Is This Mod Doable/Desirable

Talk about modding or building your own guitar from scratch.
Post Reply
User avatar
mark76
PAT. # 2.972.923
PAT. # 2.972.923
Posts: 245
Joined: Thu May 24, 2012 7:34 am
Location: Leicester

Is This Mod Doable/Desirable

Post by mark76 » Sat Oct 01, 2022 3:38 am

I'm considering replacing the three lead circuit switches on my first gen Squier Jaguar with a three way blade switch for the pick up selection and a push on/push off modification to the tone pot for the strangle switch. Can this be done? Has it been done (which would mean there'd at least be a wiring diagram out there I could download and follow). Should it be done?

User avatar
timtam
PAT. # 2.972.923
PAT. # 2.972.923
Posts: 2729
Joined: Sun Oct 22, 2017 2:42 am
Location: Melbourne

Re: Is This Mod Doable/Desirable

Post by timtam » Sat Oct 01, 2022 5:41 am

It's straightforward. Just wire the pickups to the blade switch like in a telecaster. Then for the strangle, instead of wiring the blade switch's output to the volume pot (as in a tele), wire it to your strangle DPDT switch on the push-push first, and then on to the tone pot tab (as in a jag). The strangle switch can be wired in either of two ways, each of which is used in the Marr jaguar (which has two strangles), as below. Make sure your main cavity is deep enough for the depth of the push-push switch. You may also have to file a little off each end of the blade switch cavity's top edges to fit the blade switch (Marr has that for its 4-way blade). Haven't seen too many 1meg push-push pots, but here's one (may need a sleeve to work well with stock knobs for solid shafts, from same supplier) ...
https://www.axesrus.co.uk/Medium-Shaft- ... halpha.htm

Image
"I just knew I wanted to make a sound that was the complete opposite of a Les Paul, and that’s pretty much a Jaguar." Rowland S. Howard.

User avatar
mark76
PAT. # 2.972.923
PAT. # 2.972.923
Posts: 245
Joined: Thu May 24, 2012 7:34 am
Location: Leicester

Re: Is This Mod Doable/Desirable

Post by mark76 » Sat Oct 01, 2022 6:24 am

That's the info I need. Cheers ;D

User avatar
LVC
PAT. # 2.972.923
PAT. # 2.972.923
Posts: 1933
Joined: Wed Dec 28, 2011 12:38 pm
Location: France

Re: Is This Mod Doable/Desirable

Post by LVC » Sat Oct 01, 2022 7:11 am

If you're going for a blade switch, you might as well use a 4-way one to add the option of having the pickups in series, like on the Marr.
Create art, not content

User avatar
mark76
PAT. # 2.972.923
PAT. # 2.972.923
Posts: 245
Joined: Thu May 24, 2012 7:34 am
Location: Leicester

Re: Is This Mod Doable/Desirable

Post by mark76 » Sat Oct 01, 2022 8:55 am

I hadn't thought of that. How about the following: Neck/Neck and Bridge/Bridge/Neck and Bridge in phase/Neck and Bridge out of phase/Neck and Bridge in series (I assume the classic neck and bridge combo is parallel)

Just realised that's one option too many. Which would you drop? Or could one be on a separate switch? Maybe another push/push where the volume is?

User avatar
Futuron
PAT. # 2.972.923
PAT. # 2.972.923
Posts: 1213
Joined: Fri Nov 10, 2017 3:19 am
Location: Australia

Re: Is This Mod Doable/Desirable

Post by Futuron » Sat Oct 01, 2022 10:40 pm

You're heading full throttle into American Professional switching there:
4-way blade switch: bridge / parallel / neck / series
2-way slide switch (affects positions 2&4): in-phase / out-of-phase (you could use a push-push/pull for this function)

(Timtam knows where all these diagrams live! Otherwise I'd try to find it...)

User avatar
timtam
PAT. # 2.972.923
PAT. # 2.972.923
Posts: 2729
Joined: Sun Oct 22, 2017 2:42 am
Location: Melbourne

Re: Is This Mod Doable/Desirable

Post by timtam » Sat Oct 01, 2022 11:00 pm

"I just knew I wanted to make a sound that was the complete opposite of a Les Paul, and that’s pretty much a Jaguar." Rowland S. Howard.

User avatar
jvin248
PAT. # 2.972.923
PAT. # 2.972.923
Posts: 660
Joined: Mon Apr 11, 2016 5:34 pm

Re: Is This Mod Doable/Desirable

Post by jvin248 » Sun Oct 02, 2022 5:35 am

.

The 4-way is very popular on Telecasters.

You can choose where in the order you want your series humbucking setting. Many go with the default series toward the neck then the typical 3-way order from there. I like to go from clean playing at the neck to humbucker distortion drive all the way to the back, lock to lock from clean to distorted. I do this by wiring the 4-way to the regular diagram but swap neck for bridge hots and rotate the switch 180deg before installing. Some players like the series on the inside (neck/parallel/series/bridge) which you can do too but you'll need to find a diagram. There is a diagram of all four diagrams over on the TDPRI forum that you can find if searching for it).

.

Post Reply