Custombuckers: convert to 4-wire or buy others?

[Happy Tree]

My dream of getting the 3-pickup black custom LP fitted with on/off and phase switches for each pickup necessitates 4-wire pups, I believe. Custombuckers are not 4-wire. So there's a conundrum.

I won't be doing any of the work myself. I'm not a solder soldier. So, would I be confident asking the local luthier who builds his own excellent LP-like guitars to open the CBs and add the necessary wires? I could ask. Or would it be a better bet to just replace them with pups that are already 4-wire? I'd need to get 3, then.

Then of course the question is which ones? On an all-mahogany body. Do CBs come in 4-wire versions? Or could I take the opportunity to use a different brand? Just mulling it over. I don't even have the guitar yet Just thinking through what I might plan to do with it.

 

[jb_abides]

CustomBuckers are only 2-wire. Surgery conversion possible; that's delicate work, make sure to vet the tech/luhier.

I would be shopping, because 4-wire implies you are also going to replace the wiring harness. Only 57 Classics are in the ballpark from Gibson, so going wide apeture brings more options.

What do you want out of the guitar with a 3-pup 4-wire configuration, just splits per?

 

[Happy Tree]

No not splits. If possible, I'd like on/off switches for each pickup, plus in/out phase switches. Leaving 2 pots for master tone and vol. And the old pup toggle switch for series/parallel. May not be feasible or may sound bad. Just wondering about options.

 

[jb_abides]

Assuming you are looking at 57s... Maybe go Made-to-Measure and request what you want?

 

[GreenBurst]

Maybe you can use this to be less invasive with your mods.

https://www.freewayswitch.com/products/

 

[Mr. Papa]

Purchase New Guitar Pickups

tombrantleyrewinds.com

This is the guy you want for converting your pickups to 4-wire. He’s a pro and good to work with.

 

[poor man's burst]

Any decent guitar tech should be able to change a pickup wire.

 

[Amp360]

For the money you'll spend, and because CBs fetch a decent amount on the second-hand market, I would sell and look at a set of Duncan or DiMarzios.

 

[Wilko]

no need to four-wire, but it would be simpler than isolating the braided shields.

 

[zacknorton]

Freeway 6 way toggle is the way to go. listen to Greenburst . I'd suggest getting the one with the wiring loom attached... makes things MUCH easier. These switches are available from a WIDE variety of re-sellers and at a fairly wide price swing too. but the switch is a total problem solver.

 

[Happy Tree]

I'm now thinking of a simpler setup. Just individual switches for each pickup. That gives me all 8 possible combinations and obviates the need for any 4-wire changes.

Since the standard switching includes bridge and middle OOP, which pickup is physically made OOP? Bridge or middle? I wouldn't really need more phase options, then. That would be quite enough!