EdwardHimself Posted July 10, 2012 Share Posted July 10, 2012 Sorry if this sounds a bit of a stupid question but is it possible to solder the ground wire to a black bridge and if so where should I attach it? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bremen Posted July 10, 2012 Share Posted July 10, 2012 Not a stupid question at all. You'll have a hard time soldering to a bridge as it's such a big lump of metal that it'll suck all the heat from the iron. Normally it's enough to trap the wire between bridge and body...in the case of a black bridge I'd scrape some of the paint/anodising off where the wire is to make contact. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KiOgon Posted July 10, 2012 Share Posted July 10, 2012 (edited) There's not many soldering irons that could get up enough steam to solder to any bridge! Normal way is to fan out the bare ends of the wire & trap it under the bridge, best if it also make contact with one of the fixing screws. If you want to make sure of contact, scrape away a area of paint/anodizing where the wire will touch. Cheerz, John Snap - simultaneous posting Edited July 10, 2012 by KiOgon Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bremen Posted July 10, 2012 Share Posted July 10, 2012 If you want one answer, ask two bass players! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paul_5 Posted July 10, 2012 Share Posted July 10, 2012 Yup, the bridge of a bass is a wonderful heatsink. You'd probably have to weld it on, but that would almost definitely melt the cable strands. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EdwardHimself Posted July 10, 2012 Author Share Posted July 10, 2012 Right ok. I had taped it on before but I was having issues with the contact. I've tried scraping a bit more of the black coating to really expose the copper underneath so hopefully that ought to do the trick. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Al Heeley Posted July 10, 2012 Share Posted July 10, 2012 shove the braid into one of the screw holes Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
untune Posted July 10, 2012 Share Posted July 10, 2012 Don't know if it helps but I usually fan the wire then sandwich it in some tinfoil so there's a bit more thickness and surface area Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lettsguitars Posted July 10, 2012 Share Posted July 10, 2012 You do not need to scrape anything. That is vandalism. You just shove it in the screw hole as suggested. The main issue is the bridge being held off the body by the wire which does, will and probably has done. You need to carefully gouge a channel from the wires hole to the screw hole with a sharp chisel and the palm of your hand to tap the handle while you hold the chisel firmly at the sharp end resting the hand on the bass to avoid nasty, nasty slippage. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lettsguitars Posted July 10, 2012 Share Posted July 10, 2012 (edited) The powder coating wont stop a current. Just attach one end to the mains and hold on to the other end for proof. The screw will eat straight throu the 'black' and make more than adequate contact with your groundwire. The bridge needs to be absolutely flat and solidly seated on the body and any thing, even paper thickness will affect the tonal transfer which is why you have to make a channel. Edited July 10, 2012 by lettsguitars Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scotticus Posted July 10, 2012 Share Posted July 10, 2012 Keeping a close on this thread as I'm fitting my first bridge tomorrow (waiting for some filler to dry properly tonight). Quick question: if you shove the ground wire in one of the screw holes, isn't there a chance of splitting the wire by the time you've screwed everything down tight? Scott Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lettsguitars Posted July 10, 2012 Share Posted July 10, 2012 [quote name='Scotticus' timestamp='1341946938' post='1726885'] Keeping a close on this thread as I'm fitting my first bridge tomorrow (waiting for some filler to dry properly tonight). Quick question: if you shove the ground wire in one of the screw holes, isn't there a chance of splitting the wire by the time you've screwed everything down tight? Scott [/quote]No. The screw will make a thread and the wire instantly becomes part of the thread and doesn't get pushed downwards at all. You only need to screw the screw in once. It's not like a moving part that will wear through the wire. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EdwardHimself Posted July 10, 2012 Author Share Posted July 10, 2012 (edited) [quote name='lettsguitars' timestamp='1341944745' post='1726827'] The powder coating wont stop a current. Just attach one end to the mains and hold on to the other end for proof. The screw will eat straight throu the 'black' and make more than adequate contact with your groundwire. The bridge needs to be absolutely flat and solidly seated on the body and any thing, even paper thickness will affect the tonal transfer which is why you have to make a channel. [/quote] right you are. I am a bit of a bloody fool, I mean it's an ionised coating- of course it isn't going to stop a current! Duh It's not even the bridge ground that was the problem, it was my crappy soldering onto the ground on one of the volume pots, which should have been pretty f***ing obvious to me since it did make a much less loud hum when I touched the bridge! I don't know, I am a f***ing idiot sometimes I don't think I am having any problems with tonal transfer- the thing sustains for days. Edited July 10, 2012 by EdwardHimself Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scotticus Posted July 10, 2012 Share Posted July 10, 2012 [quote name='lettsguitars' timestamp='1341947601' post='1726906'] No. The screw will make a thread and the wire instantly becomes part of the thread and doesn't get pushed downwards at all. You only need to screw the screw in once. It's not like a moving part that will wear through the wire. [/quote] Great, cheers for that tip man. The way things have worked out here should mean I can carve a short channel through filler rather than solid body as well... simples! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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