Fix for using wrong drill bit to install pickup

[Ralph124C41]

I wrote some time ago but can't find the thread about my failed attempt to install a pickup in my Alvarez AD710.

I didn't read any of the helpful tips here and for some reason I used a too-large drill bit (maybe a 9/16?) so the whole tip just falls out. How can I fix this? I know somebody suggested buying some kind of wood dowel and then gluing it and then redrilling it with the right size drill bit and maybe reaming before then..

Any other ways? Is there some kind of large washer I can use inside and outside of the guitar? I don't care if the appearance is all that ugly as this is a beater guitar with a repaired but not refinished humidity crack on the top. But t the guitar plays and sounds fine.

Yeah, I know I should have done my homework first. But I didn't. My cat ate it.

[Bowie]

Hopefully there's a lesson learned about shortcuts and you won't try to get away with using a washer. Yes, plugging it and cutting it correctly is the way to go.

[Ralph124C41]

Originally Posted by Bowie

Hopefully there's a lesson learned about shortcuts and you won't try to get away with using a washer. Yes, plugging it and cutting it correctly is the way to go.

I know that and I already stated that. I don't have the tools to do that. I would have to find and buy an appropriate wood dowel. I would have to have it cut and I have no tool for that. I would have to buy a reamer. I would have to buy a 1/2-inch wood drill bit. All this for one repair for a project I likely would never do again.

I was asking if there was another way that wouldn't require me to buy a lot of tools and parts I'd never use again.

[steve70]

The part you are thinking of is called a shoulder washer. 9/16 OD (outside diameter) to fit snugly in the hole you drilled, and 1/2 ID(inside diameter) to fit your jack.

[Rudy4]

Originally Posted by Ralph124C41

I wrote some time ago but can't find the thread about my failed attempt to install a pickup in my Alvarez AD710.

I didn't read any of the helpful tips here and for some reason I used a too-large drill bit (maybe a 9/16?) so the whole tip just falls out. How can I fix this? I know somebody suggested buying some kind of wood dowel and then gluing it and then redrilling it with the right size drill bit and maybe reaming before then..

Any other ways? Is there some kind of large washer I can use inside and outside of the guitar? I don't care if the appearance is all that ugly as this is a beater guitar with a repaired but not refinished humidity crack on the top. But t the guitar plays and sounds fine.

Yeah, I know I should have done my homework first. But I didn't. My cat ate it.

A trip to the hardware store should yield a pair of standard washers that you can use, one inside and one outside. You just have to make sure they fit over a 1/2" bolt. The bolt can be from their selection, so you don't need to purchase anything besides the two washers.

You MAY need to size the outer washer to fit the smaller diameter of the output jack housing, it is smaller than 1/2".

[Ralph124C41]

Originally Posted by steve70

The part you are thinking of is called a shoulder washer. 9/16 OD (outside diameter) to fit snugly in the hole you drilled, and 1/2 ID(inside diameter) to fit your jack.

Thanks. I never heard of that so I will have to do some sleuthing.

[Howard Klepper]

The standard jack diameter is 15/32", not 1/2". If you drill 1/2", the washer or outside cover plate that came with the pickup always has a big enough OD to work, though.

If the hole was drilled 9/16", a 9/16" OD washer is too small, and will have too small a center hole for the jack.

You won't find a 15/32" washer, though. If you just want to make it work, get two USS (a size standard that is the most commonly found one in the USA) 1/2" washers, one for the inside of the tailblock (your pickup came with a nut and washer for the inside, too--put them on top of the 1/2" one)and one for the outside. Any hardware store that sells nuts and bolts will have them. The OD of the 1/2" washers is about 1-3/8". It will be visible, but it will be a very cheap solution that works. And who looks at the butt end of your guitar, anyway?

BTW, it's not a good idea to plug a hole with a dowel if you are going to drill it out to just a bit under the dowel diameter. There is a very good chance that when you drill, the thin ring of dowel that is left will break and strip out. Drilling a hole centered in a plug puts the plug's glue line under a shear stress, which is the way glue and dowels are weakest. You need to drill for a larger plug, and if possible make the hole for the dowel (or, much better, a plug you cut so you won't be drilling end grain) off-center to the hole you will then drill, so drilling can't spin the plug.

[Ralph124C41]

Originally Posted by Howard Klepper

The standard jack diameter is 15/32", not 1/2". If you drill 1/2", the washer or outside cover plate that came with the pickup always has a big enough OD to work, though.

If the hole was drilled 9/16", a 9/16" OD washer is too small, and will have too small a center hole for the jack.

You won't find a 15/32" washer, though. If you just want to make it work, get two USS (a size standard that is the most commonly found one in the USA) 1/2" washers, one for the inside of the tailblock (your pickup came with a nut and washer for the inside, too--put them on top of the 1/2" one)and one for the outside. Any hardware store that sells nuts and bolts will have them. The OD of the 1/2" washers is about 1-3/8". It will be visible, but it will be a very cheap solution that works. And who looks at the butt end of your guitar, anyway?

BTW, it's not a good idea to plug a hole with a dowel if you are going to drill it out to just a bit under the dowel diameter. There is a very good chance that when you drill, the thin ring of dowel that is left will break and strip out. Drilling a hole centered in a plug puts the plug's glue line under a shear stress, which is the way glue and dowels are weakest. You need to drill for a larger plug, and if possible make the hole for the dowel (or, much better, a plug you cut so you won't be drilling end grain) off-center to the hole you will then drill, so drilling can't spin the plug.

I will have to find the drill I used to give me an idea of what washers to try. As for fixing the thing, I told my luthier buddy about it and I'm certain he can find a way to fix it. I mean he makes his own brand of guitars, has his own Youtube channel and also makes or fashions tools just to use on his acoustic guitars. So if he can fix a multi-thousand dollar piece of equipment I'm thinking he can fix this hole. Right?

[John Arnold]

Any competent repairman should be able to fix it for a nominal fee.

[Ralph124C41]

Originally Posted by John Arnold

Any competent repairman should be able to fix it for a nominal fee.

True ... but I was the incompetent pickup installer in the first place which got me into this mess.

[Mandobart]

Originally Posted by Ralph124C41

True ... but I was the incompetent pickup installer in the first place which got me into this mess.

I mean this with no snark or judgment - but you must realize there's a better than even chance you'll make it worse. You stated earlier you lack the basic tools that would be used in the normal ways to repair this.

I recommend you let a competent tech repair it correctly and permanently.

If you choose to press on with limited tools, knowledge and experience, please use a felt or cork washer between the finished wood on the guitar and whatever metal washer/spacer you select. Don't tighten it back up to the point of crushing the wood.

[Ralph124C41]

Originally Posted by Mandobart

I mean this with no snark or judgment - but you must realize there's a better than even chance you'll make it worse. You stated earlier you lack the basic tools that would be used in the normal ways to repair this.

I recommend you let a competent tech repair it correctly and permanently.

If you choose to press on with limited tools, knowledge and experience, please use a felt or cork washer between the finished wood on the guitar and whatever metal washer/spacer you select. Don't tighten it back up to the point of crushing the wood.

Rest assured I don't plan to touch that thing with a 10-foot pole ... but I may be tempted to use a set of vise grips.

No, really. As I said I will let my luthier buddy handle the problem when he installs a pickup for me ... probably a K&K Pure Mini or a similar system.