Tinkercaster
Parts and values
| In the drawing | Value | Part |
|---|---|---|
| Neck Pickup | — | Humbucker (four-conductor, DiMarzio colours)Generic |
| Bridge Pickup | — | Humbucker (four-conductor, DiMarzio colours)Generic |
| 3-Way Toggle | — | Switchcraft 3-Way ToggleExample part |
| Volume 500kA push/pullSource: Volume 500kA (push/pull) | 500k | 500k Push-Pull DPDTExample part |
| Output Jack | — | Switchcraft #11Example part |
“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
- Printed instruction: 'Solder Black and White wires together, and insulate with heat shrink or electrical tape.' On this sheet each pickup's joined black and white pair runs on to a middle-row lug of the push/pull switch: bridge on the left, neck on the right.
- The two push/pull lugs nearest the pot each have a short link to the volume casing; the two lugs furthest from the pot stay empty.
- Each pickup's red lead goes to an outer toggle lug (neck to the upper one, bridge to the lower one); the toggle's joined centre lugs run to the volume's input lug.
- Each pickup's green lead and 'Bare Shield Wire' end on one solder spot on the volume casing.
- The toggle's frame lug is drawn with a ground symbol. Here it is wired to the volume casing; that is a routing choice, not a solder point shown in the source.
- No bridge ground wire is drawn on this sheet.
- Pickup series printed on the sheet: all 4-conductor 'AC' and 'H' series humbuckers.
- The source does not number the toggle positions; the lugs are mapped by what they do (neck, both, bridge).
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 | Volume casingBare Shield Wire. | Shield or groundbare | |
| 3 | Bridge green | Volume casing | To a pot casinggreen | |
| 4 | Bridge bare | Volume casingBare Shield Wire. | Shield or groundbare | |
| 5 | Toggle frame lug | Volume casingThe source draws a ground symbol at the frame; the route to the casing is a routing choice. | To a pot casing | |
| 6 | Push/pull left lug nearest the pot | Volume casing | To a pot casingblack | |
| 7 | Push/pull right lug nearest the pot | Volume casing | To a pot casingblack | |
| 8 | Volume right lug | Volume casing | To a pot casing | |
| 9 | Volume casing | Jack sleeve | Wireblack | |
| 10 | Neck red | Toggle upper outer lug | Wirered | |
| 11 | Bridge red | Toggle lower outer lug | Wirered | |
| 12 | Toggle centre lugs | Volume left lug (input)Drawn grey. | Wire | |
| 13 | Neck black | Push/pull middle right lugJoined with the neck white. | Wireblack | |
| 14 | Neck white | Push/pull middle right lugShares the lug with the neck black. | Wirewhite | |
| 15 | Bridge black | Push/pull middle left lugJoined with the bridge white. | Wireblack | |
| 16 | Bridge white | Push/pull middle left lugShares the lug with the bridge black. | Wirewhite | |
| 17 | Volume middle lug | Jack tipDrawn grey. | Wire |
What each position does
| Setting | The source | Engine result |
|---|---|---|
| Neck, knob down: full humbucker | — | Neck Pickup (both coils). |
| Neck + bridge, 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 | — | Neck Pickup (split to one coil). |
| Neck + bridge, knob pulled: both split | — | Neck Pickup (split to one coil) and Bridge Pickup (split to one coil) in parallel. |
| Bridge, knob pulled: single coil | — | 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 Tonerider 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
- Knob down: in each toggle position the meter across the jack reads the selected humbucker, or both in parallel in the middle.
- 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.