Lemme start by saying I have no idea how to play the guitar, I wish I did, but right now I don't. I am pretty handy with a soldering iron though.
The guitar is my father's, he received it new as a boy. It's been broken, and in a closet for 20 years. After a battle with poor health, dad has decided to start playing music again, and is even doing some gigs around town. I saw him playing it unplugged a week or so ago, and decided i'd try and get it fixed for him. Over the years, it was nearly stolen twice, which has made him unwilling to let it get out of his sight, so a repair shop is not an option.
He stopped playing it because the sound became very bassy, and muddled. Even my untrained ear can tell it's not right. Yesterday I dug in, and replaced the rhythm toggle switch. He said the switch had been broken 30 years. Everything went perfect installing the new switch, but it still didn't sound right. I went back in, and found part of the original switch under the upper pickup. The foam underneath looked like it had gotten really hot on that side, and now it's very brittle. Checked under the lower pickup, looked fine, but it still sounds wrong.
All the switches seem to work, but adjusting the tone selector just doesn't have enough to make it sound "bright" like it once did. Dad says i'm the first person to ever get inside it, so I assume everything is original. Can someone gimme some tips on troubleshooting this thing? I'm wondering if the pickups are bad, or maybe a capacitor, but i'm really unsure how to troubleshoot this.
