Bought a Texas Special pre wired pick guard. Using this video, I successfully installed it in my 40th Anniversary American Strat in less than an hour. This was also my first time soldering, so this video was fantastic help!
I put two Wide Range humbuckers - same pickups as a Telecaster Deluxe - in my one Strat recently and it came out great. I did need the Strat routed for the pickups, but that only set me back about $40. I've dubbed the guitar the "Stratocaster Deluxe."
Good idea ! Would you make a movie about how set up pickups, what high is proper for each of them, like single coil and humbucker. Tele and strat. That could be as well interesting form many.
I’ve always disliked the white pickguard on my sunburst strat and there was no way I was going to even attempt pulling the pickups out to install a new one. But the pre-wired ones are a good option and this guy makes it look pretty easy.
This is way harder than just changing the pickguard man, you just have to unscrew them and screw them in the new one. May seem scary but it’s a lot easier than you’d think.
Hey "Miami" Mike. Great video. Fender makes it so easy to swap out pickups. I'm about to put the Tex-Mex assembly into my Strat. Thank you, and Fender. 🤘🏽
If you are going to solder on top of your expensive stratocaster at least put down a piece of newspaper or old towel. Solder can sputter and a small bead of hot solder will leave a lovely pin sized burn mark on your paint. This is very evident with a white guitar.
The Stratocaster - is a Harsh Mistress - the entertaining factor is unbeliefebale your screwing is very good and the construction is iconic be shure if you do something wrong - the Instrument gives you Feedback so thank you Fender as always
If my new loaded pickguard doesn’t have that wire that is supposed to be screwed to the body/shielding? Is any shielding completely useless? Can I add that wire in?
i think about changing the pickups from my 2002 MIM Strat with a pre-wired pickguard. Now i´ve seen there is an additional shield-cable with was screwed into the body. My strat body is not shielded, so do i need to shield the body first or can i ignore the cable an use the other 3 cable ? thanks for your support
@Équinoxe none of those are jokes. A more concise list including restatements of the same joke: 1) I identify as an attack helicopter 1b) did you just assume my identity 1c) we have as many jokes are we have genders Etc. It's all one joke really, said different ways.
Thanks for this Mike. I have an 80s strat. There is a terminal under the input jack that goes to the screw attached to the body. The guitar doesn't have a backplate but I can see the wire which is fed thru and appears just above the ground screw. that's 5 connections and I only have 4 wires. Can you help? Thanks, Mike H.
Just beware that some Fender Strats have a truss rod adjustment where the neck meets the body and that adjustment wheel requires a NOTCH that won't exist on a standard replacement pickguard kit. I just replaced the pickups on my 2017 Fender Elite strat which has this notch. My solution, rather than buy a specific pickguard for the Elite/compatible notched layout, was to buy a pull loaded pickguard (cheaper vs. individual components of same quality/spec) and then cut my own notch. I used a dremel. I used the old guard to make a paper template for the notch and marked the back of the new pickguard and used a cutting wheel on the dremel to (relatively) slowly cut the notched shape and a dremel low abrasion grinding tip to smooth it out. With the notch added, the pickguard fit into place perfectly. Just be mindful of your own guitar and if the loaded pickguard's common shape matches what you need and, if not, have a plan to deal with it. Full confession, I did NOT account for this but thankfully I had a dremel and quickly figured out a way to fashion a fix for it.
Hello there. I have bought a Strat body without any cables and stuff and I ordered a prewired pickguard. Also I don’t have any cables for the jack entry or ground cable on the back. How can I istall the pickguard?
What do you do when the pickguard holes don't line up with existing? I got a hss fender squier fat strat guard to put on my son's fender strat. He wanted a double humbucker basically so thought it looked online like it would match. Holes didn't line up but 3 lol. I'm new to this so kinda clueless. Figure drill new holes or did I get the wrong guard completely? It Works fine tho 🤷♂️
what's the wiring setup for these pickguards? Is traditional like first tone for neck, 2nd tone for middle, and bridge has no tone control? Or is it wired like the player strats, with first tone for neck/middle, and 2nd tone for bridge?
I really like these, pretty straightforward, though I have soldiered anything in donkey years , I have guitar that came with P90's somedays you love them and other days its like fighting a grizzly bear, but for the money its a great upgrade, I am considering , great video very clear, what I would suggest also before unsolidering is taken a photo of where wires go , just in case, the instructions are there but sometimes just having a visual also helps, what colour scratch plate with flamed red Alder Body would be best I like black ,
Would the length of the ground wire affect the hum? After installing my loaded pickguard, it makes a really loud hum when I plug it in. I grounded everything, but I did notice that the ground wires were significantly long. Would that be the cause of the loud hum?
