Pickup tape alternatives

[GunbarrelCustom]

I have been lurking for some time and have found so many great suggestions! I just wound my first coil today! Woohoo! It is a P-90 kit with a dogear base from another kit and it is going in a LP Jr TV I built last autumn. Since I play a lot of slide I wanted something fat, so I put 12,500 winds of 42 poly for a dc of 10.6k Ohms. I have some rough cast A5 magnets I am going to try first.

Mojotone finally got pickup tape back in stock and I have some coming, but in the mean time what else can I use for pickup tape? Does the tape go on before or after potting?

I have the start and end wires coming out the hole on the bottom of the bobbin (currently taped to the bottom of the bobbin) and I installed the screws and keeper. How do I solder the two leads to the vintage style braided wire that exits the the dogear plate and goes to the volume pot? I do have a working dogear that I had in the guitar, but since it is potted I can not easily take it apart to see inside. It is a great pickup and I do not want to sacrifice it if possible!

Thanks in advance.

[big_teee]

Stewmac has instructions on building P-90s.
They show soldering the shield to the baseplate.
STEWMAC.COM : Instructions for P-90 Pickup Kits with Plastic Bobbin
I lightly paper tape my bobbins before potting.
I either put a rubber band over the tape, or tie string around the tape to keep it put while potting.
After cooling I use the cloth tape over the paper tape for cosmetics.
The second taping may not be necessary on a covered pickup.
I do the second taping on uncovered humbuckers.
T

[GunbarrelCustom]

Thanks Big_teee! My eyesight must be getting worse! I even printed out those pages and did not make out a few things that would have made winding a bit easier. I have more P-90s on the way that are planned for T style bodies so next time should be easier.

Is black electrical tape a big no-no for wrapping the coil? I want to try it out, but it is sure to squeal without tape. Maybe Mojotone could hire me to forecast sales and manage inventory of pickup parts as they are always out of so many things.

I want to wind some humbucker coils for the neck of my Tele, but I want to hear how the first one turned out before doing too much.

[big_teee]

Pickup winders mainly use paper and cloth tape.
Here is a source at U-Line for black paper tape.
1/4" x 60 yards Black Masking Tape S-7161BL - Uline
You have to buy 12 rolls, should last a casual winder a while.
We also have the beginner/hobbyist area.
Pickup Makers
Also there is the resources thread for parts info, etc.
http://music-electronics-forum.com/t30228/
Good Luck,
T

[David King]

A bunch of us (I think) are potting and then wrapping the teflon plumber's tape over the coils before applying any other tape. That way there is less chance of stickum snapping a wire if someone ever decides to examine the coil later. It looks neat, takes up very little space and is totally reversible. I wouldn't hesitate to wrap with black electrical tape or black masking tape over that. The cloth tape is just a little more compliant, it can shape-shift to fit down over a lumpy coil.

[John_H]

I like the idea of the teflon wrap. One more thing to consider is that the adhesive on some tapes is conductive, so beware what you use.

[big_teee]

you can stretch teflon a bit, but 1/2 inch teflon doesn't fit on 1/4 inch gibson style bobbins to good.
I haven't seen any teflon narrower than that, what do you guys do.
On fender bobbins, most of them are left untaped, so I don't see where the teflon would help on humbuckers or p90s.
Do you guys use it on these pickups?
It would work great on the tall bass bobbins for soapbars.
Also on humbuckers if you pot them, you need the tape to support the hookup wire to the bobbin.

T

[Jim Shine]

I have been using an unknown brand of black paper tape used in the lighting and production industry specifically for cables and wires. It looks good and I am happy with how it works on coils. But I have a problem with how the 1/2" stuff lays down to cover the lead areas. It leaves wrinkles and creases on the bends.

[GunbarrelCustom]

Thanks! I have a bunch of teflon tape left over from my old Jazzmaster trem arm. So, I guess I can wire it all together and pot it while I wait for the black tape to arrive. I am so busy with other things non-guitar related I may not even get to potting until the tape arrives anyway. I also need to rig a double boiler.I use only hot hide glue on my guitar builds so I do have that, but the part that holds the glue is too small and I do not think it would be good to have wax and glue in the same pot.

I asked about electrical tape because it looks like what Don Mare uses on his Strat pickups so people do not catch the wires with a sharp pickup cover.

[GunbarrelCustom]

I soldered it up and installed it in my double cut LP Jr. It sounds amazing! I'm actually surprised it sounds this good lol! It will be interesting to hear how feedback resistant it is when I get to play it at stage volumes.

It's 12:30 in the morning and now I want to wind another P-90 for my carved top LP I made. Just what I need. Another addiction I have no time for lol.