Push-pull pot help? - Trouble with "pull" mode

[SpinWheelz]

I'm trying to use a push-pull pot as my bridge tone control in order to activate in- and out-of-phase sounds, and I'm having some trouble with the pot in "pull" mode.

I've wired it up as follows. As you can see, it's '50s wiring, with a push-pull as tone control.

Trouble is, when I select with the bridge pickup or both pickups, and pull the knob, the pickup goes dead. It works perfectly well when pushed in. I expect no change in sound when it's just the bridge pickup selected, but I get nothing at all when the knob is in pull mode. When both pickups are selected, they're perfectly in phase in push mode, but dead silent in pull mode.

I've tried re-soldering all the contact points on the pot. I've tried re-doing the criss-cross part, I've tried re-soldering all the grounding. But I'm still coming up empty.

Since the pot works perfectly well in "push" mode, could it be only specific lugs that are in need of some better soldering? If so, which ones? Would appreciate any help you can offer.

Cheers!

 

[SpinWheelz]

Ah, crap - I posted this in the wrong forum, didn't I. This isn't about pickups!

 

[MrRhoads]

wait and see...
it takes more than 30min to get answers

 

[Kate033]

Just on my way out the door but thought I'd post a quick reply. If you don't get a good answer from another forum member by the time I get back home, I'll take a closer look at it and see if I can help you out!

I have the same setup in two of my Les Pauls and similar in a tele. Here's the diagram I used:
http://www.deaf-eddie.net/drawings/1pp-phase.jpg
This shows the neck tone pot being used, but you can put the p/p with any pot as the pot and switch parts are independant. You do have to have an idependant ground wire on the pickup (like a 4 conductor pup). It shouldn't work with the braided shield type lead.

I had 4 p/p in one LP for a while with the "jimmy page" type wiring and I remember on tone knob did the exact same when pulled up. It was meant to be used as a kill switch I guess.

 

[SpinWheelz]

It shouldn't work with the braided shield type lead.

I think that's the ticket, Kate033. I got advice on the main Tonefreaks forum about the same thing. I'm using a Burstbucker Pro with two leads (hot and ground) wrapped in a metal braid shielding. If I wanna to do this, I may have to remove the pickup, cover up the braided metal wire, then re-solder the two leads to the push-pull pot.

Interesting thing about the diagram that you shared is that the two lugs closest to the main body of the pot are the ones used to connect to ground and the volume pot lug. I used to top two lugs - the pair farthest from the main body of the pot. Could that be contributing to the problem as well, I wonder?

 

[SpinWheelz]

Kate033, thanks a million for the observation and advice. I pulled out the pickup in question, covered the length of the pickup lead in the heatshrink tubing, then put it back in, and in connected the two conductor leads to the push-pull pot. It worked perfectly, both in- and out-of-phase modes. And the bridge pickup works again if the pot is "pull" mode. Isolating the metal braided shielding definitely was the trick. A million thanks for the advice! Really, really appreciate it!