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The output can vary from pole to pole depending on the make and model of pickup and make and gauge of string. The pole height can play an important part in the balance of the strings. Typical Fender Stratocasters have staggered poles to balance each string but with modern strings, the balance is pretty equal….

Old worn or dirty strings can become dull sounding after use and many stories have been told about them. Many players, especially bass players would boil the strings in hot water and make the strings sound brighter again. Basically, they were dislodging the oils and grime that would fill the voids in the string from…

I’ve heard of all kinds of string combinations being used on both acoustic and electric instruments. Using a 42 or 46 plain string for the bottom “E” would completely over power the plain 09 or 10 high “E” string. You can find the larger diameter music wire in may hardware stores in spools. You can…

Using quality electric guitar strings you can pretty much assume that heavier gauge strings will give you more output and a fatter fuller sound when compared to a lighter gauge of strings. Heavier strings can make it more difficult to bend strings and also increases the tension on the neck and without proper adjustment can…

If a player is using a plain “G” string the string would be louder than a wound “G” string of the same diameter. The diameter of the plain “G” string will have more mass or diameter and can move or disturb more magnetic field. Some older pickups are constructed with a raised “G” pole that…

Like the Lipstick tube pickups, Gibson Melody Maker pickups need modification to fit into a Strat assembly. The average length of a Melody Maker pickup is .695″ wide X 2.90″ long. A Stratocaster pickup cover averages .690″ wide X 2.748 long. The Melody Maker pickup has a solid top cover and the nylon bobbin is…

The type of cavity, and how it is routed in your Stratocaster body, will determine the type of pickup you need and how the pickups will fit. The traditional cavity route will not allow the pickups to be reversed in your Strat. The shape of the fibre or molded bottom on the pickup fits the…

The majority of instruments manufactured by Fender have the traditional routing in the body and trying to reverse the pickups 180 degrees won’t fit. You would need a larger cavity or a pickup that has a oblong bottom plate like a Fender Jaguar. Some after market companies can make a reverse staggered pickup just for…

By using a wider spaced pickup, the pole have better alignment under the strings to better capture the magnetic field from the poles to obtain proper balance from the strings. The average Gibson pickup pole spacing is around 1.928″ from E to E and a Fender Stratocaster is 2.18″ from E to E. You can…

The threads on screws come in either National Coarse, or National Fine. On 6/32 screw the 6 is the diameter and the 32 is the threads per inch. Each screw size has two thread sizes each being either National Coarse or National Fine. The chart below will give you an example of the common sizes…