dodgy electrics diagnosis

fourmations

hi all

aghh, my two week old cij jazzmaster has a wiring issue

is it dangerous to take off the pickguard and touch the electrics
while its plugged in,so i can try and test the suspect solders etc

in the lead position the guitar is cutting out when I touch the volume knob
or the bridge pickup!! and even the trem seems to be getting in
on the act occasionally, althought this may be coincidence.
in rythym mode everythings hunky dory

this is from ishibashi so i cant be bothered sending it back

i will open it up and see if there is any obvious problems
but I was wondering if someone may be able to pinpoint
the problem or guide me as to what to try, i am not a guitar tech-type

i am opening it up in a few minutes, so if anyone can reply that
would be great, especially the safety issue

rgds

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Voodu Child

Theres no safety issue.

Its unfortunate that a new purchase needs a bit of work before you can wham away on it.:(

fourmations

thanks voodoo

i opened it up and it just went away
and then when i closed it, the problem came back!

does it sound like a dodgy volume knob?

here a schematic...the lower volume is the problem one



rgds

Johnny Storm

{Not an Expert;) }
If the problem went away when the guitar was open and came back when you reassembled it then it sounds to me like some part of the wiring is touching something that it shouldnt when its all crammed together inside the guitar. Try putting electrical tape over the contacts when the wires are soldered into the pickup selector, knobs etc or anyplace else where where wires might touch something anything conductive. Also, is the jack screwed in tight?
I would contact Ishibashi and let them know about the problem. They might spring for a local repair.

Doctor J

What Johnny said. It looks like the plate is creating an earthing short when it's put on, it's touching something it shouldn't be touching. I would suggest using tape to tidy up the wiring so that there is no nest of wires all over the place, so no wire naturally is at rest in a place where it will be in contact with the plate when you put it back on. No wire should protrude out of or above the cavity with the plate off, if you know what I mean.

fourmations

thanks for the input guys

I though it would have been the volume knob thats dodgy
but that would not explain the shorting when touching the pickup casing

the jazzmaster has a lead/rythym switch that changes the sound
and the problem is only on the lead setting so it may be easier
to trace as i can rule out lots of the wirings

will open it up again tonight and let y'all know

Worth noting....
Ishibashi have offered to collect and replace/repair
the guitar at their cost. I asked if I could drop it into
a Fender dealer in Ireland under warranty, they said that
no dealer will honour the warranty as it is from Fender Japan
and they are not supposed to sell japanese Fender outside Japan,
although they did anyway!
Good ol' Ishi, fight the power!

Regards

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