How to repair your guitar effects pedal | Pot Cleaning

All our stages checked out normally, so the lack of output in effect mode isn’t an amplifier stage breakdown – we’re left with a disco-hunt. On the way in we noticed some stickiness in the Fuzz control. Pots are the Achilles’ heel of pedals (and amps for that matter), being right in harm’s way as well as across the signal path.
This one’s face down to the board, so all knobs and case fixing nuts must be removed (pic 5, 6) so that the board can be turned over for access to the pot fixing nut (pic 7). With this removed and all the bits carefully set aside (missing bits are the sticky thumbprint of the amateur), unsolder the Fuzz pot terminals to assess the integrity of the pot itself. The solder sucker is used to undo the board joints (pic 8) and the pot is removed.
We can now see, with a bit of exaggeration for clarity, why the pot felt awkward (pic 9). At some point the Fuzz control took pressure intended for the footswitch, and this coupled through the shaft to the rear casing, which reacted by coming adrift. With no support, the rotary wiper lost contact with the track and no signal could pass. Fortunately this accident has left the working parts intact; it’s not uncommon for pot-tracks to break too, and that’s a no-recovery situation requiring a new pot of the same pattern and value, which can be hard to find. Collateral damage to PCB tracks and cracked boards are common side effects, requiring bridging wire to be soldered across the breaks.
We need to make sure the pot’s shaft and wiper are in their working positions and
fix its rear cover, an easy matter of pinching the small clamps tight with long-nosed pliers (pics 10, 11). Check for normal rotary action, and then refit the pot to the board (pic 12). This is a sufficient explanation for the lack of output, but having done the other checks isn’t time wasted – pedals can easily have more than one problem, and curing just one won’t get you back in business. Worse, you may be left with an intermittent fault that was masked by the full-time problem you had before. While you’re in there, be thorough and methodical and your pedal can be as good as new.

See how to repair a guitar pedal. Use our in-depth guide to cleaning the pots on your pedal without resorting to expert attetion,.

Cleaning pedal pots, pot cleaning, fuzz control,crackling pedal, loose connection pedals.