I have the 920D Custom Everything Axe with two extra switches. I think I know how the switches work but have found vids on UA-cam that say opposite things. My analysis: Switches down = OFF. Upper one is Humbucker (up to turn it on). Lower one is Neck pick up (up to turn it on). Could you verify this for me? I cannot find this simple info on the Seymour Duncan site or in the instructions they sent me.
What if my guitar isnt shielded from the inside and doesnt have a hole for the screw can i install the pickguard with cutting off the wire or taping it to the cavity?
Thanks for this video! How many watt soldering iron did you use? I had a hard time melting the solder on the tremolo claw. I guess my soldering iron doesn't get hot enough.
Pickguard will not slide out in if your body has SSS cut and 22 frets , cause neck pickup is on the way !!! On the video they have HSH cut and this exstra space from H in the neck ,allows to slide it in so easy-peasy. But, if you have SSS cut , be prepared to play with the neck pickup(fully unscrew it to take pickguard of and figure out how to screw it back , when pickguard is already attached ).
Would these instructions work if I wanted to replace the pickguard/pickups in my Elite Stratocaster and replace them with an American Performer loaded pickguard?
I have a 60’s reissue strat that does not have the “screw” to body wire. Instead there are two black wires going to plug in Jack. Where do I put the screw wire from the new pre wired pick up guard?
Hey Mike, its Miami Evan here... Do you think the prewired strat pickguard will fit my 1990ish Squire 2 (made in India) it does have the 11 screw holes. Just wondering if the routing is deep enough to fit the larger strat pots and switch. Also the general shape of the pickguard, is the opening on both Squire II and strat the same? I have read tons of forums and found conflicting info.
Will I be able to swap a Fender Texas Special into a 1974 American Strat? I noticed the new pickguard has 4 wires and the 1974 only has 3 wires to solder. There is no place to screw in the ground wire unless I drill a hole.
i have a hss shawbucker w the noiseless, i’m putting it in a mim player series. My problem is that the pickguard doesn’t sit flush and i have to press down w pressure to fit it in. When i tested it there was a constant buzz when not even touching it, it works when i tap it but it’s just the buzz it’s annoying. Can i get any help with what it could be?
Hello CA, I'm installing loaded pickguard. The black ground wire with the screw attachment has me confused. Should I just screw it into the wood or should I solder to a pot top instead. I don't see where this was screwed into the body like this video shows. Can you help please ? THX Yuma,AZ.
There is a tiny hole for the wires into the cavity for the jack from the cavity for the pickguard. If it were prewired, you couldn't get the jack through those tiny wire holes.
hey there! i’d like to get a fat 50’s SSS pickguard for my HSS affinity strat, i’d like to ask if this mod would be even possible and if the process would be any different 🤔
looks easy as i own a fender strat elite and sadly elite scratch plates diffrent then standart as thrust rod on the end and scratch plates got a cut in the end ,ill habe to cut that part to make it fit otherwise wont ,shame they dont do ready made pickguarda for elite models as im not really happy with my noiless pickups and wanna change them to 50s fat or custom 69
Yes. "Traditional" strats leave the bridge pickup unconnected from any tone pots, but most modern ones (like this Modern Player strat) have it wired to the same pot as the middle pickup I don't know why anyone would want the traditional style, as the strat bridge is the most aggressively bright sound in guitar history (and most in need of a tone pot to shave off those highs) but to each their own!
Bought a Texas Special pre wired pick guard. Using this video, I successfully installed it in my 40th Anniversary American Strat in less than an hour. This was also my first time soldering, so this video was fantastic help!
Miami Mike has become my favorite Fender spokesmen now
😎🙌
Mike: I've watched about 10 of these, yours is by far the best. I don't know why everyone else makes it such an ordeal. Great video.
I love that guy.
Luke Calfee judging by how he was talking he probably loves you too
5:58 yeah...i love this reaction tho
Hi Mike, You are an asset to Fender for sure. Beautifully done. I'm just gonna do the pre-wired Texas Specials thing. Life's too short. Thanks !
Why am I watching this at 5.30 a.m.?
I can't even afford a second hand Squier.
5:15 am here it just broke out my old Squier.
Can you afford a Harley Benton ? They are better value for the price
I could listen to this dude talk all day. Knowledge, funny, skilled, plus that shirt.
