New ground wire for Gibson SG

[Kruiser]

So a friend of mine decided that he wanted me to install a set of EMG's (81/85) in his brand spankin' new SG standard. The install went very well and the thing sounded amazing. A week later, he saw a guy playing an SG just like his, just with the stock pickups... So he asked me to put the old ones back in for him. No sweat. Until I pulled the ground wire away from the cavity wall where I had taped it during the EMG install. Long story short, the ground wire had somehow become detached and I can't figure out how to get a good ground without cutting wood. If I have to do that, I can, but I'd really prefer not to.

Anyone have any ideas or suggestions? Mnay thanks in advance for reading my sob story

[ryanb]

Where did it come loose? Do you mean the ground coming from the bridge? You should be able to fix it without cutting any wood. It probably goes to the bridge stud anchor ... and you may need to pull the anchor to replace the ground (but i'm no Gibson expert).

[Kruiser]

Yep...it came loose from the bridge. I can jam the wire back in there but there is no way to solder it and secure it. I tried to pull the anchor but some of the chrome started to strip off. As far as I can figure, I just need to ground to some part of the bridge.

Thanks!

[nuno]

Originally Posted by Kruiser

I tried to pull the anchor but some of the chrome started to strip off.

did you try pulling it with a cat paw? it's supposed to pull out anything in a very neat fashion, without stripping metal platings.

[ryanb]

Yeah, you should be able to pull the anchor without losing the plating. And it is really easy to get another anchor if you need it. But if you can find another suitable spot to ground to , so much the better. (It probably wasn't soldered on in the first place...)

[David McCarroll]

You're dead right - never soldered (besides I don't think you can solder to nickel, and certainly not to chrome plating) - gently remove stud anchor - push new tinned solid core wire through until, say, half an inch is protruding into the anchor hole, reinsert anchor - job done.

Alternately, if you FULLY shield the instrument, you actually don't need a string earth, which was in fact the case with quite a few Les Pauls in the seventies.

[nuno]

Originally Posted by David McCarroll

Alternately, if you FULLY shield the instrument, you actually don't need a string earth, which was in fact the case with quite a few Les Pauls in the seventies.

interesting. would you plz explain this better? i do guitar works as a hobby and i'm always in the will to learn new things... thanks