How do I get rid of Static in my Pickguard?

[999369]

Is not easy job for everyone , all wire must in right place if not pickup guard can not put it back

[Ol' Fret]

Thanks, Rob, for explaining the triboelectric effect and the function of the dryer sheets in this context - really appreciated!


Thanks, Max and 999369 for your welcome! It's great to experience how some guitar buddies even deal with minor guitar problems... this makes the difference between good guitars and very good guitars.


>> You should change your sign on to , "Ol' Genious".. <<

Max, with all due respect, I'm fine with "Ol' Fret" because it gets to the heart of the matter. From time to time some uncomfortable thoughts may appear, sort of
t h i n k i n g

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"Ol' Genious"... would be a bad imposture, and the wrath of the gods would be certain to me.
I think most of us are in no small part standing on the shoulders of teachers, friends and other great human beings - at least, I do. The credit is to them.
Thank you!

[sgosnell]

One of the primary functions of dryer sheets is to eliminate "static cling" caused by electrostatic buildup on synthetic fabrics, greatly exacerbated by tossing around inside a dryer with other clothes, in very hot air. If they work for that, they work for eliminating other static electricity.

As for why Gibson used cellulose instead of other plastics, that's probably because the newer plastics hadn't been invented back then. They used what was available. When better products became available, they switched to them.

[Bluedawg]

I'm not an electrician or electronics engineer but in my last life I had some very good ones on my staff and some of their twigityness rubbed off on me.. I believe it is what is called the triboelectic effect. The human skin and the material of the pickguard (depends on the material) are opposite each other when it comes to their charge potential. The act of rubbing the skin on the surface of the guard creates charging. The dryer sheets contain ingredients that bring the two surfaces closer to each other electrically. They also contain a lubricant which reduces the friction. The only time I've had to use them was when I lived in the UP of MI. Here in North FL even though it does get cold. It was 35 this morning but the humidity was at a decent level.

Interesting .... I don't remember this being a problem when I lived in areas with higher humidity ....

It seems to have started after I moved to Arizona ...

my guitar room seems to stay in the 30 to 50 percent range depending on the season, but outside it can get down to 10% or lower

and it was one of the guys at Rainbow Guitars in Tucson that suggested the dryer sheet

[Max405]

This problem is back. With a vengeance. It's bad on my 165 and not noticeable on the JS or Tal, which both have single ply guards. It got worse when I tried polishing out the haze on the pickguard. I guess I'm doomed with these multiply pickguards.
Joe D

[vinnyv1k]

Get some copper wire and tape it to your ankle and attach the other end to a cold water pipe Mr. Energizer Bunny. :-)

[JazzNote]

This problem is back. With a vengeance. It's bad on my 165 and not noticeable on the JS or Tal, which both have single ply guards. It got worse when I tried polishing out the haze on the pickguard. I guess I'm doomed with these multiply pickguards.
Joe D

Yep, doomed BUT: congratulations now you just need to find a single ply pg you like for the 165. Actually a nice and almost creative task ;-). Good luck finding the right one!

[Max405]

I am thinking about an L5 pickguard for the 165.
Theres a lot of "stuff" I'd have remove from the 165 guard that is glued down tightly.
The other plus, I can move the volume knob away from my errant paw swipes.. it might work out good.
JD

[rio]

I have had that issue more in guitars with the controls mounted on the pickguard. I never worked out how to fix it though


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[MacGringo]

Try rubbing a clothes dryer sheet on the pickguard

Yeah, this works, was having tHis issue with my Tele a while back. Clothes dryer sheet did the trick.

[Max405]

I think the big problem on this end is I create a lot of friction on the pickguard with my picking technique. The tips of my fingers tickle the pickguard back and forth for hours. I generate friction, or current and it doesn't play well with multi ply pickguards. Young genius (ol fret) figured this out last year for me. This has happened with every 175 I've ever had. My JS and Tal stay dead silent. I played the JS for 2 hours this morning and not a peep.
I will replace the pickguard on the 165 with an L5 type. It will actually allow me move the volume knob out of harms way. Right now, the 165 is pretty much not playable.
Never ends..

[vinnyv1k]

Bro lose the pick when you play chord melody. You can't have a static problem when all your fingers are on the strings. Just use the pick for single line. I started doing this a couple years ago. It is kind of like starting over but it's rewarding. I can't seem to develop my ring finger but I don't need it. It slowly just kind of comes to you.
I am at the age were I like playing slow anyway.

Joe Pass said when you play with your fingers you are playing 1 instrument. When you play with a pick you are playing 2.

Even when I play with a pick my hand never touches the pickguard. I anchor my wrist right behind the bridge and pivot from there. Dragging your fingers on the pickguard is like driving your boat with the anchor down.

When I was 61 I decided to completely change my technique. I have a very long way to go. You really never learn how to play the guitar. It is a life long effort to try to. The bag of tricks never fills up.

When I was a kid I played the clarinet. In 5 years I was darn good. I have been playing guitar for 45 years and still don't impress myself. The guitar is a mofo.

[Max405]

V,
I do play some fingerstyle. But completely changing over to fingerstyle at this stage probably would take some dedication. We will see...
I have a question.
I took the Guard off last night. Its gonna be a bear to get the BJB off. I really don't want to buy a new BJB. So..
Do you guys think that insulating the underside of the pickguard with the aluminum or copper will work? Id rather try that before I replace everything.

Thanks, Joe D.

