Can you help me with this noise?

[thomas]

hello ric people,

this is my first post,

i bought my dakota 650 and love it to death. (well not really "to death")

the three way switch is chrome or chrome looking plastic. whenever i touch
it to change pickups it pops/crackles real loud.

if my left hand is on the
strings, it won't "pop/crackle"

is this a grounding problem?
or is the quality of the 3-way not up to snuff and should be replaced?

i appreciate your advice,

peace and understanding,

tom/dallas