Copper Shielding Tape

Schnozz

Please could someone point me in the direction of good copper shielding tape? 

There's that many options and it isn't something I've done before.

I've decided to mod something and I want to go through the whole routine for general interest.

Schnozz

Also, is a 25w soldering iron hot enough to connect the joins between the sections of copper tape?

OilCityPickups

I buy copper sheet and spray it with contact adhesive as I need it ... cheaper than tape and more adaptable, but not for everyone. Personally I think a 25w soldering iron is too small for very much at all, however you stand a better chance with a bigger tip for better heat transfer on a smaller iron (plus a smear of flux paste) . 60w is the minimum we use.  
I thin Axesrus do rolls of tape if you go that way. 

wrinkleygit

Head down to B&Q and buy a roll of their Copper “Slug” tape, it’s about 45mm wide and works well. I would agree on a 60w iron, mine is 50w and there are times when I wish it was a little hotter.

TrentGuitars

https://www.amazon.co.uk/LONOVE-BEAUTY-PRODUCTS-Copper-Repellent/dp/B0CJ58RH98/ref=mp_s_a_1_1_sspa?crid=GTKYNSRL1IAT&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.uupPPE_kqrO-GUrCYfm0Yy77T1bc21YwdZWYukku7Mia30F1bCf5XfeJLqZbroXL-V0cmBAbsDmnHKQiG35yUBGcIph_75hs0J1jpiB7cjSb8izJWr92XYfFkJBjc3KXwvsvJE7ht-7b53dzRWmIRPyj4Jpx4W1ugaWdWa9qlBIMnRj1KBIVwHX1SpcxQByJ72FemD_BnTvUj9h0W4a-Lw.Ge5U5cHhW2mHltW-okhLMJLDLXXDo9MxJjFWGetwtXI&dib_tag=se&keywords=50mm+copper+tape&qid=1712643563&sprefix=50mm+copper%2Caps%2C83&sr=8-1-spons&sp_csd=d2lkZ2V0TmFtZT1zcF9waG9uZV9zZWFyY2hfYXRm&psc=1

You won’t necessarily need to solder across overlapping pieces, just check continuity with a meter :-)

inewham

I got mine from Lidl. Cheap, thin and pliable 

DannyP

Plus it keep snails out of the control cavity

thermionic

wrinkleygit said:

Head down to B&Q and buy a roll of their Copper “Slug” tape, it’s about 45mm wide and works well. I would agree on a 60w iron, mine is 50w and there are times when I wish it was a little hotter.

This, unlike the guitar specific stuff, won’t have conductive adhesive - although arguably the conductivity isn’t that reliable and a few blobs of solder is advisable anyway.

BillDL

I've had perfect results every time using the tape from AxeTec:

https://www.axetec.co.uk/guitar_parts_uk_025.htm

1 x 1 metre x 60mm wide roll for £5, or 2 x 1 metre rolls for £9.

The adhesive backing is electrically conductive, but I'm not sure whether it is that or my method that has made my efforts work consistently.  I cover the floor of the cavity first, not worrying if it goes up the sides a bit as long as it's pressed into the corners without leaving an air pocket.  I then cut the tape into manageable length strips a bit wider than the depths of the sides and fold one edge over on itself by a couple of mm.  The foil is pretty thin and tends to try and roll up and folds onto itself rather easily, meaning it sticks to its own adhesive and you have scrumple it up and bin it, hence the "manageable length strips".  For this reason buy more than you think you will need.  Be careful, the cut edges can be razor sharp.  I trim it lengthwise to marginally wider than the depth of the sides.  The folded over edge goes downwards and when stuck onto the sides it contacts the copper on the floor.  I press it into the corners with a slightly rounded off pencil rubber (eraser).  The top edge gets folded over into the rebate of a cavity with a flush fitting cover, or over onto the top when its hidden by a scratchplate.  After I apply the tape to the inside of the cavity cover or scratchplate, that bare copper presses onto the bits I have overlapped the sides with.  I have seen some people taking a sharp object like an awl and prodding it onto the tape where it overlaps inside the cavity so that it just makes a hole in the copper foil and pushes it into the foil it has overlapped.  I've never had to solder the overlaps.

