Sheraton II Electrics

[InLikeTheRose]

Hey Guys,

 

been looking around the website and I like it, lots of good folks. However I couldn't find the answers to a few questions I have about electrics for a Sheraton II.

 

I'll be replacing all the electronics in the guitar including pickups to Seymour Duncan 59's I think, anyone like these?.

 

I bought some CTS 500k Pots for the guitar, which fit in the F holes. only problem is they are 9.5mm (3/8") and my Asian made Sheraton II have 8mm holes for the pots so Looks like I'll have to drill them....anyone have any experience with this? or should I buy CGE mini pots which are 8mm, but I'm not sure if they are suitable length wise or have the same quality sound.

 

and finally I have access to Sprague Orange caps, and also RS GuitarCaps (which are way more expensive)...but which values are best for the humbuckers?

 

 

the sound I play is sort of Alternative rock.....BRMC, Kasabian, The strokes etc

 

 

help really appreciated!

[RaSTuS]

Hey Guys,

 

been looking around the website and I like it, lots of good folks. However I couldn't find the answers to a few questions I have about electrics for a Sheraton II.

 

I'll be replacing all the electronics in the guitar including pickups to Seymour Duncan 59's I think, anyone like these?.

 

I bought some CTS 500k Pots for the guitar, which fit in the F holes. only problem is they are 9.5mm (3/8") and my Asian made Sheraton II have 8mm holes for the pots so Looks like I'll have to drill them....anyone have any experience with this? or should I buy CGE mini pots which are 8mm, but I'm not sure if they are suitable length wise or have the same quality sound.

 

and finally I have access to Sprague Orange caps, and also RS GuitarCaps (which are way more expensive)...but which values are best for the humbuckers?

 

 

the sound I play is sort of Alternative rock.....BRMC, Kasabian, The strokes etc

 

 

help really appreciated!

Welcome ILTR, there's a great group of geet geeks available here, hope you enjoy it.

 

Don't put a drill anywhere near it, the best (safest) way is to put some 2" masking tape over the hole to protect the surrounding finish and prevent chipping at the edges, then get some 240 grit sandpaper and wrap it around a pencil and use that to open the holes up a bit. You can use a small file also, but extra care must be taken, best to only remove material on the down (into the body) stroke if using a file, to help avoid lifting the paint off the top. The first method is probably the best, and stick with the CTS. I actually buy Orange Drops by default, they are great and consistent quality at a very reasonable price, best value about IMHO.

[jcwillow777]

I have used CTS pots and had to enlarge the holes. I was really nervous the first time I did it, but it isn't a big deal. I went to a local hardware store and bought a small round file for a couple of bucks. Then I gently filed the holes out going up and down moving around the hole to keep it circular. I didn't have any problems with chipping, but I will say that at first I just used the file in a downward motion until I felt more confident in what I was doing. When I saw how slow it was going, I starting using an up and down motion, but gently. I checked frequently to make sure the hole wasn't too big by testing it with a pot. After getting all done, I vacuumed out the inside of the hole using a trick I learned from Stewmac. Attach a small piece of rubber tubing, say 1/2", to the hose on your vacuum cleaner and you can get it cleaned out pretty good. You will need to duct tape to the vacuum hose.

 

I like Sprague Orange Drop caps too, and use .022uf for humbuckers. Some like .015uf, it all depends on your taste, but .022uf work for me.

[Bookkeeper's Son]

Dudes, you've been doing it the hard way. A taper step drill bit works like a charm in mere seconds; finish off with a 3/8" twist bit. The professional way to do the job.

 

http://www.google.com/products/catalog?q=step+bit&oe=utf-8&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&client=firefox-a&um=1&ie=UTF-8&tbm=shop&cid=15445364824418276036&sa=X&ei=gUovTr3EDq3ZiALctc0r&ved=0CDMQ8wIwAA

[InLikeTheRose]

ok cool so I'll stick with the CTS pots! when you say .022 Orange Drop Caps is that for both neck and bridge humbuckers yeah? will that drastically change the sound or will it still be close to 335 sounding!?

 

thanks for the replies!

[RaSTuS]

ok cool so I'll stick with the CTS pots! when you say .022 Orange Drop Caps is that for both neck and bridge humbuckers yeah? will that drastically change the sound or will it still be close to 335 sounding!?

 

thanks for the replies!

0.022uf is generally the standard used for humbuckers, generally, but not always, and definitely not set in stone.

 

FYI: Caps are a cheap way to experiment with the geets output, I know of 3 ways to use them, there are probably others, if you add differently rated caps into the equation, it gives you a wide range of options to experiment with.

.

[InLikeTheRose]

ok cool, well I can stick em in and see how they sound!

 

been looking around at pickups (the internet is evil, makes you want lots of expensive parts!). I saw some people raving about Seymour Duncan Antiquities in a Sheraton II. Im intrigued.....would they be much better than the 59's...anyone have experience with these?

[RaSTuS]

ok cool, well I can stick em in and see how they sound!

 

been looking around at pickups (the internet is evil, makes you want lots of expensive parts!). I saw some people raving about Seymour Duncan Antiquities in a Sheraton II. Im intrigued.....would they be much better than the 59's...anyone have experience with these?

YES, the internet is deathly evil, for those reasons, and many, many, many others.

 

Thing is, there's no really right or wrong answers to pup choice questions, it's totally subjective, what one person hears is only what he hears, if you can follow that. The best thing to do would be to use YT et al, to search for demo videos on the models you're interested in, granted, the audio fidelity won't be that great, and it relies a lot on the poster's playing and recording gear, but you still should be able to discern the type of music each model sounds good with. Also many of the pup manufacturers websites have demo video and/or audio clips you can play to get more insight.