Excellent I can't wait to see a pre-wired Black pickguard David Gilmore model on original Fender list :-)
I put two Wide Range humbuckers - same pickups as a Telecaster Deluxe - in my one Strat recently and it came out great. I did need the Strat routed for the pickups, but that only set me back about $40. I've dubbed the guitar the "Stratocaster Deluxe."
Good idea ! Would you make a movie about how set up pickups, what high is proper for each of them, like single coil and humbucker. Tele and strat. That could be as well interesting form many.
I’ve always disliked the white pickguard on my sunburst strat and there was no way I was going to even attempt pulling the pickups out to install a new one. But the pre-wired ones are a good option and this guy makes it look pretty easy.
Wat if u don’t have a soder gun
@@insomeriac5748 Buy one.
This is way harder than just changing the pickguard man, you just have to unscrew them and screw them in the new one. May seem scary but it’s a lot easier than you’d think.
@@telemeisterdumbass you can just use a lighter 🤣
@@Lxk3ezno you can’t 💀💀💀☠️☠️☠️🏴☠️🏴☠️🏴☠️🏴☠️🏴☠️🏴☠️
Thanks Ed Sheeran.
Elton John.
fat ginger Steve jobs
😂😂
Lmfao
Looks neither like Elton or Ed
Hey "Miami" Mike. Great video. Fender makes it so easy to swap out pickups. I'm about to put the Tex-Mex assembly into my Strat.
Thank you, and Fender. 🤘🏽
Great videos from Fender. Thanks Miami Mike for taking time from partying to show this.👍🏻
‘Fender offers pre loaded pick guards’
Dies in left handed
oof.
Theirs plenty of custom places that’ll help don’t worry. Or try 920 d custom!
statelessmars thank you! I’m definitely going to try 920d out
Your username explains me
dies in bass
Great video. Very helpful. I've just replaced a pre-wired pick guard with fat 50s on my strat after watching this. Thank you.
So helpful; concise, no fat. Pre-wired Tex-Mex pickups going into a '91 MIM tomorrow.
If you are going to solder on top of your expensive stratocaster at least put down a piece of newspaper or old towel. Solder can sputter and a small bead of hot solder will leave a lovely pin sized burn mark on your paint. This is very evident with a white guitar.
my strat doesnt have a ground wire screwed to body , no shielding paint , what do i do with extra wire
6:13 damn that beat slaps
off topic but this is the greatest shirt I've seen for years.
Can you have Telecaster and Esquire pre-wired pickguards?
never watched a tutorial this easy
The Stratocaster - is a Harsh Mistress - the entertaining factor is unbeliefebale your screwing is very good and the construction is iconic be shure if you do something wrong - the Instrument gives you Feedback so thank you Fender as always
Bob Ross and Mike Adams are the two most instantly likeable humans to ever walk the planet.
If my new loaded pickguard doesn’t have that wire that is supposed to be screwed to the body/shielding? Is any shielding completely useless? Can I add that wire in?
Do these pickguards come with 5 way selector or the 3 way pickup selector?
@Andrew Anthony Too bad they don't give the option of selecting either a 5 way or 3 way for stratocaster.
Also more videos like this 🙏
i think about changing the pickups from my 2002 MIM Strat with a pre-wired pickguard. Now i´ve seen there is an additional shield-cable with was screwed into the body. My strat body is not shielded, so do i need to shield the body first or can i ignore the cable an use the other 3 cable ? thanks for your support
I love gaining Access! 🤠
Stranger: hello stratocaster player!
Me: did you assume my fender?!
thats COMEDY right there
The right wing has one joke.
Jared dines dad jokes😂😂
Or guitar jokes
@Équinoxe none of those are jokes. A more concise list including restatements of the same joke:
1) I identify as an attack helicopter
1b) did you just assume my identity
1c) we have as many jokes are we have genders
Etc. It's all one joke really, said different ways.
I love the repair videos but I wish you would have put the strings on and let us hear the sound of it before and after
The video wasn't demoing the loaded pick guard though. He did everything needed for the video
Thanks for this Mike. I have an 80s strat. There is a terminal under the input jack that goes to the screw attached to the body. The guitar doesn't have a backplate but I can see the wire which is fed thru and appears just above the ground screw. that's 5 connections and I only have 4 wires. Can you help? Thanks, Mike H.
Great demonstration. Thanks.
is there any demo on how to custom paint a Tele? maybe just a suggestion what kind of paint to use?
What is the color of covers of the new pickups and knobs. They look cool.