ToneControl

how is it compared to the (aluminium) tape that people use for kingspan etc.

I bought a roll of it years ago and used it to put extra screening in amp cabs, and I think I used it on a guitar or two. Obviously you can't solder onto it, but easy to screw in a connector

about £7 a roll for 75mm x 45m

Probably worth considering for anyone keen to cut costs

ICBM

I would always use copper tape. It’s so easy to solder the joints that it isn’t worth not doing it, since not doing it can cause problems later in my experience. Conductivity between the pieces doesn’t always last when the adhesive gets old or oxidation builds up. A 25W iron is actually plenty for this job, even though it isn’t for everything in a guitar - you only need one small spot of solder between any two pieces.

Kittyfrisk

Once again the warning about handling copper tape. It has razor sharp edges & if you are not careful you will end up with a control cavity that contains more blood & DNA than your average crime scene...

Schnozz

Thank you all

Do you need to prepare the surfaces of the cavity with anything before taping? The guitar I'm looking at has some shielding paint in there already.

OilCityPickups

Schnozz said:

Thank you all

Do you need to prepare the surfaces of the cavity with anything before taping? The guitar I'm looking at has some shielding paint in there already.

I just dust any old dust, polishing compound etc out with a soft brush and crack on. 

Strumit

Just don't do anything wrong and they will leave you alone! 

ICBM

Schnozz said:

Do you need to prepare the surfaces of the cavity with anything before taping? The guitar I'm looking at has some shielding paint in there already.

No, other than make sure it's clean. I've done a lot of re-shielding jobs on instruments which had paint in the cavity already and weren't quiet enough - I've always just added the tape over the top.

ScreamingDave

Just as a possible alternative, I’ve used graphite loaded spray paint, which is also conductive and a lot easier to use.   It used to be available from RS

Yorkie

What about shielding the bottom of an unshielded pickguard? Do you also use copper tape? I’m working on a project with me son and we’re gonna need to cut a pickguard from scratch. 

Schnozz

Yorkie said:

What about shielding the bottom of an unshielded pickguard? Do you also use copper tape? I’m working on a project with me son and we’re gonna need to cut a pickguard from scratch. 

Yep - I'm actually looking a precision bass guitar, so I don't need to do the whole thing, but you would on a strat or tele. Some just do around the pickups and controls, but I'd just do the whole thing.

I'd prefer to use shielding paint to avoid the cuts, but it doesn't look like it has the same effect/longevity. 

BillDL

Yorkie said:

What about shielding the bottom of an unshielded pickguard? Do you also use copper tape?

Yes.  If your shielding foil comes up and slightly overlaps the cavity onto the top of the guitar (even in one small place), the shielding on the underside of the scratchplate then makes contact with the cavity shield and completes the enclosed box of metal foil.  On a Telecaster the control plate is metal and the pots are in contact with it, so that's the grounded lid of the metal box.  On a Strat scratchplate that's been shielded underneath, the pots will also make contact with the foil and some people consider that to be the continuous ground connection between the pots, but if the pots have spun when being tightened it may have chewed up the foil and not be making contact, so you shouldn't rely on the foil as your only means of a shared ground for the pots and it's better to use a wire soldered between them.

Schnozz said:

I'd prefer to use shielding paint to avoid the cuts, but it doesn't look like it has the same effect/longevity. 

Graphite based shielding paint can be dirty to work with.  Read my thread about the Rustins G Shield:
Shielding Paint - Making & Modding Discussions on theFretBoard
Brushing some lacquer onto the paint afterwards made it cleaner to work inside the cavity.

If you fancy spending about £50 you can buy tins of copper spray from places like RS Components.  It's mostly used for creating electrical connections (eg. circuits on paper or boards) rather than for shielding, but it would probably do a fantastic job in a guitar cavity if you were prepared to mask the entire guitar and pay that much money for one can of aerosol. 

ICBM

Schnozz said:

Yep - I'm actually looking a precision bass guitar, so I don't need to do the whole thing, but you would on a strat or tele. Some just do around the pickups and controls, but I'd just do the whole thing.

It’s a waste of tape to do the whole thing, especially on a Tele. You only need to cover the wiring channel and a tiny bit around the pickup hole just for thoroughness.