Pickups bleeding through when completely shut off

[52 Bill]

Are the switches single throw or double throw?
Do you have access to a capacitance meter?
Did you disassemble the switches or just spray in the cleaners?

If the switches are double throw, you could rewire the switch to use the second position to ground out the pickup coil.

If you have a cap meter, read the capacitance across the open switch contacts.

Last resort, open up the switch and carefully remove the bottom contact panel. Be careful not to lose the wiper inserts. Then inspect the contacts and the wafer board. You may be able to scrape out any contaminants between the contact points. If you have never done this before, you may want to take apart another similar switch before tearing into your vintage ones.

And then there is the possibility that these switches worked this way from day one.

[alpheusiam]

The switches are single throw. I have not disassembled them yet, however I am competent to do so. They show zero capacitance bleed at any level with either of my high quality commercial grade meters. However, when running a 9vdc battery through them, they both read a voltage leak in the off position of approx. 0.04 vdc. I plan on opening and cleaning them as soon as I have a replacement option. As you know these tiny metal fold over tabs that hold electronic parts together don't like bent more then the original first time. So only as a last desperate option or with good replacement parts will I bother, since the guitar sounds great and I can control the bleeding with shutting off volume along with the switch, I'll be patient. I have at least 40 other guitars to play lol! I no longer believe this problem is affecting overall output volume. I've used a variety of oil and residue cleaning solvents and drying methods with some reduction of the original 0.90 vdc leakage down to 0.04 (alcohol, naptha, lacquer thinner, electronic cleaner with out lube, high pressure air, and hot blow drying afterwards) any other intact cleaning suggestions or solvents would be appreciated. I really believe it may be inherent in the gray fiberboard bottom as suggested in an earlier thread.

[jrfrond]

I have a radical idea for you.

Using a Dremel tool and a small burr bit, slot out the area between the contacts. Then, using a piece of masking tape as a barrier, fill in the slotted area with PlastiPair acrylic resin. This is solely for structural integrity. I don't know what the switch wafer looks like, but you might not need it.

I've used this technique on carbonized PC boards with excellent results.

Just a crazy little idea for a crazy little switch!

[J M Fahey]

rocker switches with fiber bottoms

Fiber is not a perfect insulator. Just that.

[alpheusiam]

Hey! This is my kind of thinking and you have clearly beat me to it! Man I hate when that happens! I gotta say I love your idea and it keeps my switches original and if it works keeps me from the really difficult matching of size (holes on center) stlye (stackpole rockers from the 60's) and the enternal searching for spst black stackpole rockers from 45 years ago that might also be bad as nos. Just a crazy little idea for a pair of crazy little switches! And when looking at them it just might work. Here's an ebay link to a similar switch as far as the bottom looks, however this switch is an on/mom/on where mine is a simple spst on/off and has a shallower mount depth, these would stick out way too far on my pick guard and that momemntary thing, but the bottoms really look alike anyhow. It just might work. STACKPOLE *** SPDT ROCKER SWITCH *** ON - MOM ON - eBay (item 260101074495 end time Oct-05-10 13:27:39 PDT)

[jrfrond]

I'd get those switches and transplant the wafers, assuming they fit. I can tell you right off the bat that those type of rocker switches are no longer made by any company. That might be the best shot you have.