Just beware that some Fender Strats have a truss rod adjustment where the neck meets the body and that adjustment wheel requires a NOTCH that won't exist on a standard replacement pickguard kit. I just replaced the pickups on my 2017 Fender Elite strat which has this notch. My solution, rather than buy a specific pickguard for the Elite/compatible notched layout, was to buy a pull loaded pickguard (cheaper vs. individual components of same quality/spec) and then cut my own notch. I used a dremel. I used the old guard to make a paper template for the notch and marked the back of the new pickguard and used a cutting wheel on the dremel to (relatively) slowly cut the notched shape and a dremel low abrasion grinding tip to smooth it out. With the notch added, the pickguard fit into place perfectly. Just be mindful of your own guitar and if the loaded pickguard's common shape matches what you need and, if not, have a plan to deal with it. Full confession, I did NOT account for this but thankfully I had a dremel and quickly figured out a way to fashion a fix for it.
Hello there. I have bought a Strat body without any cables and stuff and I ordered a prewired pickguard. Also I don’t have any cables for the jack entry or ground cable on the back. How can I istall the pickguard?
Hi!Does this loaded pickguard fits on an Ibanez grx40?
What a lovely guy!
What do you do when the pickguard holes don't line up with existing? I got a hss fender squier fat strat guard to put on my son's fender strat. He wanted a double humbucker basically so thought it looked online like it would match. Holes didn't line up but 3 lol. I'm new to this so kinda clueless. Figure drill new holes or did I get the wrong guard completely? It Works fine tho 🤷♂️
Awesome delivery and informative.. can’t wait to get in that site!
Where is the cloth protecting the guitar body when soldering the output jack?
This guy should make a channel where he plays a bunch of jazzmasters.
Where do you attach the ground wire If it’s a hardtail strat?
Can I use that on my squier affinity stratocaster?
This guy needs to be a voice actor
This is awesome. Thanks for posting this.
Is it feasible to use electrical terminal clamps when connecting to output jack and only solder the ground to tremolo claw?
Hey its the king of offsets
what's the wiring setup for these pickguards? Is traditional like first tone for neck, 2nd tone for middle, and bridge has no tone control? Or is it wired like the player strats, with first tone for neck/middle, and 2nd tone for bridge?
Do you need solder stuff - or do you just put the gun next to the wires and it solders? thks
Thank you that was great and easy to follow.
So if you don't have shielding paint would that make your guitar buzz and hum?
excellent video. bravo, Mike!
would this work on a Squire? Great way to upgrade a Squire
What to do with the extra ground wire if the body doesn’t have the shielding pane place ?
I really like these, pretty straightforward, though I have soldiered anything in donkey years , I have guitar that came with P90's somedays you love them and other days its like fighting a grizzly bear, but for the money its a great upgrade, I am considering , great video very clear, what I would suggest also before unsolidering is taken a photo of where wires go , just in case, the instructions are there but sometimes just having a visual also helps, what colour scratch plate with flamed red Alder Body would be best I like black ,
Dam right, tap tap test on the pups before you string it up. Thank you Leo for making my favorite guitar 🎸 You've given me a severe case of Stratitus
Would the length of the ground wire affect the hum? After installing my loaded pickguard, it makes a really loud hum when I plug it in. I grounded everything, but I did notice that the ground wires were significantly long. Would that be the cause of the loud hum?
I have the 920D Custom Everything Axe with two extra switches. I think I know how the switches work but have found vids on UA-cam that say opposite things. My analysis: Switches down = OFF. Upper one is Humbucker (up to turn it on). Lower one is Neck pick up (up to turn it on). Could you verify this for me? I cannot find this simple info on the Seymour Duncan site or in the instructions they sent me.
Miami Mike! ❤️ 🏝
Hey can someone tell me if i have a HSS Stratocaster will the SSS pickguard work in it or do i need to get the HSS? Thanks!
"Gonna set that aside RIGHT THERE" ur funny
What if my guitar isnt shielded from the inside and doesnt have a hole for the screw can i install the pickguard with cutting off the wire or taping it to the cavity?
Thanks for this video! How many watt soldering iron did you use? I had a hard time melting the solder on the tremolo claw. I guess my soldering iron doesn't get hot enough.
What kind of solder were you using? And what kind of soldering iron were you using?
I hope you mentioned the correct solder name/number you use for fender components!!!
Pickguard will not slide out in if your body has SSS cut and 22 frets , cause neck pickup is on the way !!! On the video they have HSH cut and this exstra space from H in the neck ,allows to slide it in so easy-peasy. But, if you have SSS cut , be prepared to play with the neck pickup(fully unscrew it to take pickguard of and figure out how to screw it back , when pickguard is already attached ).
