Input Jack for the solid body viper electric

[alphonse kookle]

I have a mint 1980 all mahogany viper electric,and notice that the input jack is very tight.Also,I have seen many vipers on ebay with cracked pickguards right where the jack is.Did Ovation have a run of ill fitting jacks for the viper..I guess I will replace it when I shake the lazies..I can safely use a cheap lead,but my nice tight fitting expensive leads will probably not come out once theyre in....any comments are appreciated..

[Mike Woodford]

I have about a dozen or so broken PGs I have used for templates. What happens is if you don't run your cord around the strap and you step on the cord it yanks the jack and PG out with an amazing amount of sucess.

My favorite was the one that someone repaired by supergluing a Nintendo controller to the PG .
That was the Group Project in my avatar.

[Mr. Ovation]

The problem is not the Jack per se but rather the age of the material of the pickguard. After time it just gives way. It also doesn't help that the area around the jack is not supported so any tight fitting cable really puts a strain on the pickguard. A large (but thin) washer on the underside of the pickguard will add years of life to the pickguard. Another method is to find some spare pickguard material and glue it to the underside and tap it for the Jack so it's "double-thick" around that area.

The early Vipers had the jack on the edge of the body. They should have stayed there. IMHO