Make it stand out.
MODIFY YOUR GUITAR WITH A FAT-O-CASTER KIT
The Chromacaster and FAT-O-Caster
This is new version of Deaf Eddie’s website. He has passed the torch on to me to keep these kits available for another few years. Thank you very much, Eddie.
Yes, this is the place to buy the kits that were developed for the discriminating Strat hot-rodder.
The kits include a pre-wired switch and printed instruction booklet, with text and drawings.
Even the novice hot-rodder can succeed with one of these easy-to-install upgrades.
Take yer Strat from mild to wild!
HOW?
These kits replace the middle tone control with a rotary switch (you wire the lower tone as a master).
ALL of the kits allow you to get all seven possible parallel pickup combos,
as well as some series combos for humbucker-ish tones.
Some of the kits also feature out of phase (series and parallel) combos,
to help your Strat "sit in the mix" without making it muddy...
The Chromacaster
Confused about which kit is which?
See below for tone charts for the Chromacaster,
FAT-O-Caster, the V.2 and the V.3
See below for tone charts for the Memphis Mods
AND, for H-S-S guys! Got a Fat Strat, with a full-sized humbucker in the bridge?
Check out the FAT-O schemes below for your for Fat Strat!
Wiring kits for Strats - The tone charts
Chromacaster(c) TONE
The Chromacaster changes the way the bridge pickup is wired into the circuit.
The NAMES of the NOTCHES describe HOW the bridge pickup is wired...
KEY:
+ = wired parallel
* = wiered in series
- = wired out of phase
lower case letters = "stock" strat tones
UPPER CASE BOLD = new Chromacaster tones
FAT-O-Caster(c) TONE CHART
The FAT-O-Caster changes the way the pickups are wired into the circuit.
The NAMES of the NOTCHES describe HOW the pickups are wired...
KEY:
+ = wired parallel
* = wired in series
lower case letters = "stock" strat tones
UPPER CASE BOLD = new FAT-O-Caster tones
FAT-O-Caster V.2(c) TONE CHART
The FAT-O-Caster changes the way the bridge and middle pickups are wired into the circuit.
The NAMES of the NOTCHES describe HOW the bridge pickup is wired...
KEY:
+ = wired parallel
* = wired in series
-B = Bridge wired out of phase
lower case letters = "stock" strat tones
UPPER CASE BOLD = new FAT-O-Caster V.2 tones
FAT-O-Caster V.3(c) TONE CHART
The FAT-O-Caster changes the way the bridge and neck pickups are wired into the circuit.
The NAMES of the NOTCHES describe HOW the neck pickup is wired...
KEY:
+ = wired parallel
* = wired in series
-B = Bridge wired out of phase
lower case letters = "stock" strat tones
UPPER CASE BOLD = new FAT-O-Caster V.3 tones
CUSTOM FAT-Os!
A lot of players asked Eddie if he can tweak some of the switches to give them this or that different combo, or put the tones in a different order. He did and the custom setups based on the FAT-O-Caster V.2/V.3 chassis became the "Memphis Mods" - most of them were developed at the request of a couple of pickers from Memphis, and some Arkansas cats - the last one came from Canada! But, the name "Memphis Mods" stuck, so... there ya go.
Each of these guys wanted all the FAT stuff Eddie could give 'em, but none of the thinner/twangy out-of-phase stuff. And, they wanted the switches to be easy to understand and work with on stage, too. So, they all start out with the #1 Normal ("STOCK") notch, all have the FAT-O's regular #2 "Magnificent Seven" notch with the new tones at the "bridge" throw on the 5-way. But, as you check them out, you'll see each ones' notch #3 and #4 has its own little twist. There's more than one way to get three pups in series!
Be sure to read the key at the bottom of the page...
Here’s another idea that came to fruition: Eddie had a request from a customer with a 1980 “The STRAT” model. If you are unfamiliar with that one, it was only produced for a few years, 1980-1983. It is unique among Stratocaster models in that it actually came with a rotary switch, similar to my FAT-O mods. This customer’s “twin rotary” switch had finally worn out after twenty-five years, and he was looking for a replacement - so naturally, he was eventually directed to me. I had never seen that model Stratocaster, and didn’t really know what was involved in the Fender scheme, but after a little research I found that I couldn’t find the correct hardware or enough information to duplicate the stock switch – the model was simply too long out of production. Bummer! However, with the info I WAS able to dig up - and a little outside-the-box thinking - I was able to modify one of my existing schemes to get all the pickup combos that Fender's original scheme for The STRAT gave you. So, I’m calling this one the '80s The STRAT Tone-Clone Mod. You get the same nine tones that The STRAT model gave you, PLUS one extra tone (ten total). Unique to this switch from all my other designs is that you get the bridge and neck parallel/IN SERIES with the mid pup – yup, none of my other switches have that one. Although this isn’t technically a Memphis Mod – it’s built on a different switch and wasn’t suggested by someone from Tennessee – I still think it belongs on this list (see the last tone chart). As with all my rotary mods, it can be installed in ANY Stratocaster.