You do a great demo 👍
Do this pickguards come with the click on the bridge pup tone knob??
Would these instructions work if I wanted to replace the pickguard/pickups in my Elite Stratocaster and replace them with an American Performer loaded pickguard?
my old pal mike
did the 70th anniversary player come routed for hsh ?
Ordered one ..great video ..
I have a 60’s reissue strat that does not have the “screw” to body wire. Instead there are two black wires going to plug in Jack. Where do I put the screw wire from the new pre wired pick up guard?
Hey Mike, its Miami Evan here... Do you think the prewired strat pickguard will fit my 1990ish Squire 2 (made in India) it does have the 11 screw holes. Just wondering if the routing is deep enough to fit the larger strat pots and switch. Also the general shape of the pickguard, is the opening on both Squire II and strat the same? I have read tons of forums and found conflicting info.
Is it compatible for squier bullet strat to build in?
Does this work in an squier?
why does de middle tone control works on the bridge pickup?
what should you do if your guitar doesn’t have a place for the wire that’s supposed to connect to the shielding paint?
I have a crappy 80 bux guitar, doesn’t sound bad, but sometimes it gets pretty crappy, planning to get one of these
will this fit american ultra?
Will I be able to swap a Fender Texas Special into a 1974 American Strat? I noticed the new pickguard has 4 wires and the 1974 only has 3 wires to solder. There is no place to screw in the ground wire unless I drill a hole.
i have a hss shawbucker w the noiseless, i’m putting it in a mim player series. My problem is that the pickguard doesn’t sit flush and i have to press down w pressure to fit it in. When i tested it there was a constant buzz when not even touching it, it works when i tap it but it’s just the buzz it’s annoying. Can i get any help with what it could be?
I know it’s been two years but was the buzzing stopping after u touched the pickguard or the metal?
I got the exact loaded pickguard. Is the bridge and middle pickup normally quiet pickups?
Hello CA, I'm installing loaded pickguard. The black ground wire with the screw attachment has me confused. Should I just screw it into the wood or should I solder to a pot top instead. I don't see where this was screwed into the body like this video shows. Can you help please ? THX Yuma,AZ.
@@thepiperofsimms9974 I screwed mine in the wood. The old wiring also had the ground wire screwed in the body.
@@CA-tc4bg Great of you to respond C A. I thank you very much !
Why was the jack not pre-wired as well? And how can I request that it is if order one?
There is a tiny hole for the wires into the cavity for the jack from the cavity for the pickguard. If it were prewired, you couldn't get the jack through those tiny wire holes.
tex mew drop in is at 150 2day on Amazon........ thanks for the video :)
hey there! i’d like to get a fat 50’s SSS pickguard for my HSS affinity strat, i’d like to ask if this mod would be even possible and if the process would be any different 🤔
Maybe you would have to still for the pots and swith to fit the cavity, because the Affinity has shorterparts, and the body is thinner
Wish you explained soldering
My new one doesn’t have the ground wire on it, the one that screws to the body?
40w soldering iron works fine??? What does Fender recommends?
If your body doesn’t have shielding paint, what do you do with the ground that screws into the body?
Just leave it hanging there
I do have the same question right now, did you find a working solution?
Is good for a squier strat?
I've never soldered a thing in my life. Is it a bad idea to try and make installing one of these my first go at it?
the pre-loaded so the soldering is mostly done already. The amount of soldering is minimal
make sure not to touch the soldering iron. it's very hot.
looks easy as i own a fender strat elite and sadly elite scratch plates diffrent then standart as thrust rod on the end and scratch plates got a cut in the end ,ill habe to cut that part to make it fit otherwise wont ,shame they dont do ready made pickguarda for elite models as im not really happy with my noiless pickups and wanna change them to 50s fat or custom 69
Can I put a Humbucker in it? When I make space for it?
What’s the difference between a pickguard with 11 screw wholes and one with 13 and will 11 screws fit if you had a 13 before ?
WAS the tone control wired to the bridge pick up ?
Yes. "Traditional" strats leave the bridge pickup unconnected from any tone pots, but most modern ones (like this Modern Player strat) have it wired to the same pot as the middle pickup
I don't know why anyone would want the traditional style, as the strat bridge is the most aggressively bright sound in guitar history (and most in need of a tone pot to shave off those highs) but to each their own!
Can you guys make a HSH loaded pick guard
Please allow Miami Mike time to shred on his newly installed pre-wired pickgaurd!