Shielding for dummies

[Power_13]

Whenever I plug my guitar in, it hums more than a bee on speed. So this weekend, I've decided to take the plunge and shield it (the guitar, not the bee).

Thing is, I've never done this before. I know that I basically create a barrier of tape inside the guitar to prevent interference, but I don't know what sort of tape to use, where to get it, how thick a covering will be needed and what parts need covering.

So I thought I'd ask you experienced people :)

What I need to know is...umm...what sort of tape to use, where to get it, how thick a covering will be needed and what parts need covering. :-P


Thanks for any help :)

Poppingthescratchplateoffandhavingalookinside_13

[OneL]

I would recommend using shielding paint as it is much easier to apply in the cavaties and works great as well. You can then apply the shielding tape on the underside of the guard and you should be set.



Shielding supplier

[Watto]

I've found the quickest and easiest way is with copper shielding.Your local guitar store can get it and it's put out by dimarzio.One packet is enough to do aproxx 1 1/2 strats.

The Copper Sheilding Tape part number is EP1000

Then if you go to http://www.kinman.com/html/toneWorks...shieldingOlder

It explains the procedure.It also explains the shielding paint as well

Watto

[Tele-Bob]

So there I was jammin' on my Partsocaster Strat with Kinman Woodstock p'ups in it when the phone rang. It ended up being a very long conversation and I went straight to bed afterwards. The next day I went to work, came home, and picked up my guitar to start playing again. I ALMOST THREW THE THING OUT THE WINDOW when it made a loud noise through my Deluxe Reverb as I grabbed the neck to sieze it from the stand! It was a little scarey!

This guitar is so quiet, I had left the amp on for 24 hours and didn't even realize it! It's in a room directly across from my bedroom not 20 feet away and I didn't hear any hum, buzz or fizz all night. It's that dead quiet! Shielding on regular single coil p'ups does help to an extent. Shielding the guitar AND using Kinman p'ups makes the guitar dead silent.

That said, the paint seems to work very well.

[photoweborama]

Yes, I like the paint, and I "cheat" with it a lot and it still works.

Best thing I've found to get rid fo pickguard static problems also.

Stewmac.com...

They say 2 coats, but 3 is better. And wait 24 hours between coats... I've waited 1/2 hour between coats...

The worst I did was a 66 Fender Mustang. Man, it was so, so, so bad. Did three coats with 1/2 hour between coats. The guy said it did not even sound like the same guitar, it was so much better.

I started a new "policy" that every guitar I work on or help sell for someone, they have to allow me to shoot it and use the photos as backgroud screens (if I like the guitar, of course).

If you want to see the Mustang, you can go to my website and grab the backgrounds. It's not a commercial site, just a bunch of fun stuff for my friends....

Photo's Home Page


Oh yes, you can read this. It sort of has directions...

[rockntommy]

Yes, I like the paint, and I "cheat" with it a lot and it still works.

Best thing I've found to get rid fo pickguard static problems also.

Stewmac.com...

They say 2 coats, but 3 is better. And wait 24 hours between coats... I've waited 1/2 hour between coats...

The worst I did was a 66 Fender Mustang. Man, it was so, so, so bad. Did three coats with 1/2 hour between coats. The guy said it did not even sound like the same guitar, it was so much better.

I started a new "policy" that every guitar I work on or help sell for someone, they have to allow me to shoot it and use the photos as backgroud screens (if I like the guitar, of course).

If you want to see the Mustang, you can go to my website and grab the backgrounds. It's not a commercial site, just a bunch of fun stuff for my friends....

Photo's Home Page


Oh yes, you can read this. It sort of has directions...

photoweborama !
I have a new MIM tele that I was just about to use the copper sheilding tape on but after seeing your info on the paint and the high reviews, I think I am going to go this route. Nice site of info by the way.

[photoweborama]

I' glad it was helpful. I also did my daughters Epi SG. I was trying to record it and it was buzzing. I opened up the back and the shielding was so bad, it would have worked just as good if they had not shielded it. Huge gaps in the paint and translucent in areas.

I fixed that one up good.

[Power_13]

Thanks for the help :) It sounds a bit more complex than I anticipated...I just thought it'd be putting a few strips of copper wire around in the cavities then putting the pickguard back on :-S. I'll see if I can find any of that paint in a guitar shop

[OneL]

.... I'll see if I can find any of that paint in a guitar shop

You're probably not going to have much luck finding it in a guitar shop. Best bet is to order it online and save yourself some time and trouble. :yay

[Larry Kirker]

I just did a strat with heavy duty aluminum foil on both the back of pickguard and in the body cavity. I used spray adheasive to glue the foil to the guitar and the pickguard. I also replaced the pots and switch, which made a huge differance. Now I can play my strat at gig volume and not have any hum.


LK

[rockntommy]

I would recommend using shielding paint as it is much easier to apply in the cavaties and works great as well. You can then apply the shielding tape on the underside of the guard and you should be set.



Shielding supplier

My can of shielding paint arrived from StewMac today!
I will let you know how it goes. Should there be a grounding wire that runs to the bridge?
I would like to attempt to cover the bridge pickup with copper shielding tape. Any suggestions on that procedure? Thanks!

[photoweborama]

There should be a wire to the bridge, on a Strat it goes to the Trem claw.

I don't know about shielding the pickups themselves. Most don't do it because it changes the tone and from what I've been told, you can damage the pickups because you have to solder a wire to the new pickups shields to ground them and can heat the wax and wire insulation and destory them.

[rockntommy]

I think I will start with just the paint. My strat has the bridge grounded. I have not taken the Tele apart yet, but I know it is not grounded cause the hum should lighten up when I touch it. Just as it does when I touch the Switch plate.

