Installed pickup but drilled hole too big

[Ralph124C41]

First I know I deserve some "What were you thinking" comments and rightfully so. But I just want to know some easy ... and I do mean easy ... way to see if I can rectify my mistake.

I bought a pickup ($10 with a discount) and wanted to install it in my Alvarez AD710, the one with the cracked top that has been fixed but not refinished. This model has ears that can be tightened on the soundhole but also has a cable to snake through the end pin socket. On my Alvarez the end pin was very small so I decided to use a hand drill .

Yes I know now I should have used a reamer (whatever that is) and also used a caliper (which I don't have) to measure the diamater of the hole I needed. I, of course, did none of that. I used a 1/4-inch drill but that was too small so the only other drill i had was a 5/8-inch drill so I used that.

Big mistake. And I mean big, as in the drill was too big and so now the entire sleeve slides in and out with nothing to grab it.

So what I did was to fashion a temporary washer by drilling a hole in a guitar pick and trying to fashion it. I've also managed to put the sleeve in at an angle so it seems stuck in the guitar hole. With this setup the pickup works and works fine but it looks terrible (that's why I put it on the guitar with the cracked top so aesthetics is not a big concern) and I do't know how long it will last.

One thing possible I think is to find a dowel and use sandpaper to get it to fit snugly into the hole and then use wood glue or something like that to get it to stick. Then use a saw to cut off the protruding end (or maybe cut it off before I insert it into the holde) and then redrill the hole ... this time finding the correct size drill bit or use the 1/4-inch bit and a reamer or something else.

Any other thoughts? By the way it's really hard for me to reach inside the guitar to put this thing in place so I don't know how I can adjust it that way.

[difalkner]

Quick fix is to go to Lowe's or HD and get a 5/8" diameter dowel to plug the hole. Glue that in, let it dry, then drill the proper size hole in the dowel. You can stain it to match the surrounding wood if you want.

[Ralph124C41]

Originally Posted by difalkner

Quick fix is to go to Lowe's or HD and get a 5/8" diameter dowel to plug the hole. Glue that in, let it dry, then drill the proper size hole in the dowel. You can stain it to match the surrounding wood if you want.

That essentially is what I was thinking of doing. Thanks. What would be the glue to use ... regular wood glue or something else like an epoxy?

[Fathand]

You can use a 5/8" dowel, it might be fine. A better fix is to get a 5/8" plug cutter, and cut a 5/8 plug from similar wood to your guitar. You can then orient your grain to match closer than the open grain on a dowel. I bought a set of 4 plug cutters for under $10 once. Might have been at Harbor Freight.

Do yourself a favour and buy a set of drill bits, 1/16" to 3/8". They are in increments of 1/64" and will do about 90% of all the holes you will want to drill.

[Ralph124C41]

I've never heard of a plug cutter so I will have to check that out. I do have two sets of drill bits but they only go up to 1/4 inch. I added the 5/8 drill bit when I drilled some holes when I tried to make a pedalboard for my electrics.

[Fathand]

Originally Posted by Ralph124C41

I've never heard of a plug cutter so I will have to check that out. I do have two sets of drill bits but they only go up to 1/4 inch. I added the 5/8 drill bit when I drilled some holes when I tried to make a pedalboard for my electrics.

A dowel would probably do but a plug cutter will give you face grain which looks better and is stronger than open/end grain.

https://www.harborfreight.com/plug-c...-pc-60613.html

[bnjp]

If you plug the hole with a 5/8" dowel, I bet the washer and endpin would cover the plug and you'd never notice the problem. I usually use a 1/8" to 1/2" Unibit. and it works.

[Ralph124C41]

Bit of an update: I told my luthier buddy about my problem and he offered to fix it ... for free.

As I said I'm thinking about buying one or two more of these units if they are still discounted and I will pay him his regular fee to install them.

I have decided I should not be in the same city as my drill.

[tadol]

Or - put the savings into the correct drill/reamer for installing pickups -