Rickresource Rickenbacker Forum

I have installed toasters on my 4004 bass . I used the gold covers from the humbuckers to keep the color scheme . I would like to put the left over chrome toaster covers on my wifes 330 . So....are the buttons on the hi gain pickups removable to make room for the toaster covers ? Thanks .

Yes it can be done but it's a bit tricky. Perhaps send an e-mail to Sergio. He will tell you how it is done.

There are also a few other forumites who have converted hi-gains to toasters who may chime in to give you the benefit of their experience. IIRC Jeff has the procedure (or at least he did the last time I looked) on his website.

http://www.3dentourage.com/425/restoration.htm

I have removed the polepieces, buzzed the buttons off with a Dremel tool, and put them back in. It's worked very well.

I followed Bob's instructions from a previous post and used a big, dull centerpunch to tap the poles out from the back side of the bobbin after peeling/prying the magnet off (the magnets are kind of rubbery). Once the poles are out, you then cut the buttons off the top end with the Dremel and a cut-off wheel. It's a good idea to mark the non-button end before cutting. After the button comes off it's kind of hard to tell which end is which and you want to put them back in the same way they sat originally. I suppose a hack-saw would work if you don't have a Dremel, but the poles are pretty hard metal. Then tap the be-headed poles back into their holes in the bobbin and until they're flush with the bobbin's top surface. Stick the magnet back on the back with a little bit of glue, add the cover, connect the wiring and you're done. You do have to tap the poles out with a fair amount of pressure as they're a snug fit and have spiral ridges, so they spin as they come out and go back in, but it worked fine. I used a block of wood with a slot cut in it to support the bobbin while removing and replacing the poles. The top of the block was padded with tape to prevent scuffing the bobbin's plastic top, since parts of it will show through the slots in the chrome cover. I set the bobbin on top with the back (magnet-side) up and tapped the poles out and down into the slot in the block. You can see the block behind the guitar in this photo. Attacking a piece of fragile, expensive electronic equipment with a hammer is a bit nerve-wracking and scary at first, but it's actually a pretty easy job once you get into it and doesn't take very long. Jeff has been able to just grab the poles with Vice-Grips and pull them out. I was afraid I'd chew up the top of the bobbin trying to get a good grip on them that way, so I opted to tap them out instead, but obviously both methods can work.

How does this surgery affect the sound of the guitar? Any noticable differences?

Sergio did mine. I don't notice any difference. Rickenbacker should offer this option IMO.

Cole

Just don't try to remove the polepieces from pre-1991 high-gain pickups...

Got it ! Thanks everybody !