Epiphone SG Switch Replacement

Posted on October 8, 2015 by Aylesbury Guitar Repair

This Epiphone SG guitar required some much needed TLC in order to make the electronics work as designed.

A third-party selector switch had been installed in such a way that the pickups only worked independently of each other. This meant that the middle position did not work at all, so the choppy, funky, scooped sounds synonymous with this combination was inaccessible.

A replacement switch was purchased, and soldered back into the correct configuration – the previous switch direction was connecting the opposite pickup to the one described on the switch surround. Needless to say I corrected this as well.

The fretboard, frets and body received a thorough clean and polish, leaving the guitar looking and feeling much like it would have done in the shop, making this a very satisfying job to do!
Epiphone SG

Epiphone SG Switch Replacement

Posted on October 8, 2015 by Aylesbury Guitar Repair

This Epiphone SG guitar required some much needed TLC in order to make the electronics work as designed.

The fretboard, frets and body received a thorough clean and polish, leaving the guitar looking and feeling much like it would have done in the shop, making this a very satisfying job to do!

Blues Junior Rebuild

Posted on April 28, 2015 by Aylesbury Guitar Repair

This month I spent a couple of days rebuilding my poorly Fender Blues Junior with the chaps at Vyse Amps in Pinner, London.

The amp has been my go-to combo for 8yrs, and being 12yrs old and seeing a lot of action, it has had a lot of heat cycles through the solder joints which is the root of the problems coming through. The power amp valves’ solder was beginning to crack, and the tracks on the PCB were lifting and ultimately breaking.

The solution to this – which would become endemic throughout the rest of the amp in time – was to remove all of the original components, and replace with a new circuit built in an old-school ‘point-to-point’ fashion which would enable me to make modifications or replace any faulty components much more easily for the life of the amp.

Since completely changing everything except the cabinet and reverb tank, the amp has taken on a different character, but is a beautiful alternative to the Blues Junior I knew and loved. It’s now got a Celestion G12H Anniversary Edition speaker, and in conjunction with the up-rated electronics is more articulate as a result. I’m still getting to know the amp, but can’t wait to see how it performs on gigs and shows as they come in!

Ibanez GMC Wiring Troubleshoot

Posted on August 29, 2014 by Aylesbury Guitar Repair

Today I had to diagnose and correct a problem with a guitar with a circuit with a push-pull tone pot. The middle pickup only worked when the tone pot was in the raised position, and was silent when down, so this needed some investigation.

Due to the fact everything was working in theory, the solution should be relatively simple, and required only to make sure everything was attached, primarily all connections to do with the middle pickup itself. Within moments of opening the cavity it was obvious the problem was that one of the middle pickup wires had become detached, and simply needed reconnecting. Seconds later, the guitar was in full flow once more, on every setting.

The switching is quite interesting on this guitar – it operates in a similar fashion to most HHH guitars, only all of the coils are split when the tone pot is lifted, and this provides a rich set of tonal options from powerful rock to delicate and brittle single coil tones. Check out the wiring diagram below!