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Post subject: Fender Custom Shop '69 pickups: Which strat?
Posted: Mon Jun 09, 2008 4:12 pm
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Haha.

A pleasant conundrum, and one with a bit of a backstory.

When I originally bought a leftie HWY 1 deluxe a while back, I had some Seymour Duncans put into it. I was OK with it at first....BUT....once I started dialing BACK the distortion and fuzz and went into that partial fuzz territory?

The stock pickups with the Alcino III magnets were far more responsive, especially when exploring midrange settings on the amplifier and tone settings on the guitar.

So...the stock pickups went right back into it. I'm cool with 'em.

Now, I ALSO have this older strat ('68 reissue) that I've had for about 15 years or so. That MiJ guitar has a Seymour Duncan Hot Rail in the bridge, a Texas Tone in the neck, and a stock pickup in the middle position.

I also ordered the '69 Fender pickups (the ones that are checked, and signed by Abigail Ybarra.) that I am planning on putting into this guitar.

Now, granted...I COULD put them in the HWY 1, but at this point, I'm thinking about doing the following since I've got some spare pickups on my hands:

1. With the '68 reissue (that has also had jumbo frets installed on it), putting in the '69 pickups with the Alcino V magnets. Truth be told the neck is a lot thinner than the HWY 1 deluxe, and it's quite lighter (I don't know exactly what the body is made out of, but it weighs significantly less than the alder guitar.)

While I'm in there, I'm also going to replace the 5-position toggle switch because my current one cuts out every now and then. (I can usually get it to working again by shifting it, but eh, this isn't very reliable, and I want to use this primarily as a gig/stage guitar.)

2. On the HWY 1 (which is the red color), it's getting a new, nifty black pickguard. I'm still on the fence as to whether or not to leave the pickups aged white. I'm also wondering about shielding on the aftermarket pickguard. On the HWY 1, there is additional shielding on the aged white pickguard aroujnd the pickups in addition to the pots. I doubt the aftermarket will have the same specs.

So what I'm considering doing (because I don't want to pull the neck off and paint the back of the guitar with that shielding junk) is doing the following:

a. Taking foil (something like Reynolds Wrap) and glueing it to the backside of the pickguard around the pickups. In addition (and this is being taken into consideration based on data cables I've seen with shielding installed), cutting the foil in a long strip 1/2" wide, wrapping the cables, and then taping over them. On the middle pickup position, the shop that installed them (after this I've given up on shops...I'm pretty much down to doing my own modifications now) CUT the wires on the pickups and soldered them in reversed phase (which I put back after reinstalling the original pickups)...so on that pickup (and I'm leaving the middle one stock) I'm going to get a slightly larger wire gauge vs. the original, do a clean splice (as best as I can) with a solder gun, and then use a shrink wrap sleeve to cover the splice.

I may end up installing the Seymour Duncan Texas Tone out of the '68 into this guitar....I tend to dwell on the neck pickup a lot when I'm playing my strats (I don't know why...I've just never been a fan of the bridge position pup unless I'm looking for some vintage rhythm sound)...

And as for the spare pickups (the Seymour Duncans that came out of the HWY 1 in addition to the addition hot rail that will be left over from the '68) I am planning on getting a cheap, used Squier that I can "experiment" on without worrying about jacking up my more expensive axes.

(I am getting into the point where I am legitimately interesting in repairing/refurbing/modding guitars...)

So...any advice? Does some of this sound kooky? (like the foil shielding)....and, should I follow up on this thread with results?

What would YOU do in this position?

Basic premise:

Awesome '69 pickups on the way. HWY 1, or the '68 reissue?


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Post subject:
Posted: Mon Jun 09, 2008 4:51 pm
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leave the highwayone alone the p/u are perfect in that strat.
my opinion only.


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Post subject:
Posted: Mon Jun 09, 2008 5:03 pm
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highwayoneplayer wrote:
leave the highwayone alone the p/u are perfect in that strat.
my opinion only.


I'll admit the Alcino III pickups on that guitar are far more responsive than the aftermarket stuff (especially when exploring partial fuzz and midrange.)

I still have to permanently repair the temporary splice I made in the middle pickup after the shop cut the wire and soldered it in reverse phase.

(and, the reynolds wrap experiment is....just for fun....I'm basing it off of shielded cables I've seen while working in the communications field, specifically coaxial and shielded Category 5/Category 6 date wiring. We're still talking about a lead signal wire and a ground to the pots and the poles.)


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Post subject: Re: Fender Custom Shop '69 pickups: Which strat?
Posted: Mon Jun 09, 2008 6:57 pm
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The_Sentry wrote:
What would YOU do in this position?
Basic premise: Awesome '69 pickups on the way. HWY 1, or the '68 reissue?


Put the '69 Pups into the MIJ '68 Reissue.

You might consider: polishing up the HWY 1 to make it glossy. I'm told you can get copper shielding tape cheaper from a crafts store.

Get a MIM strat (or two) for experimenting (with the SD pups).

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Post subject:
Posted: Tue Jun 10, 2008 12:05 pm
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Sounds an arduous way to go about the shielding. Why not just spend a few bucks on a shielding kit from StewMac with all the self-adhesive copper foil and shielded wire you need for the job?

http://www.stewmac.com/shop/Electronics ... g_Kit.html


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Post subject:
Posted: Tue Jun 10, 2008 12:12 pm
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Ceri wrote:
Sounds an arduous way to go about the shielding. Why not just spend a few bucks on a shielding kit from StewMac with all the self-adhesive copper foil and shielded wire you need for the job?

http://www.stewmac.com/shop/Electronics ... g_Kit.html


I suppose I could, but you know....the difference is time vs. money. I've got more time right now....(and I'm getting ill with ordering stuff online.)


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