|
SOLDERING
TIPS FOR THE NOVICE
Q Can you explain how
to fix a broken guitar cable? What kind of equipment do I need for
the job?
Marcus Smith
Chicago, Illinois
A Whether it’s installing
a pickup, making custom cables, or doing a last-minute repair before
a gig, basic soldering skills are guaranteed to come in handy for
anyone plugging in acoustic guitars. A small investment in gear
and a little practice can make the difference between having a functioning
rig or not.
The equipment needed for simple soldering jobs is pretty basic,
but getting the right stuff will prevent frustration and potential
damage to components. A small 15- to 45-watt soldering iron is ideal
for most work around guitar electronics. High-powered soldering
guns usually don’t have tips small enough to offer sufficient control,
and their high heat can actually damage circuit boards. There’s
no need to spend lots of money. In fact, I’ve had the same $6.95
Radio Shack soldering iron since high school. You might also want
to invest in a desoldering tool (a "solder sucker"), a clip-on heat
sink, a little sponge, and a stand for the soldering iron itself.
I also find it helpful to have some large tweezers and needle-nose
pliers to hold components in place, as well as some wire strippers
and an X-Acto knife. It’s important that you use the right kind
of solder. Never use acid-core solder on electronic components.
The best solder for electronics work is rosin-core solder, and I
prefer a thin diameter. You might be able to find all the equipment
I just mentioned packaged together in a starter kit.
If you’ve never soldered before, I’d suggest that you practice
on a broken piece of equipment you don’t care about. The problem
in guitar electronics is usually a broken wire or loose solder connection
between the cable and the plug. Unscrewing the cover of the plug
will expose the two contacts (tip and sleeve) and allow you to assess
the damage. The cable’s center wire goes to the plug’s short contact
(tip), and the braided shielding (which is twisted together to make
a single lead) goes to the long contact (sleeve). Sometimes you’ll
need to strip the cable back a little to expose enough wire to make
the new connection; other times you can just create a new solder
joint with the existing wire.
While you prepare the jack, plug in your iron to heat it up. You’ll
know it’s hot enough when it easily melts a bit of solder placed
on its tip, a technique called tinning the iron. Now you can tin
the exposed ends of the stripped wire. Use the iron to heat up the
wire, which will in turn melt the solder and make the surface shiny
and silver. You have to be careful not to melt the cable’s insulation
during this step. If this becomes a problem, you may have to cut
off another inch or so of the wire and start over. Once you’ve prepared
your wire leads, you can get the plug itself ready. Essentially,
you need to tin the plug’s contacts the same way you did the wire,
but it will take a bit longer because the metal is thicker.
Now comes the big moment: joining the cable and jack together.
Don’t forget to push the screw-on cover and plastic insulation over
the cable before you make the connection, as you won’t be able to
do this after the plug is soldered in place. Because you’ve tinned
both the plug and the cable’s leads, all you have to do now is hold
the iron to the desired contact at the plug and, once the solder
is soft, attach the lead in place. The two pretinned parts will
flow together, and you’ll have to hold the two pieces still until
the solder has cooled and hardened. Once you’re done with both contacts,
clamp the wire retainer at the end of the plug around the cable
with some pliers, screw on the cover, and you’re done. If your cable
doesn’t work, compare it against one that you know is functioning
and try again. For further information, I recommend reading Guitar
Electronics for Musicians by Donald Brosnac (Music Sales Corp.)
and visiting the Web site www.aaroncake.net/electronics/.
—Teja Gerken
MILLIONS
OF STRINGS
Q
Do you know how many sets of steel strings for guitar are sold
annually?
David Fishken
Westford, Massachusetts
A
According to the April 2000 issue of The Music Trades, sales
of fretted instrument strings amounted to $150,764,000 in 1999.
This figure lumps acoustic and electric, nylon and steel all together.
No information is available about the number of units, but if we
estimate that an average set of strings costs $7, that would mean
that merchants moved about 21,537,000 sets of strings in 1999.
We know that 1,337,347 guitars were sold in 1999, of which 720,088
were acoustics. Of the acoustics, 659,088 were steel-string guitars,
which means that of all the guitars sold last year, about 49 percent
were steel-string acoustics. If we apply that percentage to the
string numbers above, we can guess that approximately 10,500,000
sets of acoustic steel-string sets changed hands in 1999.
—Dan Gabel
TIP
SHEET: TUNING MACHINE LUBRICATION
Got any great guitar tips or discoveries that you’d like to
share? Send them to Tip Sheet, Acoustic Guitar, PO Box 767,
San Anselmo, CA 94979. If we print your tip, we’ll give you a year’s
free subscription, gift subscription, or subscription renewal.
Here is this issue’s winner, submitted by W.C. Rostel of Santa
Rosa, California.
I’ve been frustrated by the dirt and dust that build up in my classical
guitar’s tuning machines when I lubricate them with conventional
household oil. Recently I tried a bicycle lubricant called KryTech
from Dupont. A single drop on each tuner flowed and penetrated the
machines thoroughly. When the product dries, it leaves a slight
waxy residue that provides excellent lubrication but resists dust
and dirt accumulation. I haven’t tested the product on the finish,
so be careful when applying it.
SEND QUESTIONS, tips, or observations to Acoustic Guitar’s
online discussion forums at www.acousticguitar.com
or write to Dear A.G., Acoustic Guitar, PO Box 767, San Anselmo,
CA 94979-0767.
Excerpted
from Acoustic
Guitar magazine, October 2000,
No. 94.
|