[photoweborama]

It's fun stuff. I just bought an OLP I'm waiting for on eBay. After I change the strings in a couple of weeks, I'll take it apart anc check for shielding. I've been told they have already been done, but I've redone some really bad shielding jobs before....

[rockntommy]

So last night I take her apart to put in the first coat.
Glad to see there are CTS pots in there and the work is nicely done!
Painted the control cavity and both pick-up areas and put a 2nd coat on this morning.
There is no wire that runs from the bridge to any sort of ground. That would explain why it still hummed even with my hand on the strings.
I will run one from the bridge to the control plate. Third coat tonight and then a test run!

[photoweborama]

If you pickguard is not shielded, I'd paint it also. It will kill all static and shield it further. It works really well, I do it on all of mine.

[rockntommy]

If you pickguard is not shielded, I'd paint it also. It will kill all static and shield it further. It works really well, I do it on all of mine.

Good Point!
Will the paint stick to that plastic OK?
I guess I can scuff it up a bit first.
Thanks!

[photoweborama]

It will stick; just use masking tape to mark the sections. I clean it with alcohol first, but if it does not stick and just bubbles and feathers, just keep laying it on, it will work. It works better than foil because foil usually does not have conductive adhesive. This way there is no barrier to block the static from the shield that in turn runs to ground.

[rockntommy]

The neck pick up being kind of shielded anyway and was pretty quiet but I will do this anyway. The bridge was the noisy one and again these are the stock pups from the Mexico Factory... I like the tone for now and not yet ready to invest in pup experimentation. I have high hopes for the shielding paint and the added ground to the bridge.

[photoweborama]

This is a Tele or a Strat? Strats are grounded by the tremolo claw in the back cover. I don't know about Tele's, I've only taken clones apart and there is just a wire that gets smashed under the bridge.

[rockntommy]

This is a Tele or a Strat? Strats are grounded by the tremolo claw in the back cover. I don't know about Tele's, I've only taken clones apart and there is just a wire that gets smashed under the bridge.

Its a brand spankn new Tele MIM.

[rockntommy]

Well I put it all back together last night. I ran a ground wire from the bridge to the control plate. I think there should have been one there to begin with but who knows. Restrung and plugged her in. Holy crap!
No more hum! I dont know if that 3rd coat is the charm but I can not brag enough for this shielding paint! This stuff works great!

[Tarbender]

I've got a question about shielding that I hope someone can answer. I can't get StewMac delivered here and the price for copper tape from a local supplier is about the same as a new set of pickups would cost. Is aluminum foil a functional alternative? And will it work as well as copper foil? Anyone tried it?

[photoweborama]

yes, it works, but you have to make sure it grounds properly. People have used that tape they use for AC installs...

[photoweborama]

Well I put it all back together last night. I ran a ground wire from the bridge to the control plate. I think there should have been one there to begin with but who knows. Restrung and plugged her in. Holy crap!
No more hum! I dont know if that 3rd coat is the charm but I can not brag enough for this shielding paint! This stuff works great!

I know exactly how you feel. I was blown away after I did my first one. You can hear all kinds of stuff tonewise that was lost in the hum.

[rockntommy]

Yes...Blown Away! Did the copper tape thing years ago on a MIJ strat but this is so easy to do its stupid not too.
It one of those wacky things you would think the factory would do but that would take the fun out of doing it yourself and being more intimate with your guitar.

[rockntommy]

I've got a question about shielding that I hope someone can answer. I can't get StewMac delivered here and the price for copper tape from a local supplier is about the same as a new set of pickups would cost. Is aluminum foil a functional alternative? And will it work as well as copper foil? Anyone tried it?

Why wont they deliver this to you?

[Larry Kirker]

Check out guitarnuts.com for a complete shielding instructions. I followed these when I did my strat. I used aluminum foil and it is just as quiet as my Les Paul now. I did the foil only becasue I had it in the house and it is less of a mess than the paint.
By the way, it is all grounded. You have to extend the foil on the face of the guitar (under the pickguard) to the point where the pickguard screws go into the body (this makes a good connection with the shielding on the back of the pickguard) I checked all of this with a meter to make sure of ground. I hope yours turns out as quiet as mine did, good luck.


LK

[photoweborama]

Guitarnuts has some decent information, but a lot of people working in different fields that use grounding and shielding have stated that even though the principals are great ideals, many of them are overkill for the application.

There is not doubt that copper shielding will work better than conductive paint in a purely clinical test, but for the application of guitar shielding, paint does just as good a job.

Again, it suited to the application. Some applications, paint would be a waste, but in guitars, they are electronically a pretty low demand circuit compared to others.

Yes, Larry is right about lapping the shielding out of the body cavity and around a screw so it can make contact with the pickguard shield to ground it.

[rockntommy]

I have band practice in my buddies basement where the wiring there makes everything buzz....bad grounding there or something. And the tele hummed like crazy the first time I took it there.
So at practice last night I plugged her in, cranked the amp and the guitar was noise free. I mean there was no hum at all! Everyone there stood in awe.
One of the easiest upgrades I have ever done to a guitar with the most amazing results!

[photoweborama]

That's just too cool. I waited a year to shield my MiM Strat. I started playing at a little coffee house and I had to play everything super fast so there were breaks in between where you could hear the hum. After shielding, nothing... Huge difference.

[rockntommy]

After doing that acid test in a badly grounded situation, I have no fear of using single coils in some of the Bars I play with bad wiring, florescent/neon signs and all that other noise making stuff.

[OneL]