Rickresource Rickenbacker Forum

I just had the pleasure to fix a problem with the wiring of my 360F (2nd version, 1967), and I think I found out why Rickenbacker will never do a reissue of this particular model: it's really a pain to install/deinstall the electronics through the holes in the body, and you need a lot of patience, aptitude and endurance to do so

It's actually quite easy using trained spiders.

My luthier instructor uses strange looking medical equipment.

So I take it you've never had the joy of rewiring a Gibson ES-335, eh?

It'll take years off your life in sheer frustration.....


The way I do it on all hollow guitars is to run wires through each hole, color-coordinated, (even guitar strings work), feeding them all through the soundhole and attaching them to their corresponding pot or switch, then pulling them all in at the same time. Presto!

That's the trick, of course. I use solid copper 12 gauge house wiring, taped around each pot shaft. Takes 5 minutes.

Yeah, it definitely gets easier with repetition.


I have heard of people using 1/8" medical tubing, going through the holes and then snugly onto the pot shafts (but still smaller than the threads), then pulling it all through and slipping the nuts over the tubing. Makes sense though I've never tried it.

Pssh, they wouldn't be reissuing that version anyway.

jingle_jangle wrote:That's the trick, of course. I use solid copper 12 gauge house wiring, taped around each pot shaft. Takes 5 minutes.

I discovered this technique working on Gretsch Tennesseans with an Electrotone hollowbody (painted f-holes.) These are a MAJOR pain to work on. First the strap knob hanger bolt must be removed, then the Bigsby. Then you can twist or solder a thin piece of wire to the grounding wire to pull it through. The only access to the interior is through the enlarged hole under the fingerboard pickup. I use the word "enlarged" loosely! Still, I'd go through these steps and more GLADLY if I had a Rick 360F to work on, especially if it were MINE!!!

sloop_john_b wrote:Pssh, they wouldn't be reissuing that version anyway.

Yeah - it took me a second to realize that y'all weren't talking about the '50s version.

360F's are ultra cool. I would gladly love the opportunity to affect repairs on the harness of such a guitar, if it were mine of course. I would be guilty of having a permanent grin on my face.

T V JONES has an excellent video showing the tubing attached to the pots and pulling it through the pot location holes on a gretsch 5120. He goes through the whole installation procedure. Click on instructional video left side. Now if we are talking about a 360f 1950s version we would just unscew the pickguard and make the repair.


http://www.tvjones.com/tech_specs/tech_specs.htm#wi

Tying string to the pot shafts works, too.

You're right kris I did my 6120 that way with bakery string. Installed all TV Jones electronics and 2 supertron pickups Including TV Jones Custom Harness. Wonderful results in tone. Check out the jeweled knobs early style no G with arrow pointers. Found them in local music store. This baby been played alot.

Those jeweled knobs are from a Falcon,very nice.

Right john, early falcon on the jeweled knobs. The question I get alot with this guitar is what do the 3 pots on the lower bout do? It has 2 volume controls and a master tone control and master volume on the cutaway. So you might ask why 2 other switches and not one? The answer to that is when tv jones made the custom harness and changed the cap values to be all different, extra tones are available at the flick of the switch. Also note that the bottom tone pot will give you additional tones in this circuit. Now you know how certain old gretschs sound muddy, using the older type caps on the tone switch. The caps he chose sound cleaner, no muddiness. I play this guy alot. Since the install of the supertrons and the harness the gretsch turned into a tone machine.