Humbucker modify to Paf

[rafalbar]

Hi, I like the low output Paf humbucker more and more, I use gibson's TTop and recently bought a set of alnico 4 OX4 which I love. I don't have much idea of humbucker construction but I would like to learn,

I want to experiment with some pickup that I have of little value and my question is if to lower the ohm output 12,6 ohm of this pickup I should remove turns of copper wire until it gives me a reading of 4.1ohm per coil and then change the bar magnet to an alinic 2 or 4

It may be a waste of time and it sure isn't worth it, it's just for experimenting. any advice would be of great help. Thank you

[rafalbar]

[freefrog]

Hi and welcome,

A pickup measuring 6.3k per coil is certainly not wound with the wire gauge used for P.A.F.'s (42AWG)...

If it has been wound with 43AWG, you'd have to pull off +/- 2100 turns of wire. If it has been wound with 44AWG, you'd have to pull off +/- 1900 turns...

But yes, it's a waste of time IMHO. A P.A.F. is not simply a low resistance humbucker with an AlniCo bar.

I'd rather cut the wire of your 12;6k humbucker then rewind it with 42AWG, before to fit it with more vintage correct components if needed (a nickel silver baseplate, a milled pole shoe/keeper bar, etc.)

FWIW (two cents).

[rafalbar]

Freefrog, I fully understand what you are telling me and you are absolutely right, for the moment I am not going to modify anything that I already see, it will not improve. It is such an interesting world for me, something that seems as simple as a pair of coils of copper wire and a magnet ... and the magic comes out. I will try to get more information about it. Thank you very much for your response

[SoPhx]

Just get a set of low-wind PAF repros and save those precious T-Tops for the museum in the College of Musical Knowledge. Stripping wire off a humbucker coil with no experience sounds like a recipe for disaster. 43 AWG is 0.05588 mm in diameter---wanna roll the dice?

[Mincer]

With the price of something in the PAF range (like a 59) being pretty inexpensive, I'd say the pickups you have are worth keeping in tact and un-molested. Unless you want to learn how to do it, but I don't think that is the way to learn.

[Clint 55]

I tried it once and destroyed the coil. I don't think it's possible to unwind a potted coil without breaking the wire. You could try to heat up the wax but it would still be sketchy. It might be achievable with an unpotted coil.

[rafalbar]

Thank you very much for your advice. I'm going to buy alnico 2 and 4 bar magnets to experiment with a Seymour duncan 59B MJ that I have from the 80's and that I have never quite liked. It's just for experimenting and trying to have fun. Even so, I would like to learn more about the paf pickup and any reading links that you could indicate would be of great help to satisfy my interest. thank you

[Mincer]

Actually, I think this forum and the general SD website is a great resource for the sound of those pickups, and i bet that there have been exhaustive studies done of the actual PAF pickups on other sites, too. I know on some other forums, they like to argue about it- not here, though.

[rafalbar]

I am sorry if I have bothered someone with my comment on the mod of the pickup, it is something that I have read in a post on this same forum and I found it interesting to discover for myself the difference from one magnet to another on a good pickup like It's 59. Thanks

[Lewguitar]

Thank you very much for your advice. I'm going to buy alnico 2 and 4 bar magnets to experiment with a Seymour duncan 59B MJ that I have from the 80's and that I have never quite liked. It's just for experimenting and trying to have fun. Even so, I would like to learn more about the paf pickup and any reading links that you could indicate would be of great help to satisfy my interest. thank you

Great idea. The 59 is a terrific pickup to use as a platform for magnet swapping.

If it's an old 59 you might find a roughcast A5 magnet in it.

If not, then try a roughcast A5.

Also a roughcast A2 and roughcast A4 if you're curious.

You can also purchase short Alnico 5 magnets like those in T-Tops and I like them in a neck 59N with a RCA5 in the bridge 59B.

I buy from AddictionFX.

[Clint 55]

If you're gonna unwind, you might want to practice on a junk pickup first.