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Snake Oil Humbucker Question

Just purchased a snake oil humbucker prewired for volume and tone control. The wiring harness does not have a ground wire. Do I need to run a ground wire to the strings? If I do, which component should it be attached to?

P.S. This is my first magnetic pickup so any additional advice is welcome.

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Permalink Reply by BrianQ. on May 24, 2023 at 10:35am

If you do, then what’s your Bridge style? Hard tail, then sandwich the wire under the bridge? If it’s a screw or bolt, then wrap the wire around it through a small hole in the box? Wood bridge, then connect it to a metal tailpiece? Connect the new wire to the Jack where the Black wire is soldered? If you email gitty support, they’re very knowledgeable about the things that they sell & will answer your questions & they’re pretty fast to get back to you?

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Permalink Reply by Jerry Draper on May 24, 2023 at 11:08am

Using wood bridge with metal tailpiece. Thanks for suggesting gritty support. Will give them a shout.

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Permalink Reply by Taffy Evans on May 24, 2023 at 11:39am

Hi, Not having seen the guitar but assuming it has a wooden bridge, it's best to attach it to the tailpiece.
If the guitar is incomplete, easy peasy, if boxed up there's a way I do it. Let me know and I'll share it.
Taff

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Permalink Reply by Jerry Draper on May 24, 2023 at 11:52am

Guitar is incomplete. Have not installed the humbucker. I assume the answer to my 1st question is that I need to ground the harness.

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Permalink Reply by BrianQ. on May 24, 2023 at 5:43pm

If it’s a metal tailpiece, I like to anchor the wire between the tailpiece & body, right where it screws into the end of the box? Wrapping the wire around the screw works good too? The reason companies don’t include a separate string ground, is because not everyone grounds to the strings?

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Permalink Reply by Taffy Evans on May 24, 2023 at 7:14pm

Hi, that's an interesting reason to leave out the earth wire, not everybody grounds to the strings, I thought it was a necessity unless using a low impedance pickup. How do those folks stop the hum that happens when the strings are not grounded?

I would have thought that it would be better to have the earth wire and those that do not want it could cut it out, cost-saving I suppose.
Cheers Taff.