NGD: Lady Hurb bought me a guitar for Christmas

[plopswagon]

I am kind of a mini-crack pot so take my advice with that in mind.

[Gavin]

I think euan has a whole wax potting set up for waxing bicycle chains. Probably the same thing for pickups.

[sunshiner]

Pretty much as you said. I just melted some candles I had at home.
On the bass vi it worked and has stopped the squeal. Tried on another guitar and it made it better but not perfect. If it helps though I haven't killed a pickup yet!

That's reassuring I've heard of stories with people destroying vintage Fender and Gibson pickups trying to waxpot them at home, though. Apparently that lacquer coating on the wire is a bit tired after 60-70 years of service and throwing the pickup into bubbling wax isn't improving the condition of the lacquer.

[sunshiner]

Some folks use straight paraffin wax some a mix of paraffin and bee’s wax.

It’s best to suspend the pickup in the wax until bubbles stop coming out.

I’ve never potted a pickup but I’ve watched a ton of videos and bought a 2nd hand mini-crock pot for the future.

I've read that paraffin is more consistent and easier to work with than bee's wax and that people who can hear the difference between the two are nothing but cork sniffers. Some boutique makers are using paraffin wax nowadays, too. Those who use the bee's wax procured straight out of Orville Gibson's ass tend to charge some idiotically high prices for their pickups. I mean there's a market for everything and maybe they do sound exceptionally wonderful.

I've never waxpotted anything either, but I bought a couple of candles a long ago for exactly that.

[plopswagon]

Just don’t use pumpkin spice scented candles.

Bees wax is important to get good tone from your bee string.

[NickD]

Just don’t use pumpkin spice scented candles.

Bees wax is important to get good tone from your bee string.

But what if I want good tone from my G string?

[sunshiner]

Jeez wax?

[sunshiner]

Just don’t use pumpkin spice scented candles.

What if I want to play Cherub Rock?

[euan]

I think euan has a whole wax potting set up for waxing bicycle chains. Probably the same thing for pickups.

Yeah a slow cooker with a paraffin and PTFE mix. You put the wax in the slow cooker, turn it on and the wax melts. You use it however you need and leave it in the slow cooker to solidify. Then next time you need to wax again you use turn the cooker on and its melts. Repeat.

[MattK]

It would be fun to get a metal lid and put a port for a vacuum cleaner on it to go on the slow cooker, not much help for bike chains but it would get the wax deep into a pickup.