Tinkercaster
Parts and values
| In the drawing | Value | Part |
|---|---|---|
| Neck pickupSource: Seymour Duncan Neck Pickup | — | Humbucker (four-conductor, Seymour Duncan colours)Generic |
| Bridge pickupSource: Seymour Duncan Bridge Pickup | — | Humbucker (four-conductor, Seymour Duncan colours)Generic |
| 3-way toggleSource: 3 Way Toggle | — | Switchcraft 3-Way ToggleExample part |
| Volume 500k | 500k | CTS 500k Audio PotExample part |
| Tone 500k push/pullSource: Tone 500k push/pull (Coil Split) | 500k | 500k Push-Pull DPDTExample part |
| .047 capSource: .047 cap (drawn green) | 47nF | Orange Drop .047µFExample part |
| Output jackSource: Output Jack | — | Switchcraft #11Example part |
| Bridge groundSource: Bridge ground wire | — | Bridge ground wireGeneric |
“Example part” means any part with the same value and lugs will do; the source does not name a brand. “Generic” stands in for an unspecified pickup: check your own pickup's lead colours before you solder.
Specific to this wiring
- The source titles the tone's push/pull as a coil split switch that splits both pickups.
- Each pickup's red and white leads are soldered together onto one middle lug of the coil split switch, not taped off: bridge on the left column, neck on the right.
- The two switch lugs in the row nearest the pot are jumpered together and wired to the tone casing; the row furthest from the pot stays empty.
- The tone takes its signal from the volume's input lug, before the volume.
- The neck ground leads, the toggle's frame tag and the bridge ground wire end on the volume casing; the bridge ground leads and the jack sleeve end on the tone casing, which is wired to the volume casing.
- Solder = location for ground (earth) connections.
- The toggle tags are not labelled in the source, so they are mapped by what each does.
Understand this wiring
- Seymour Duncan humbucker wire colors
See the pickup, recognise its two halves, and learn where each coloured wire goes.
- Seymour Duncan coil splitting explained
A humbucker has two coils. See how a switch lets you use just one of them.
- Reading Seymour Duncan push/pull switch diagrams
Turning the knob and pulling it do different jobs. See the actual part, then try its switch connections.
Connections
In soldering order: grounds first, then the switch, the pickups and the signal path. Choose Show to highlight a connection in the drawing.
| # | From | To | How | Drawing |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Neck green | Volume casing | To a pot casinggreen | |
| 2 | Neck bare shield | Volume casingDrawn grey beside the green. | Shield or groundbare | |
| 3 | Bridge green | Tone casing | To a pot casinggreen | |
| 4 | Bridge bare shield | Tone casingDrawn grey beside the green. | Shield or groundbare | |
| 5 | Toggle left tag | Volume casingArcs over the top of the toggle. | To a pot casingblack | |
| 6 | Volume right lug | Volume casingLug bent onto the casing. | To a pot casing | |
| 7 | .047 cap | Tone casing | To a pot casing | |
| 8 | Volume casing | Tone casing | To a pot casingblack | |
| 9 | Bridge ground wire | Volume casing | Wireblack | |
| 10 | Tone casing | Jack sleeveHops over the neck red/white bundle. | Wireblack | |
| 11 | Coil split left lug nearest the pot | Tone casing | To a pot casingblack | |
| 12 | Neck black | Toggle upper right tag | Wireblack | |
| 13 | Bridge black | Toggle lower right tag | Wireblack | |
| 14 | Toggle middle right tags | Volume left lug (input) | Wireblack | |
| 15 | Neck white | Coil split right middle lugLoops round the right edge of the cavity. | Wirewhite | |
| 16 | Neck red | Coil split right middle lugShares the lug with the neck white. | Wirered | |
| 17 | Bridge white | Coil split left middle lug | Wirewhite | |
| 18 | Bridge red | Coil split left middle lugShares the lug with the bridge white. | Wirered | |
| 19 | Volume middle lug | Jack tipHops over the neck red/white bundle; the volume-to-tone ground wire hops over this wire. Neither crossing connects. | Wireblack | |
| 20 | Volume left lug | Tone left lug | Wireblack | |
| 21 | Tone middle lug | .047 cap | Wire | |
| 22 | Coil split left lug nearest the pot | Coil split right lug nearest the potShort jumper along the row nearest the pot. | Wireblack |
What each position does
| Setting | The source | Engine result |
|---|---|---|
| Neck, knob down: full humbucker | — | Neck pickup (both coils). |
| Both, knob down: both humbuckers | — | Neck pickup (both coils) and Bridge pickup (both coils) in parallel. |
| Bridge, knob down: full humbucker | — | Bridge pickup (both coils). |
| Neck, knob pulled: single coil | The coil split switch splits both pickups. | Neck pickup (split to one coil). |
| Both, knob pulled: both split | The coil split switch splits both pickups. | Neck pickup (split to one coil) and Bridge pickup (split to one coil) in parallel. |
| Bridge, knob pulled: single coil | The coil split switch splits both pickups. | Bridge pickup (split to one coil). |
Checked with the Tinkercaster wiring engine against the switching the source describes.
- Hum cancelling and phase describe the generic pickup models, not a measurement of any specific Seymour Duncan model.
- Pickup resistance is not specified, so no numeric meter readings are given.
- The source does not say which knob position splits; this follows the usual push/pull behaviour (pulled joins the middle lugs to the lugs nearest the pot).
Before you solder
Ticks are kept in this browser only, as a reminder. They are not a check of your joints. New to soldering? Read the soldering cheat sheet.
Check before plugging in
- Tone knob down: in each toggle position the meter across the jack reads the selected humbucker, or both in parallel in the middle.
- Tone knob up: each reading drops to roughly one coil's resistance.
- With the volume at zero, tip and sleeve should read as a short in every position.
Measure across the output jack with a multimeter on its resistance range. No exact readings are given where the source does not specify the pickups.