Category Archives:

I want to start by giving those interested a glossary of terms that will help you have a better understanding and terminology used in magnets and coils. It may be complicated and confusing but is a part of the science used in making guitar, bass and steel guitar’s sound the way they do. I’ve gotten…

Adjustable pole pieces are used to help balance the output of each string. Fixed pole pieces as used in many Fender style pickups may have rod magnet pole pieces cut to the desired length for better balance and output of each string. Early Stratocaster had pole pieces cut to a desired length for string made…

I would use an abrasive blade made of aluminum oxide for metal cutting and a silicon carbide abrasive wheel should not be used as it’s mainly for masonry cutting (tiles and cement). Aluminum oxide grinding wheels work well for shaping the magnets for the desired chamfer or sharp edges. Sandpaper has several backings and different…

The screws used on Gretsch Filtertron pickups designed by Ray Butts are 6-40 (diameter and threads per inch) X 3/4″ Fillister head, slotted, steel machine screw. Newer Gretsch pickups use a 3-48 screw to hold the covers onto a bottom plate and mounting ring. Gretsch pickups made in Japan use Metric screws. Make sure you…

The standard size for a stud on a Gibson humbucker is .187″ diameter by 1/2″ long. The normal stud polarity is North on a standard humbucker. You would need to keep the magnets as close to length as the steel studs. When you insert the magnet rods, you need to keep the magnetic polarity “North”…

I use several types of magnetometers to measure the magnitude and direction of the magnetic fields in various pickups. I would suggest using a hand model manufactured by Annis Instruments. I often use Model 25 with the range of “50-0-50”. Magnets used within pickups can range from very low gauss to above 50 gauss. Early…

Many of the early Fender pickups used both North and South magnetic polarity. Older Broadcasters, No Casters, Telecasters and Esquires are found with both North and South bridge pickups. I have seen rhythm pickups on early models to have both North and South polarities. Both lead and rhythm pickups on these models were wound Top…

Normally single coil style Fender pickups have cast rod magnets made to a desired length and diameter. Typical coils on Fender pickups are wound directly around the magnets. Moving the pole pieces up or down can break the inner windings of the coil. When Seth Lover designed the Fender bass and guitar humbucking pickups, the…

It was the basic design given to the pickup when first designed by Seth Lover in the mid 50s. Originally the pickup was designed without adjustable pole pieces and a row of six pole pieces were added as a “selling point” to enhance sales since the P-90 had adjustable pole pieces. Traditionally under a cover,…

Gibson uses several grades of magnets made of various materials and when magnetized will have a specified strength. Over time the strength of a magnet can change that can be caused by several factors. Other magnet fields can affect the strength and orientation of a magnet. Electrical interference can change the strength and orientation of…