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ce. 1960 Rickenbacker 105 Work progress for S. Ochoa Reassembly |
Pickup cleaned up, inspected, tightened, retaped, new correct style screws installed and ready for Steel's reassembly. |
Bottom view of pickup. |
Bottom view of pickup. The coil's ground lead grounds to the pickup's aluminum base plate via a "fish-eye" end-connector under the screw, which is in turn grounded to the electronics plate via the pickup's screws. Red wire is the "hot" lead (said "hot" for orienting wiring polarities) and connects to yellow "hot" harness wires. ON ALL RICK HORSESHOE PICKUPS THESE WIRES SHOWN HERE HAVE EXTREMELY DELICATE DIRECT CONNECTIONS TO THE PICKUP COIL WIRES; So be most careful if ever working around them. |
Blue wires are the case-ground side of the harness going to the output jack. I extended the wiring harness so the electronics plate could be conveniently accessed in the future without having to unsolder the output jack wires. Black junctions are heat shrink binding and insulating the harness solder joints. See slightly different angle in next picture. |
There is not enough clearance to run wires under or around the pickup in the body cavity; They must be tucked into the spaces between the front and rear of the pickup and it's electronics plate bezel. |
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The anxious moment of Truth; Will the pickup sense the tuning fork applied to any place on the Steel without the strings installed .....as Rickenbacher / Rickenbacker Horseshoe pickups should ! ! ! ? ? ?. YESSIREE ....The pickup hears and reproduces the tuning fork on the tip of the headstock almost as loud as the tuning fork applied to the top of the pickup ! ! ! That's the character of these Ricks conducting sound through their wood bodies which is picked up by the electronics plate like a sound wave antenna and transmits the body's sound conductance and resonance into the pickup. |
The neck's strings nut has 2 small hemispherical protrusions that register into much large sockets in the neck. This is so that non-permanant glue can be put into the sockets to register the nut latterally during manufacture or if a Player desires a different eye paralax of the eyes view of the neck . Last night (Wed. 3-19-08) I noticed that the nut was offset a bit too much to the bass side, so I cleaned out the sockets and refilled them with "elmers" type carpenters hide glue. After drying overnight the glue will be just soft / hard enough to seat the nut's 2 protrusions into a correct latteral register. The picture did not capture the contrast between the nut placed on it's side and fretboard, so I artificially framed the nut and protrusions in grey below so you can see the nut and it's 2 registering protrusions that seat into the receiving sockets filled with hide glue. Tommorrow it will be ready for strings installation and final set-up adjustments. ------- Notice the much nicer sheen of the finish's oils having been replenished. |
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After the set-up is done, I have a few things to tidy up the hardshell case. That glue will have to dry overnight as well. That will give me a chance to play this Rick for an hour or two as I almost always do to bid an instrument a fond farewell and notice any further suggestions from a Players standpoint. Then it's ready for packing and shipping to it's new home and a new life of giving much musical enjoyment; Pretty good karma for an inanimate creation .....although I can't help think that a music instrument acquires a soul of sorts from it's purpose and the music that flows through it. Oh well, ....so I'm a nutcase ! |
The neck nut's registering sockets cleaned out and refilled with new non-potted hide glue to reset the nut's latteral alignment; See next pic and text. |
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