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I use a volt-ohm meter and set it to read the DC resistance or ohms. The plugs on the ends of a guitar cord have a positive tip and a ground sleeve or shield. I first touch the tip and ground sleeve to make sure there is no short. If there is no short, the…

A cold solder joint is typically a connection in which insufficient heat has been applied. It can happen with eyelets and insufficient heat to melt the insulation on the magnet wire. It is best to physically hand strip the insulation to help insure a better contact.

I would check the electrical polarity or ground of the systems you are using. You can use a volt/ohm meter for check the polarity between various amplifiers you are using and especially between the amplification and the PA system. I’d always touch the strings of my guitar with the microphone to see if any sparks…

The most important tool is having a well lit working area. I find that using a good soldering iron, digital meter, rosin core solder, towel, wire snips, tweezers, wire strippers, small and medium Phillips screwdriver, small and medium slotted screw driver, nut wrench, contact cleaner and patience.

I like using a fluke digital meter because it gives me an accurate reading on the various pickups I work on. An analog meter is harder to read and the dial lacks the precise measurement I need. I just don’t use them anymore and the digital meters are getting less expensive.

I normally use the DC ohms setting on my meter to check the DC resistance of a pickup. It is used to check continuity on most pickups. There are several pickups where you don’t get a DC reading because of active circuits, batteries and custom circuits made within the pickup. You can use a digital…

A little trick I learned was to take a standard # 2 lead pencil that you use in school and remove the eraser. You can press the end without the eraser over the knurled shaft of the control, slide on the washer and nut and carefully lift the potentiometer through the hole and lightly fasten…

A series is when two coils or bobbins are connected in series end to end. The total sum of their DC resistance is added together. If one coil is 5 K ohms and the other coil is 5 K ohms the total sum of both coils in series would be 10 K ohms.

This can happen when the two wires of a bobbin are reversed and hooked up in series in a humbucker with opposite magnetic fields on each bobbin. Series-out of phase can happen when using multiple wiring or switching combinations in a pickup.

This is a typical wiring for a Gibson style humbucker. The beginning of the adjustable coil is grounded, the two finish wires are connected in series with each other and the beginning of the non-adjustable coil is positive. Typical humbucking pickups are hooked up in series and can be modified for series, parallel, in-phase or…