bennroe wrote:I'm using humbuckers, and the only wires that will be going through the passages are those from the pickups. Fair bet they're already shielded? I'm not sure how to tell. Is it good practice to shield the pickup cavities, even with buckers?
Depends on the buckers? Most two conductor HBs will use some sort of single-conductor shielded wire, which will have the positive/hot wire in the center, a layer of insulation, and then a braided negative/cold wire. This may then be surrounded by another layer of insulation, or just left bare. As long as everything is properly wired/grounded this will act as shielding.
Four conductor HBs may have shielding surrounding the coil wires, but maybe not. If you're looking to coil split then that un-shielded run is an opportunity for outside noise to enter the signal path. It won't be significant, but I believe that anything worth doing is worth overdoing.
I'd personally shield HB cavities if I had the guitar on the bench (see above), but it would be more about the 1% of the time when it might make a difference than about not wanting my strat to sound like a pissed rattler. If you do decide to shield the pup cavities make sure they're electronically connected to the electronics-cavity shield/star ground.