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NOTE: This page has become so popular that I now have specific kits
(pre-wired switch, mod-specific instructions and drawings)
for each mod available with a new Memphis Mods
When you order one, please let me know which switch you want!
Memphis FATS (c) eleven different pup combos
M-2 (c) ten different pup combos
M-3 (aka "The Jersey Mod") (c) eleven different pup combos
FAT-Cat (c) eleven different pup combos
Dunk's Mod (c) eleven different pup combos
FAT J-G (c) ten different pup combos
StratMan D (c) eleven different pup combos
'80s The STRAT Tone-Clone (c) ten different pup combos
KEY:
+ = wired parallel
* = wired in series
lower case letters = "stock" Strat tones
UPPER CASE BOLD = new Fat-O-Caster tones
Each different scheme for the Fat-O-Caster changes the way the pickups are wired into the circuit.
The NAMES of the NOTCHES describe HOW the pickups are wired...
Contact me for more info about rotary switch kits.
IF YOU HAVE CUSTOM OR AFTERMARKET PUPS IN YOUR STRAT...
The mod works with the traditional sets as well as the modern RW/RP sets. It's all good. RW/RP middle pups are a non-issue.
Noiseless pups are cool, too, as long as they do NOT have a metal baseplate...
If you have added a metal baseplate to your bridge pup, such a sold by Lindy Fralin or Callaham - a popular mod - IF you installed it following their instructions, it may interfere with the rotary's series and out of phase combos, by offering the bridge pickup another path to ground (baseplate > mounting screws > foil pickguard shield > ground).
Fortunately, the fix is VERY simple. Clip the baseplate's jumper (that they instructed you to solder) to the pickup's negative (aka "ground") lead eyelet, and instead add a third and separate lead, to ground the baseplate. Please see this illustration. The new ground lead for the baseplate should go to ground, typically on the back of the volume pot with the other pickup grounds.
If your custom pickups are built on a METAL/conductive BASEPLATE, have METAL COVERS, or have exposed metal (braided) shielding, it is important to know HOW that frame and/or shielding is connected to the guitar's ground/shield.
If your pickups have metal basplates or covers AND THREE-CONDUCTOR wiring (the pup has three leads), this should NOT be a concern, as the third conductor is usually an independent ground/shield wire. An example of this is the newer Lace pickups, where the orange lead is the coil positive, the white lead is the coil negative, and the green lead is the ground/shield. The green lead would stay soldered to ground - typically the back of the volume pot - and you would use the white lead to connect to any phase or series mods as the coil's negative lead.
The bad news: If your pickups have metal basplates or covers with standard two-conductor wiring and your guitar has a fully shielded pickguard, you may find that some of the new combos will NOT work. With ANY setting where the pups are in series OR phase-reversed, you MUST eliminate the pickup baseplate's continuity with the ground/shield of the guitar.
This is necessary because with two-lead pickups, the baseplate and/or shield USUALLY has continuity with the negative lead from the pup's coil. That means that in certain pup selections, the baseplate - and anything metal that contacts the baseplate, like pole pieces and mounting crews and springs - is actually on the "hot" side of the signal. Potentially, the entire under-pickguard shield then has continuity with the HOT side of the circuit. This means that when you try one of the series combos, you will probably just be shunting one (or more) of the pups to ground, and it either won't get you the desired results, or, in out of phase settings, it may not sound at all.
There are two ways to address this problem with two-conductor wired pickups. One is to change the pickup's wiring (IF POSSIBLE), eliminating the continuity between the coil's "-" lead and the baseplate and/or shielding, but that can be a tricky task. The other - and FAR SIMPLER - way is to modify the Strat's pickguard shield.
