[Tone Chaser]

I have a a couple of Chinese made Epiphone guitars that were having 3 position switch issues.

I have Japanese Epiphone guitars that are 30 to 40 plus years old that have never had an issue with anything electronic.

I have also had several Korean made ones, that had no issues.

I have read on forums, that many people seem to have problems with their Chinese 3 way switch. They seem to have the switch replaced with a Gibson switch, and life goes on.

I decided to pull the switch and have a good look at them. After handling them, the problem seemed to go away. I visually verified that the switches were making contact and everything seemed to be working. No sign of corrosion. I decided to give a small shot of contact cleaner and reassembled. Both the Chinese 339 Pro and Dot are working flawlessly.

Anyone else ever have a problem with their Chinese Epiphone 3 position switch? Looked at it and it went away.

 

[mhammer]

What sort of "switch issue": no contact? inability to turn off a pickup? I've had Gibson-style toggles misbehave on me before, but often it was a result of the "leaves" pressing against the side of the control cavity because the switch had rotated a bit when I tightened the nut on the outside.

 

[greco]

I dislike Switchcraft 3-way toggles. I bought one, paid more than I expected, and promptly messed up the "leaves" while holding it to put it into a 335 style guitar. After hours of trying, I couldn't fix it.

I prefer the Epi switches and have not had issues with them.

The old and inexpensive 3-way switches in the metal boxes seem to have a limited lifespan and I have had no luck taking them apart and trying to repair them.

 

[Tone Chaser]

I removed to verify contact. The Dot would either be stuck on the bridge pickup only, and sometimes engage both, with no neck only happening.

The 339 Pro would have intermittent neck pickup issues.

After verifying that the switch worked, I reinstalled, making sure that none of the wiring was close or touching the switch components.

The switch appears fairly fool proof in design, after witnessing how it just seemed to do what it is supposed to do. The basic construction seems simple, durable, and effective. I am thinking that there were just too many wires wrapped around the switch. I made sure that the wires were well dispersed in the body cavity.

 

[mhammer]

Been there. Done that. I try to avoid it happening again.

 

[Distortion]

yes I bought a used China LP Standard pro. Previous owner had toxic sweat because a lot of corrosion on the guitar and no actual playing wear. Switch was acting up and had some green sludge in it . Cleaned it up and have not had a problem since.