[JazzNote]

V,
I do play some fingerstyle. But completely changing over to fingerstyle at this stage probably would take some dedication. We will see...
I have a question.
I took the Guard off last night. Its gonna be a bear to get the BJB off. I really don't want to buy a new BJB. So..
Do you guys think that insulating the underside of the pickguard with the aluminum or copper will work? Id rather try that before I replace everything.

Thanks, Joe D.

Joe, i have taken the BJB off my 98LeGrand pickguard with no problems. It had some plastic glued under it and the connecting part of the PU was sandwiched in between the plastic and the pickguard. Most probably it's the same with your 165. The LeGrand PG is semi transparent L5 style and i succeeded to get rid of all glue easily and since then have mounted and dismounted two pickups (glued) under the same original guard. The plastic reinforcement came off easily, actually is a total luxury and it's not needed. I also think that one (i) would be able to reinstall it to the original condition without problems at all. Just need to use the right glue ....

[vinnyv1k]

Have you tried several coats of Carnuaba wax on the pickguard ? I would think long and hard before ripping off the pickup. Copper tape on the under side with a ground lead to your volume pot housing ?

[Max405]

Joe, i have taken the BJB off my 98LeGrand pickguard with no problems. It had some plastic glued under it and the connecting part of the PU was sandwiched in between the plastic and the pickguard. Most probably it's the same with your 165. The LeGrand PG is semi transparent L5 style and i succeeded to get rid of all glue easily and since then have mounted and dismounted two pickups (glued) under the same original guard. The plastic reinforcement came off easily, actually is a total luxury and it's not needed. I also think that one (i) would be able to reinstall it to the original condition without problems at all. Just need to use the right glue ....

Jazznote, Thanks so much for your reply. Unfortunately, the 165 glue job is not as elegantly done as your LeGrand was. Its kind of a mess under there..
JD

Have you tried several coats of Carnuaba wax on the pickguard ? I would think long and hard before ripping off the pickup. Copper tape on the under side with a ground lead to your volume pot housing ?

Vin,
No I haven't tried the wax. But I will try the copper tape. I can actually feel the static under my fingers as I am playing. I tried the dryer sheets. They help temporarily but minutes later the static returns. Im hoping the copper or aluminum will insulate the controls and pickup from the static I am generating. Again, it only happens with these multiply black Gibson pickguards. The Tal and Johnny Smith pickguards are not a problem.
JD

[sgosnell]

I thought I had read that your pickguard had tape on the under side, guess I was mistaken. A proper installation would put grounding tape on the back side of the pickguard, to ground the pots. If it's not there, I would certainly apply some. I would ground that to the rest of the system with some thin stranded wire. The input jack is a good place to go to, but it might be difficult, and the pickup might be enough.

As for the glue, heat should help in softening it, but on a plastic piece it takes some care so as to not also melt the plastic.

[vinnyv1k]

Copper is better over aluminum. That might work Sparky.

[Max405]

I thought I had read that your pickguard had tape on the under side, guess I was mistaken. A proper installation would put grounding tape on the back side of the pickguard, to ground the pots. If it's not there, I would certainly apply some. I would ground that to the rest of the system with some thin stranded wire. The input jack is a good place to go to, but it might be difficult, and the pickup might be enough.

As for the glue, heat should help in softening it, but on a plastic piece it takes some care so as to not also melt the plastic.

SG, The only tape I put under the pickguard was black electrical tape. I used that to tape down the rattling wire going from pickup to volume Pot. The ground wire is from the input jack is touching the tailpiece, like the other Gibsons I have.

Copper is better over aluminum. That might work Sparky.

Haha.. I will use the copper tape. That's a good nick name for me. No one has ever complained about this before. Just me..
JD

[Max405]

My plan was to get rid of this pickguard with the guitar, but I love the guitar too much.
I took a lot of the advice that got here especially the foil idea and tried it and it worked.

I took The volume control off the pickguard. The only thing that remained was the pickup. I took some aluminum foil and used 2 coat rubber cement and coated the foil and the underside of the pickguard and stuck them together as neatly as I could.

Then I put the volume control back on and secured the pickguard to the guitar.

I still felt static in the pickguard so I cleared it out with a dryer sheet. (That was only a temporary fix before). Plugged in the guitar and played for 2 hours. NO STATIC at all!!!

Im happy. I really love this guitar. Now it's right. Well for now anyway.

thanks for all you help guys. I appreciate it.
Joe D

[JazzNote]

Joe, congrats to your success! I'm happy for you that it worked out!

[Max405]

I just played another 2 hours (got some time on my hands today). Very spirited Joe Pass stuff. Lotta pickin. Not a single tick. I think it's really fixed. I'm doing cartwheels.
I am a tinkerer. Even though I was strongly considering putting an L5 pickguard on this guitar, I don't like modifying Gibsons. They are the way their supposed to be. I am glad this guitar is fixed now. I haven't played it for a couple weeks. I missed it.
I have a special video in the works for you guys. Patrick's favorite guitar song, Lush Life. Filmed in a suite at the Borgata Hotel & Casino. It will be a treat. I will use the 165. End of the month. Promise.
Joe D

[QAman]

Joe,
When the static comes back I have the solution - lol. The Godfather- no static allowed.

[Max405]

That will do the trick even if the static never comes back.
That picture totally stopped me in my tracks. The ultimate. I want it.

[vinnyv1k]

Joe,
When the static comes back I have the solution - lol. The Godfather- no static allowed.

Lord have mercy !