If your Strat has the simple foil shield on the back of the pickguard, this is relatively easy to accomplish. The object in modifying the pickguard is to eliminate all continuity between the pickguard's foil shield and the pickup's metal parts. This can be done as easily as scraping off the foil around the holes where the pups are mounted to the pickguard in a large enough radius so that the height-adjustment springs (if used) do not touch the foil. Alternatively, if you are sure the holes themselves are clear, you could simply apply a small piece of electrical tape to the bottom of the pickguard to "insulate" the foil from the pup mounting screws. If you use rubber tubing as your height-adjustment spacer, you simply need to be sure that where the mounting screw passes through the pickguard, the screw does not touch the foil. In MOST cases, that will do it!
But...
Even though you have cleared the spots on the pickguard shield, and now the switch works as it should, because of the way your pups were manufactured, when you put the pickup in series or out of phase, everything with continuity with the "-" lead is still on the hot side of the circuit - including the mounting screws of the bridge and mid pups. So, when you touch those mounting screws - or the pole pieces of the pup - you are actually touching the hot side of the circuit, almost as if you had unplugged the axe and where touching the tip of the cable.
UNFORTUNATELY, there is NO quick-and-easy fix for this, short of replacing yer pups with ones that DO have the three-conductor/separate ground lead, or are not built on a metal baseplate...
Now, maybe there are a few work-arounds for the mounting screws...
Maybe some non-conductive screws? You should be able to find them at Home Depot or other hardware stores in their "specialty fastener" department (a tip from a FAT-O user). Another band-aid would be to cover the screwtop up with something non-conductive - a piece of tape, a drop of rubber cement, thick paint, clear nail polish??? Anything... ? Of course, this won't help with the polepieces... just don't touch 'em!!!
If you have any problems, suggestions, or questions, please contact me.
Does the rotary have to replace the center (neck) tone pot, or can I put in the the lower spot?...
MAYBE...
The deal is, on MOST Strats and clones, there isn't enough room in the control cavity in the lower spot for the rotary, as it's a little bigger than a pot. Careful work with a dremel tool COULD make it work in some instances, but the ONLY bodies I've seen it fairly consistently fit into is an (old) American Standard. Even on that one, I won't guaranty that you won't have to make a little sawdust.
Will your switches work if my Strat has humbuckers?
Do you still have three pickups? then, in a word, yes...
But remember, the term "humbucker" applies to a lot of different pickups. From my point of view, there two major categories of humbuckers: full-sized "Gibson" style humbuckers, and single-coil-sized humbuckers. This latter category includes hot rails and stacked pickups - whether the coils are side-by-side or one on top of the other, if they are single-coil sized (no mods to a stock Strat pickguard), then they fit into this second category.
If you have any of the single-coil sized humbuckers, I recommend that you just select from my regular Strat kits, and NOT the ones designed for full-sized humbuckers. The Chromie, FAT-O, V.2, V.3, and all the Memphis Mods are what you should be considering. If you want to add coil-splits to these schemes, I suggest you use a push/pull under the tone and/or volume, and I'll be happy to draw it up for you when you purchase a rotary.
If you have a full-sized humbucker in the bridge, there are two categories for those pickups: traditional two-conductor models and modern four-conductor models.
If you have a traditional two-conductor pickup in your bridge position (the most common spot), especially one with a braided shield, you cannot just install any of my normal Strat kits (listed above). Almost all of those mods LIFT the negative (aka ground) lead of the bridge pup for the series and out of phase tones, and that is not an easy task with a pickup that has the ground conductor running the entire length of the braided-shield lead, exposed and un-insulated. But, do not despair!
If you have the two-conductor bridge humbucker, I DO have some schemes that will work for you: the FAT-HSS, the Memphis HSS, the V.4 and V.5, and the Neck-Reverse Chromacaster.
The FAT-HSS is simply a new set of instructions for the Original FAT-O. The switch is the same, but the installation is slightly different for your HSS, rather than for an SSS Strat. It is a three-throw rotary that gives you (#1) the five stock tones, (#2 ) the "magnificent seven" tones (all possible parallel combos), and (#3) takes you into "Gibson-ish" territory with a mid-series-neck pseudo front humbucker that can be played as such or combined in parallel with your bridge humbucker to simulate the middle throw of a Gibson 3-way toggle. It has its own button on the "buy it" page.
The Neck-Reverse Chromacaster, like the FAT-HSS, is the same switch as a Chromacaster but with the installation (and instructions) "reversed" from the regular Chromie, so it controls the neck pickup, instead of the bridge pickup.
The Memphis HSS is like the FAT-HSS, but on a four-notch rotary. Same first three notches, and the fourth notch adds the neck in series with the bridge combo. More fatness!
The V.4 and V.5 are also four-throw rotaries, and again feature the same first three notches, but the fourth throw on these give you some spicy out-of-phase combos.