First Commission Build - Is A Super-Tele A Thing?

[ctmullins]

Looks like your client will be in for a nice Christmas!

 

[TerribleTim68]

Any of you ever dealt with these Texas Special Tele pickups? I'm struggling to figure out this wiring diagram.
This is the diagram it comes with in the packaging...

But the issue I'm having is, it came with a 3-way switch like this one, where the lugs are all down one side -

So I assumed "Okay, just count lugs, starting from one end" but when I wire it up like that, I get nothing but hum out of it. Like, neither pickup is making any noise in any switch position. Just a lot of hum.

Oh yeah, it's also funny that the wiring diagram lists a white and black wire from the bridge pickup and the pickup was factory wired with yellow and black, no white.

 

[TerribleTim68]

For what it's worth, the Texas Special wiring is not the same as a standard Tele. The Texas Special is supposed to have the middle switch position be both pups in series, not parallel. Maybe there's an easier way to do this?

 

[TerribleTim68]

To add to this, I tried wiring it up using this simple "standard Tele wiring with middle in series" diagram....

...and I still get nothing out of either pup in any position. So there has to be something wrong somewhere else. I'm just not sure what.

 

[Matt Liebenau]

Maybe this will help translate switch connectors. I know the one says 5 way but the tabs should still be the same.



Edit: I’d also check the neck pickup connections with a meter. If there’s only 2 wires and one has continuity with the metal pickup cover things could get ugly in series. There should be a separate ground connection for the metal cover.

 

[Mark Knapp]

Alpha 3-way switch lug config

I haven't been able to find how the Alpha 3-way switch works or how its lugs match the lugs of a traditional 3-way switch. The Alpha came stock in my Squier Classic Vibe 50's BSB. It has eight lugs like a traditional switch but I'd love to know how those 8 lugs map to the ones I see in typical...

www.tdpri.com

BTW: these are the cheap switches. I replaced the one in my import Strat, though I am sure some of these last for years.

 

[TerribleTim68]

Thanks guys, I'll try beating my head against the wall a bit more.
I went back and looked at the Musiclily wiring diagram, since that's the pre-wired control plate I'm using. They don't really show a method of wiring the pups in series for the middle position, just the typical Tele wiring -

After doing some searching on the TDPRI forums, it seems that if you want to wire the Texas Specials in a normal Tele configuration, just just ground the extra neck pup wire and wire the remaining in a normal Tele layout. I went back and wired it like that, and now I am getting noise from the bridge pup, but the neck pup is still doing nothing. So I'm still scratching my head here.

Have I mentioned how much I hate wiring?

 

[TerribleTim68]

The other fun one that I'm dealing with now is, after connection wires to the bottom of the switch, it seems I don't have enough depth in my control cavity now.
I may need to walk away from this one for a bit.

 

[Matt Liebenau]

The other fun one that I'm dealing with now is, after connection wires to the bottom of the switch, it seems I don't have enough depth in my control cavity now.
I may need to walk away from this one for a bit.

Sorry man. Do you have one of the other style switches, non-import, to try with? I think those don’t usually need as much depth but more width.

Do you have a multimeter to test the neck pickup with?

 

[TerribleTim68]

Sorry man. Do you have one of the other style switches, non-import, to try with? I think those don’t usually need as much depth but more width.

Do you have a multimeter to test the neck pickup with?

I think I'm just gonna order a Fender 4-way switch so I can wire it up the way these Texas Specials should be wired, with a middle position for both in parallel and another position in series. And hopefully that will also be shallower to solve that problem.

I do not have a multimeter. But I think I'm just gonna step away from it until I get the 4-way switch and then I'll try to figure it out from there.

 

[Gary_M]

Hey Tim, if you have the time, just get the standard CRL three-way, telecaster switch. The neck pick up probably has one wire connected directly to the cover and the other wire is the negative coming off of the coil. In the end, those both go to ground.

 

[T_Bone_TL]

The other fun one that I'm dealing with now is, after connection wires to the bottom of the switch, it seems I don't have enough depth in my control cavity now.

OK. I think I can help with this one?

Rather than "wires stick through holes and out the bottom" put a hook on the wire, hook it though the hole so the wire is going sideways, (up out of the screen in the picture of the switch) and pinch it closed in place with a pair of pliers. Then solder it. Should be less than a millimeter of added depth.

Incidentally, by my training way back in my high voltage lab tech days, that's how any wire should go on a loop terminal - hook, pinch, then solder.

 

[TerribleTim68]

So my 4-way switch arrived today, I ordered the Fender factory part #099-2250-000 -


Came with this wiring diagram -



I think this is the right answer, mostly because it actually takes into account that the Texas Special pickups are designed to work in a different manner than the standard Tele pickups. This will provide the option to run neck - neck-bridge in parallel - bridge and then also neck-bridge in series. Plus, I now have a correct wiring diagram for the pickups and switch, all from the factory, designed to work this way. I guess I should have done some more research and gone this direction to begin with. Oh well, live and learn I guess.

I'll fiddle with this and see if I can get it working correctly. I think I actually know what I did wrong the first attempt. After not being able to sleep last night I kept going over it in my mind until I thought "I bet that wire I lengthened isn't connected at my splice". I haven't checked, but I'll bet money that's where the problem is. Anyways, I'm gonna fiddle with this switch and new wiring diagram and we'll see how it goes.

Edit to add:
After a quick comparison, this switch is actually taller than the 3-way, so there's gonna be some router action involved. Not a huge problem, I just hate having to go back and deepen the cavity after the fact. I also need to watch real close that I don't blow thru the back side, it's gonna be tight here.

 

[T_Bone_TL]

If the picture is accurate, looks like you can gain some vertical room on this one by bending the loops, at least on the center 3 terminals. They appear to be about 135 degrees so they poke down, bring them up to 90-85 degrees and you'll gain a little bit of vertical space.

 

[TerribleTim68]

Went ahead and routed that control cavity down a bit deeper. Now my 4-way switch sits down correctly -

It's a stressful routing, I think I have about 3mm left under it. But that should be okay as long as it doesn't take a hard impact there.

So now I guess I'm back where I should have been in the first place. Moral of this tory: make sure your control cavities actually accommodate your controls.

 

[TerribleTim68]

If the picture is accurate, looks like you can gain some vertical room on this one by bending the loops, at least on the center 3 terminals. They appear to be about 135 degrees so they poke down, bring them up to 90-85 degrees and you'll gain a little bit of vertical space.

Yup, I did give them a slight bent when measuring, and I'll make sure to give them that bend after soldering the wires on. It does gain a couple mm.

 

[ctmullins]

You might consider pouring a bit of epoxy into that area, just a bit, to strengthen the 3mm thickness.

 

[TerribleTim68]

So I've bene kind of hung up on this project for quite some time now. I'm really getting to a point where I'm just beyond frustrated with it.

No matter what I do, I can not get the neck pickup (the lipstick) to make noise. I know I have my wiring correct per the diagram that came with the 4-way switch. The bridge pickup is working fine, I can tap it wit ha screw driver and it makes a "thunk" sound through my amp. But no matter what, this neck pickup will not make any noise.

Is it just because it has that cover? Is this normal?

 

[T_Bone_TL]

Pluck some other thing with strings and hold the pickup in question (and guitar in question, at the moment, plugged into a live amp) over it?

 

[Reedt2000]

It doesn't take much to break a coil wire in a pickup, or to have the wire come off of its little solder spot. Take the pickup out and read resistance w a meter. If that checks out then hook it temporarily to a chord, plug it in and tap it. If that all checks out then get mad at your wiring job