The Unofficial Martin Guitar Forum-K&K Pure Mini removal? (2024)

What do I need to know about removing a K&K Pure Mini?

I assumeI'll need to soften some glue on the bridge plate first, but how fragile are the individual transducers? Are they designed to be glued on & then later separated, if need be? Can the system then be re-used/ re-installed afterward, or is it a one-time deal?

Any proven methods of removal without damaging the guitar or pick-up, if possible, would be appreciated.

Thanks in advance.

Aaron

https://reverb.com/shop/stringsnthings

I'll put some things up from my old posts on the subject:

"I have removed and reused a pickup set without damage to the guitar or the pickup, although they (K&K) are clear that, while it's easy enough not to hurt your guitar, the odds that you may damage the pup in removal are good. It should be viewed as a semi-permanent installation."

"K&K tells you that there is a good chance you'll fudge up the contacts in removal. However, I took one out and successfully reused it in another guitar."

"I also have successfully removed a superglued K&K without damaging the contacts, although I will confirm that K&K says that there is a good chance you might damage them during removal and I can see why. "

My removal method is very, very carefully using a safety razor blade, having a mirror and light inside the guitar, holding the blade between my thumb and second or third finger very close to flat, parallel to the bridge plate. With a side to side wiggling motion I work the edge of the blade under the contact, being careful not to go into the wood nor OVER the contact and into the black plastic.

Once I am sure I'm getting under the contact itself I continue the wiggling motion until I get in a bit, then gently also try a prying motion; wiggle side to side, pry; wiggle side to side, pry. Never too much at once... I've found on the few I've done that at a certain point the superglue breaks contact and they pop off. However, I got impatient once and bent (ruined) the contact. On one other, I thought I was under the contact, but instead was between the contact and the plastic backing... sliced it right off and ruined that one.

However, if you get all three contacts off without bending them, you have every chance of cleaning off the superglue and reusing the pickup set.

Thanks, Dave.

I know you're a fan of these & figured you'd done it before. I actually thought about PM'ing you as I posted above. Guess I could've used the search function, doh!

I've got an LSV coming tomorrow, and it has the K&K installed. I've never had the need for electronics in any acoustic, so thought I might remove it & sell it, used?

I haven't decided yet, I may just leave it alone.

Anyway, thanks again.

Aaron

https://reverb.com/shop/stringsnthings

Simple Man wrote:I may just leave it alone.

And that's your best bet, IMHO. There's no reason to remove it - the K&K is non-invasive, no effect on un-plugged tone, weighs virtually nothing, no battery, without using a mirror to look inside the guitar, you'd never know it's there (other than the 1/4" jack, but if you remove that, you'll need to replace it with some kind of end-pin substitute).

If it was my guitar, I'd leave it in there, but it's not my guitar... :-)

The usual disclaimers apply......IMHO, YMMV etc.

Simple Man wrote:so thought I might remove it & sell it, used?

$50, tops, used. And if you blow it, then you've got a dead pickup worth $0 plus a 1/2" hole in the butt to fill.

Disclaimer Section: IMHO, YMMV, IMHE, Don't Try This At Home, Take With Grain Of Salt, etc, etc.

Bryan Kimsey
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@Bryankimsey
EMAIL: [emailprotected]

bryankimsey wrote:

Simple Man wrote:so thought I might remove it & sell it, used?

$50, tops, used. And if you blow it, then you've got a dead pickup worth $0 plus a 1/2" hole in the butt to fill.

I'd be surprised if anyone would buy it, period. A K&K pickup new is just too inexpensive to make a gamble worthwhile on buying a used one (if the buyer has done much research at all).

Think about it... Would you buy a used pickup which could not be guaranteed to work, then either go through the time to install it yourself or pay someone else to install it, only to find it was defective from the removal?

Yeah, I've seen them sell for between $50-$75, used. I'm also pretty confident I could remove it without damage.

However, I didn't realize the hole was altered for the jack. For some reason I was under the impression this pickup didn't require it?

But, that being the case, it looks like it's there to stay. Glad I didn't de-construct it only to find out after the fact.

Thanks for the advise, guys!

Aaron

https://reverb.com/shop/stringsnthings

However, I didn't realize the hole was altered for the jack. For some reason I was under the impression this pickup didn't require it?

No pickup "requires it, as one can choose to use the Vintage Jack with most pickups.
However, the vast majority of people, anecdotally speaking, prefer a robust 1/4" normal jack over the 1/8" Vintage Jack.
I'm pretty sure it is a niche product. (Yes, I've bought & used it. Don't anymore.)

I've removed a number of K&Ks when they have no longer been needed. I have used the razor blade in hand, but it can be difficult to hold the blade without cutting your fingers. I use this tool. It makes it a 1 minute chore.

https://www.homedepot.com/p/HDX-Mini-Gl ... /206458354

If you want to fill the endpin hole, I use this:

https://www.elderly.com/nojak-endpin-ebony.htm

When done, I lightly sand the bridge plate until the glue residue is no longer visible.

martingitdave wrote:If you want to fill the endpin hole, I use this:

https://www.elderly.com/nojak-endpin-ebony.htm

Or one of these...

http://www.guitarsaddles.com/Plugs.asp

Simple Man wrote:I'm also pretty confident I could remove it without damage.

I've removed probably 30 of them with about a 75% success rate.

You just never know. A lot of times I can get 2 heads off and the 3rd (the last one, of course... doesn't matter where you start or how you try to fool it, it's _always_ the last one!) will come apart. The more important it is that you save the whole thing (to reuse on that customer's guitar after a bridgeplate swap, for instance), the less likely you are to get it off. Since I usually have few in the parts graveyard, I can build a working model or I've used the 2 header in something else- mandolin, Backpacker, etc.

Disclaimer Section: IMHO, YMMV, IMHE, Don't Try This At Home, Take With Grain Of Salt, etc, etc.

Bryan Kimsey
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@Bryankimsey
EMAIL: [emailprotected]

@martingitdave:The scraper is a good idea. I have something similar used for cleaning the glass stove top, if needed.

@bryan: Ha! I'm with you on that one. Sometimes it seems the less critical a task, the more easily it is accomplished. Put something in front of me that just to has go right the first time and, well you know, it just got that much harder to do, all the sudden like!

Thanks again fellas. I'm not going to mess with just yet. I haven't even gotten to play the new guitar more than a few minutes, so I'll get that out of the way first.

Aaron

https://reverb.com/shop/stringsnthings

--- http://tahoeguitar.com/

You never know, you may want/need to part with the guitar in the future. Because the K&K is non-invasive and inconspicuous, its presence is unlikely to have a negative impact on the guitar's value and appeal: if anything, these are more likely to be enhanced than reduced.

Kev