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Trying to find out if this can be done with my guitar. I've heard that you need a 3pdt or 4pdt switch to do it but can't find any straightforward answers. I have a HSH setup with 1vol 1tone with a push pull coil split for the humbuckers and three on/off/on switches for each pickup, selecting on, off or phase.

Anybody know how this can be done?

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http://www.tinyhouseandland.com

Blower?

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"Act your age, not your shoe size" - Prince

Sure it can be done. As for t he On/Off/On switch, see the link below. The Fender Mustang has exactly that. It uses a slide switch, but they make toggles that do the same thing. You just need one more for the third pickup.

As to the coil splitter, see the second link.

http://www.jag-stang.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/10/mustangSchematic.gif

http://www.randomjunk.com/images/IbanezCoilTapDiagram.jpg

I think my first post may not have been clear enough. That wiring that I described is what I already have, what I am attempting to accomplish is to add a switch that bypasses all controls and wires the bridge directly to the output.

So whatever settings you have, tone, split, whatever, you can switch to full bridge humbucker with the flip of a switch.

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http://www.tinyhouseandland.com

If I'm thinking about this correctly, it shouldn't be too hard. Place an SPDT switch right after the bridge humbucker and before everything else. Wire one throw as it was wired before and send one directly to the output jack. When you flip the switch, you'll have fully open bridge position, with all the electronics bypassed.

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David Morris

Dave's close but not quite there. To bypass all other settings you'll need a DPDT switch. Wire the second pole between the volume pot and the jack. That will give the humbucker full volume to the output. If you still want volume control, you'll need to wire the switch to the input of the volume pot.

Steve

I'm admittedly a novice, but so that I understand clearly, why couldn't you just send the pickup's ground to a central ground point that always remains connected, send the hot line to the SPDT, and from there do as we've both suggested?

EDIT: Ok, wait. I think I see. You're suggesting to send the hot wire through the volume pot, while I'm suggesting to bypass the volume pot entirely. Is that right?

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David Morris

No, I'm pretty sure he means bypassing the volume pot. The reason this is complicated is my wiring scheme. Because I have phase switches, no wire coming from my pickups go straight to ground, except the shielding. It may be necessary to use one of those 4pdt switches, but I'm not sure yet. The guitar is all taken apart at the moment so I can't test anything.

I'll either figure it out or give up. I basically just want to add a useful switch on there cause I gave myself room for one when I routed the cavity. There's just a volume and tone. We'll see what happens.

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http://www.tinyhouseandland.com

I forgot about the phase shifting. I think it would be best to keep the volume pot in the circuit but that's up to you, I mentioned that option merely because it exists. Here is what has to happen to make this work.
You have to take the positive wire from the humbucker to the input of the volume pot, that's one pole. The negative from the pickup has to go to ground, that's the second pole. All other inputs to the volume pot have to be disconnected when the humbucker chosen, that's a third pole. 3PDT. If you wanted to be at full volume with the bridge blower when ever you used it, the pole of the switch with the pickup positive would get wired to the positive of the output jack.

Steve

(edit)
And I just re-read your original post and see that you have coil splitting, that will require another pole .Or will it need two? I'll think about that after dinner.