"Titled" Pickup install?!

Wade10987 · #1 01-31-2012, 04:19 PM

Hello All,

I am nearing the end of my fretless project. On my P Bass, I am going to add a J style pickup in the bridge spot. I had the idea to angle that pickup, like the treble/bridge pickup on a Strat or Tele.

I have measured reallllyyy carefully. I am going to line it up as accurately as possible, so the pole pieces still line up with the strings.

Is this a good idea? As long as I measure twice and cut once will it work?

**line6man** · #2 01-31-2012, 04:23 PM

Why wouldn't it work?

DWBass · #3 01-31-2012, 04:34 PM

Warwicks have them. Roscoes have them. Larry Graham's Moon bass has one, albeit in the neck position.

Wade10987 · #4 01-31-2012, 04:44 PM

I am just being careful. I bought a routing stencil from Stew Mac. I don't wanna route a giant hole that is crooked and then find out this is an impractical idea.

**line6man** · #5 01-31-2012, 04:47 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Wade10987

I am just being careful. I bought a routing stencil from Stew Mac. I don't wanna route a giant hole that is crooked and then find out this is an impractical idea.

What are you trying to achieve?
People mainly slant pickups for aesthetics, which means there is no question of practicality.

Wade10987 · #6 01-31-2012, 04:56 PM

Actually aesthetics was a reason, but a secondary one. I primarily thought that tilting it would give a more treble snap on the higher two strings, since that pickup would be closer to the bridge on the higher end. Thought that might create a more lead/upfront tone.

Wade10987 · #7 01-31-2012, 05:26 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by line6man

Why wouldn't it work?

I was concerned the poles might not be designed to line up with the strings while tilted. As far as I know this Jazz Bridge pickup was designed to be installed straight.

**line6man** · #8 01-31-2012, 05:32 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Wade10987

I was concerned the poles might not be designed to line up with the strings while tilted. As far as I know this Jazz Bridge pickup was designed to be installed straight.

All you have to do is hold the pickup over the strings and see how much you can slant it, you don't even need to measure.

You might consider using pickups with blade style poles.

SGD Lutherie · #9 01-31-2012, 05:38 PM

No reason you can't do it at the bridge. Angle the treble side towards the neck to stop the treble strings from sounding to thin.

mmbongo · #10 01-31-2012, 06:06 PM

It might work.....

Wade10987 · #11 02-01-2012, 07:00 PM

Thanks Guys! Some really cool ideas! Looking forward to routing.

So...any tips on routing? I will likely do it Friday.

SGD Lutherie · #12 02-01-2012, 07:16 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Wade10987

So...any tips on routing?

Make a template! Making the template will take longer than the routing, but it's worth it because if you screw up the template, you just wasted a piece of plywood or MDF, and not your bass! And you can use it again for your next bass. For pickups, I either make the template the exact size, and use a template router bit with the bearing on the top, or make it over sized and use guide bushings. That's trickier to do.

Wade10987 · #13 02-01-2012, 07:42 PM

I bought the Stew Mac template for it!

Where do I go from there? I haven't routed in a while.

eddododo · #14 02-02-2012, 04:42 PM

You said there are pole pieces? Did you buy a pickup with wider spacing than your actual spacing? If not you will not be able to tilt at all without misaligning/ unbalancing string outputs.
Also- when you tilt, I would bring consider the displacement- if you move the treble side tooo close to the bridge you might like the results less than you hoped. Or perhaps it could leave the bass side strings too much darker than the other side. Food for thought

**line6man** · #15 02-02-2012, 04:57 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Wade10987

I bought the Stew Mac template for it!

Where do I go from there? I haven't routed in a while.

Did you also buy their 3/8" template bit? It's not easy to find that bit elsewhere.

In any case, double stick tape and a handheld router. There isn't much to it. Make sure you keep the router moving, and in the right direction, to avoid burning the wood, and make sure you take shallow passes.

Wade10987 · #16 02-03-2012, 05:56 PM

Ahhh man I gotta buy the bit too?! I am doing this in the FSU art building's wood shop. They have two boxes of bits. But most looked like edging bits not cutting bits. I was hoping though they would have something I could use for digging into the wood.

Alright I suppose I can buy that this weekend. Is there a possibility a Home Depot or Lowes might have something similar so I can save some money?

**line6man** · #17 02-03-2012, 06:35 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Wade10987

Ahhh man I gotta buy the bit too?! I am doing this in the FSU art building's wood shop. They have two boxes of bits. But most looked like edging bits not cutting bits. I was hoping though they would have something I could use for digging into the wood.

Alright I suppose I can buy that this weekend. Is there a possibility a Home Depot or Lowes might have something similar so I can save some money?

It's somewhat of a specialized bit.
I have not found any sort of template bits at Home Depot and Lowes. They only sell flush-trim bits with bearings on the end.

If you have a Rockler nearby, they sell a 1/2" "hinge mortising" bit, but 1/2" is too large to get tight into the corners.

Here is a 1/2" Rockler bit:

And then a 3/8" StewMac bit:

walterw · #18 02-03-2012, 09:52 PM

what bridge do you have? a single-grooved fender, or a gotoh 201, is a little narrower than a stock jazz pickup calls for, so angling the pickup a little would work out nicely.

(it actually doesn't make that huge a difference either way, but i hear a little something different when the strings ride right between the magnets, a slight softening of the attack, like a natural compressor.)

the thing to do is to pull the cover off the pickup, flip it over and lay the cover on the strings, so you can slide it around to find the spot that lines up like you want. you'll be able to look through the polepiece holes to see how the strings line up with them.

SGD Lutherie · #19 02-04-2012, 07:59 AM

For the templates in that photo you need a smaller diameter bit, or you wont get into the corners. The bit diameter has to match the corner diameter. That might be 1/8"? When I use templates like that I use two different bits. I larger one to do much of the work, and then a smaller one for the corners.

Another thing to consider; the Stew Mac templates are rather thin. They will work, but you have to be careful that you have the bearing against the template. It's easy to have it be to high above it and cut into the template. I make my templates from plywood or MDF, and like them about 1/2" thick.

One last thing, the title of this thread should have been tilted, not titled.

I thought it was about pickups with names on them. Slanted is probably a better word.

**line6man** · #20 02-04-2012, 12:29 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by SGD Lutherie

Another thing to consider; the Stew Mac templates are rather thin. They will work, but you have to be careful that you have the bearing against the template. It's easy to have it be to high above it and cut into the template. I make my templates from plywood or MDF, and like them about 1/2" thick.

Thin acrylic templates are a PITA. You have to shim them up, and then remove shims and reposition in precisely the same spot, to get a cavity routed. I have accidentally routed some of my templates, even though I was paying attention to where the bearing was. I prefer to transfer them over to thicker MDF. I don't know why StewMac even bothers with the thin acrylic.