DeArmond RythmChief 1100 - Pickguard & Electronics, how to refurbish?

[ctrlzjones]

Hey there,

I've got a pretty much destroyed pickguard with a great pickup with kind of rusty electronic parts (all of that was fully working a couple of years [ejem, or was it decades] ago).

Now I'd much like to restore all of it... But I'm not quite sure about how to go about it. I don't care much about the aesthetics but functsionality.

I suppose I could just get a new pickguard and transfer everything over. But what if I'd like to change the electronic parts too. There are no dates visible to known what is what... Are there any sketches of those parts for the RC1100 available? That original box it came with has been taken to parts a long time ago (and not by me...). Also some of the little screws have gone missing.

How would you suggest I'd go about this? Are you aware of an online order service that offers all the needed parts for making that operation a success?

[sgosnell]

If it were mine, I would just trash everything except the pickup, and use thumbwheels for the controls. You can get the Schatten wheels from several sources, and attach them under a new pickguard or even in the f hole of the guitar, with or without a pickguard. If you want the same form factor, you can get most or all of the components from Guitar Parts Factory. Pickguards can be purchased from many places - ebay, etsy, Reverb, Allparts, etc. That pickguard desperately needs to go.

Guitar Parts Factory - Guitar Parts

[citizenk74]

Hey there,

I've got a pretty much destroyed pickguard with a great pickup with kind of rusty electronic parts (all of that was fully working a couple of years [ejem, or was it decades] ago).

Now I'd much like to restore all of it... But I'm not quite sure about how to go about it. I don't care much about the aesthetics but functsionality.

I suppose I could just get a new pickguard and transfer everything over. But what if I'd like to change the electronic parts too. There are no dates visible to known what is what... Are there any sketches of those parts for the RC1100 available? That original box it came with has been taken to parts a long time ago (and not by me...). Also some of the little screws have gone missing.

How would you suggest I'd go about this? Are you aware of an online order service that offers all the needed parts for making that operation a success?

[ctrlzjones]

That pickguard desperately needs to go.

Hahaha. I figured that already...

The thing is that I want/need to understand the logic of the electronics. That is why I was asking for a sketch. The volume and tone knob are easy, but there is one switch that makes it sound thinner or thicker... Also I guess I would need the numbers for those new parts and how to solder them.

So I'd appreciate a little more details for that PickUp. I assume there are some drawings around where everything is listed...

[ctrlzjones]

This may provide some help:
DeArmond Rhythm Chief Wiring Diagrams - S. Nathaniel Adams

and there is also this, which looks similar to your layout:
DeArmond 1100 Rhythm Chief

This looks already good, but it's for the little brother...

Anyway, I contacted the blogger & see what happens.

Thank you.

[Woody Sound]

I once had once of these replated gold at a local place. If I reall, it didn't cost mush. Just gently remove the cover. But yours has some kind of screw in the hole where the monkey stick goes. You should get that out.

[ctrlzjones]

I once had once of these replated gold at a local place. If I reall, it didn't cost mush. Just gently remove the cover. But yours has some kind of screw in the hole where the monkey stick goes. You should get that out.

The main concern here is putting everything together again and get some sound out of it.
I don't care for cosmetics and the screw is there to hold everything in place. How do you think this is disfunctional? Though I may find a better set up with a new pickguard...

[sgosnell]

The usual way to mount the DeArmond is with a rod screwed to the neck, and through the hole that now has the screw in it. The mount is a bastardized installation, but it looks to work well enough. The rust need to go, however. The outgassing of the pickguard has corroded everything too much to be salvaged, except perhaps the bar holding the pickup. The screws, pots, switch, wiring - everything - needs to be disposed of. As I said, if it were mine I would mount it with a rod (or Blu-Tack, without any other attachment) and thumbwheel pickups. It's not mine, so it's perfectly fine to use standard mini pots installed in a pickguard. The wiring diagram is the same as any other pickup - one tone, one volume, and widely available online. I don't know what the switch does, precisely, perhaps bypass the tone control, but I would eliminate it. I can't imagine that it would improve the tone. A normally wired DeArmond Rhythm Chief sounds wonderful to me.

[floatingpickup]

The usual way to mount the DeArmond is with a rod screwed to the neck, and through the hole that now has the screw in it. The mount is a bastardized installation, but it looks to work well enough. The rust need to go, however. The outgassing of the pickguard has corroded everything too much to be salvaged, except perhaps the bar holding the pickup. The screws, pots, switch, wiring - everything - needs to be disposed of. As I said, if it were mine I would mount it with a rod (or Blu-Tack, without any other attachment) and thumbwheel pickups. It's not mine, so it's perfectly fine to use standard mini pots installed in a pickguard. The wiring diagram is the same as any other pickup - one tone, one volume, and widely available online. I don't know what the switch does, precisely, perhaps bypass the tone control, but I would eliminate it. I can't imagine that it would improve the tone. A normally wired DeArmond Rhythm Chief sounds wonderful to me.

I own a couple of rhythm chiefs. They are fabulous pickups, but that switch is basically useless in my opinion. If I were wiring a rhythm chief up to new controls on the pickguard, I would definitely eliminate the switch.
Keith

[Woody Sound]

The usual way to mount the DeArmond is with a rod screwed to the neck, and through the hole that now has the screw in it. The mount is a bastardized installation, but it looks to work well enough.

[ctrlzjones]

I don't know what the switch does, precisely, perhaps bypass the tone control, but I would eliminate it. I can't imagine that it would improve the tone.

If memory serves, the switch makes the tone "thinner". But of course... there not much need for it in todays world, so to simply loose it is a perfect idea.