Changing magnet polarity

[Rusty]

Dear dudes, I have a USA Stratocaster with Texas special pickups but the bridge pickup ceased to work anymore and I was given another good Strat bridge pickup and I installed it. In the pickup selection were the middle and bridge pickups are on I now get that kind of buzz as you would if you are using only a single pickup. I discovered that the polarity of the magnets on the new pickup is the same as the middle pickup by using a compass. By reading about pickups in a Strat I found out that it should be the opposite to the middle and the same polarity as the neck pickup, is that is correct ?

If so would it be much trouble to change the magnets the otherway around to correct it? I am thinking about warming the pickup to about 50-60 degrees celcius to slightly melt the wax then push them out and push them back in the opposite way around. What do you's think?

[Peter H. Boer]

I think the risk of damaging the pickup is very great when you try to turn the magnets.

Why not simply reverse the wiring on that pickup, as - times - = +
Should work exactly the same  :thumb-up:

[rnolan]

Hey Rusty. I agree with Peter. I wasn't aware that the middle PU polarity should be opposite in a strat. There was a really good article that I think SC posted a link to? regarding PU polarity and an easy way to check using a screw driver. It also listed a range of popular PUs and their respective coil polarities, until I read that article, I'd never considered polarity before. Unfortunately I've lost that link on my now dead PC.

[El Chiguete]

I wasn't aware that the middle PU polarity should be opposite in a strat.

Thats why position 2&4 on a strat dont have the single coil noise   ;)

[Rusty]

Yea i agree, I could very easily wreck the insulation coating on the copper wire and then thats a perfectly good pickup destroyed. Ok advice taken, a new pickup that matches is what I need instead of messing around, cheers.

[Peter H. Boer]

Ok advice taken, a new pickup that matches is what I need instead of messing around, cheers.

No need for that, just reverse the wiring on that pickup. Ground t + , and the + to ground.
That should do the trick

[Rusty]

Hey Peter thanks, I already tried that, it puts the two pickups into a kind of thin, not much use sound, as though they are cancelling each other out big time. It's the magnetic field of the pole pieces of the brigde pickup that are the wrong match for the other two that needs changed around. 

[El Chiguete]

You put them out of phase then.

[Peter H. Boer]

You put them out of phase then.

I was asuming there are phasing problems due to the swapped polarity
What you want is

Bridge - middle - neck
    N         S         N      polarity
  CCW     CW      CCW    windings
Or vice versa versions of that.

If there is no phasing issue now, eventhough the polarities are wrong as N-N-S
better swap neck and middle pickup then (bridge picup has higher output, middle and neck shoudld be the identical)
Then check the 2nd and 4th pickup position for phasing problems and humbucking quality. If there are reverse the wiring on the middle pickup.

Peter  O0

[Rusty]

 :)I Never thought about swapping the neck and middle pickups, :) and that's a very good explanation.  They are very close DC resistance wise anyway so no big deal eh!
Thats a whole load off my shoulders Peter, Thank you so much, I'll keep you posted.   :thumb-up:

[rnolan]

Or (this is my slightly wine induced thought bubble  :facepalm: ), you could wind the middle PU as far "down" as it can go (as like Blackmore, for me it just gets in the way of where I pick), Put a SD hot rail strat PU  >:D in the bridge with a series/parallel switch, and use the middle PU as a tone suck/shape for some interesting sounds/tones (this is how I run my Anderson BTW with Ultrasonic PUs).

[Peter H. Boer]

:)I Never thought about swapping the neck and middle pickups, :) and that's a very good explanation.  They are very close DC resistance wise anyway so no big deal eh!
Thats a whole load off my shoulders Peter, Thank you so much, I'll keep you posted.   :thumb-up:

:thumb-up:

[Rusty]

Hey Peter, I done what you suggested and I swapped the neck pickup with the middle pickup and guess what? Its perfect again!  :),  All is good Peter and thank you so much for your advice. And thank you everyone else too for your input.
I'm all happy with my favourite Strat again.  :)

Thanks everyone, this is a great forum with great people! 

[Peter H. Boer]

Hey Peter, I done what you suggested and I swapped the neck pickup with the middle pickup and guess what? Its perfect again!  :),  All is good Peter and thank you so much for your advice. And thank you everyone else too for your input.
I'm all happy with my favourite Strat again.  :)

Thanks
everyone, this is a great forum with great people!

:thumb-up:

[rnolan]

Go Peter  :thumb-up: :whoohoo!: , Hey Rusty, happy to have you here and (I suspect I speak for all of us) happy to help where we can  :metal: