was huge overkill, and could result in some "unwanted cooking*" (* my phrase...attempting to match your excellent humour).

Dave

 

[Zhangliqun]

Re: Soldering a pickup cover.

100 to 200 watts is way over the top unless you want to fry eggs on the back of the pot while you're in there and would likely damage components. 40 to 60 is more than enough. But the extra power or heat shouldn't have any effect on the magnet. Alnico is a popular material for magnets in other applications -- like some heavy machinery that gets pretty hot when running -- precisely because of its ability to maintain its magnetic properties at pretty high temps, up to 500 F at least.

It might be that the electromagnetic field of the bigger cannons is a little stronger but I don't know if they're strong enough to affect the magnet.

 

[C-Martin]

Re: Soldering a pickup cover.

what if i dont have a dremel... how would i go and remove the cover? i got a cheap radio shack 35 watt iron and it works for everything exept sometimes with tougher things like removing a ground or pickup covers ive not been able to yet...

 

[PoorMan]

Re: Soldering a pickup cover.

what if i dont have a dremel... how would i go and remove the cover?

Use a single edged razor blade and saw through the solder. Takes a little time and muscle, but it works.

 

[cronnin]

Re: Soldering a pickup cover.

Go check here, question no.3.
Maybe you can find something usefull.

http://www.seymourduncan.com/support/seymours_q_and_a.shtml

 

[Amateur]

Re: Soldering a pickup cover.

what if i dont have a dremel... how would i go and remove the cover?

You can use a file to file it down.

Too hot a gun or iron may damage the insulation on the winding and cause a short inside the pickup. That's the only worry when I use my soldering gun. I just took the cover off from one of my 59s with a gun though.

 

[Sludgenutz]

Re: Soldering a pickup cover.

The difference between the classic Weller "solder gun", and a typical solder iron is its construction.

The Weller solder gun style is an "inductive" device (advantage: it heats up REALLY FAST!) that can un-intentionally degauss magnets. This tool generates large electromagnetic fields, and is best used for the simplest joints, using larger wire gauges...away from all common guitar and amp solder needs. Heat control with the old-fashioned Weller solder gun is a joke!

These are the worst! You can see the clunkyness of the top-heavy design, that houses a transformer:

http://www.cooperhandtools.com/brands/CF_Files/model_detail.cfm?upc=037103475848

The typical solder iron is a "resistive" device at its wand. They DO NOT generate large electromagnetic fields. The heat control available can limited by many means.

After heat control, the better soldering devices limit ESD (ElectroStaic Discharge) damage for devices like op-amps, diodes, transistors, and MOSFET devices.

 

[DylanO]

Re: Soldering a pickup cover.

Welcome to the forum.

I can't give you a scientific/electronics based answer, but I believe that the reason is that the gun can pooch the magnets in the pickup. I have read more detailed answers to your question somewhere....just don't know where to direct you.

Someone else should will hopefully give a detailed answer.

Dave

I think there is more danger in heating the pickup too much than messing up the magnets. You could easily melt solder joints inside the pickup or strip the insulation off the windings with too much heat. I have a 40W iron, and when I was installing covers recently, I coudn't get the solder to stick satisfactorily to the back-plate of my pickups no matter what. Not wanting to hold the iron there for too long for fear of causing damage, I abandoned that method. Instead, I removed the covers, got two pieces of wire and soldered one onto each cover on the outside near the bottom. Then I ran a ground wire from the back of a tone pot and connected each wire to that. Finally, after inserting the pickups to the covers, I siliconed around the join where the solder joint would have been for added solidity. Worked a treat. The end result was the same in that the covers were both electrically grounded and securely attached to the pickup. So, to make a long story short, you could use this method if you're afraid of damaging your pickups with your soldering iron.