Keeper Pickups?

[teleblooz]

No, not another new winder on the scene! Just curious if any of you have a certain pickup (or pickups) you have hung onto for a while....whether or not you have used them yet.

The ones I can't seem to let go are: A Duncan Custom shop Antiquity P-90, (sweet, sweet pickup!) a Lollar Imperial Low Wind bridge humbucker, (the neck model is in my tele) a set of Fezzter Oildale's tele pickups, (have had them for 3-4 years now, but never installed) a new set of Ibanez Super 58's, A Harmonic Design Z-90 neck pickup, 2 Gold Foils and wiring harness from a 60's Teisco and a set of 70's Maxon/Ibanez humbuckers.

Not sure why I'm keeping (hoarding!) them. I guess I keep fooling myself thinking I'll do 'one more' build.....er, scratch that...should be 'cobble together another partscaster'. Hasn't happened yet and since I have yet to finish up the four projects I already have, probably won't.

I'd love to find a body routed only for a neck P-90 though. The Duncan P-90 really needs to be used.

 

[dave74]

Re: Keeper Pickups?

I think about everyone on this forum has been there,,,,and most of us are still there.

 

[Silence Kid]

Re: Keeper Pickups?

I don't know if I intended them to be "keepers" as much as I've just gone long periods without selling them or installing them as originally intended, but I have sitting around: A Duncan Scorcher, a set of SJAG-2s, an SJAG-1 bridge... A JB/Jazz set meant for my Soloist... A Jazz bridge that will probably go in my gold sparkle Strat (along with maybe the SJAG-2s, HSS?)

And a bunch of cheap pickups at random.

 

[DavidRavenMoon]

Re: Keeper Pickups?

I have an old Hi-A (Bartolini) mini humbucker I bought in 1976. Used to be in my Rick bass. It's been sitting in a box since the late 80s. I also have an old Overlend EMG mini humbucker, a DiMarzio Al Dimeola pickup, and a couple of old Super Distortions. A Duncan Jazz neck too. I'm a luthier/repairman, so I tend to accumulate parts. Lol


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[Darg1911]

Re: Keeper Pickups?

Just sold off a few ... finally. But not all of them. So yeah, still a bit of a hanger on. Or, my wife would say, a pack rat.

 

[metalchurch79]

Re: Keeper Pickups?

My keeper pickups are the tan epoxy EMGs from the early 80's before they used black. Nothing really different, but they're the older ones so they fit more with my guitars, especially since they changed the logo. I don't like seeing old guitars with new pickups/logos..that's just me, but...

Other ones that I usually keep on hand are the Bill Becky L500XLs because I just love them, so those or EMGs are usually what I'll throw in a guitar because that's what I play and I know what results I'm likely to get....Now that being said, I've had guitars that don't respond well to either one.
I've never kept a particular pickup ever, but I will replace them with the same one later on.
Cool topic

 

[Johnny the Kid]

Re: Keeper Pickups?

I don't ever buy a set thinking that it's going to be my be all end all pickup. I tried a few different pickups in my Epi SG and Hamer echotone (thanks 21 day exchange!) before I decided on the set I liked. I was lucky when I bought the EMG 57/66 set and the Bare Knuckle Painkiller and Abraxas because I really like both of them and I'm not really inclined to take them out of the guitars they're in.

 

[metalchurch79]

Re: Keeper Pickups?

I have an old Hi-A (Bartolini) mini humbucker I bought in 1976. Used to be in my Rick bass. It's been sitting in a box since the late 80s. I also have an old Overlend EMG mini humbucker, a DiMarzio Al Dimeola pickup, and a couple of old Super Distortions. A Duncan Jazz neck too. I'm a luthier/repairman, so I tend to accumulate parts. Lol


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That Overlend Emg mini got my attention specifically. I'll try to do an image search, but if I'm not successful would you mind posting a pic of it?
Those Overlends are rare because they weren't made for very long under that name, if memory serves me correct. I love old emgs!

*edit:
I found some pics and a few on eBay. I remember what they are now, my friend had a set in his Firebird. The ones on eBay have more of a brown color epoxy and different mounting legs than what we normally expect with EMGs... Awesome pups!

 

[Dusty.Rhoads]

Re: Keeper Pickups?

Linda Fralin VINTAGE HOT – STRAT these are the most incredible pickups that I have ever used don't think I will ever let them go. Bought an American Special and was going to sell my Standard with the Fralins but just can't do it. Keep going back to that Fralin loaded Standard even after putting a pearly gates in the bridge of the Special.

 

[Davii]

Re: Keeper Pickups?

My personal Custom Shop ones are keepers, everything else has eventually moved on, though some just because they went with the guitar.

 

[DavidRavenMoon]

Re: Keeper Pickups?

That Overlend Emg mini got my attention specifically. I'll try to do an image search, but if I'm not successful would you mind posting a pic of it?
Those Overlends are rare because they weren't made for very long under that name, if memory serves me correct. I love old emgs!

*edit:
I found some pics and a few on eBay. I remember what they are now, my friend had a set in his Firebird. The ones on eBay have more of a brown color epoxy and different mounting legs than what we normally expect with EMGs... Awesome pups!

Originally they were called DirtyWorks. Then they changed the name to Overlend. It just says EMG on the cover. And yes, the tan epoxy. It runs on 18v, but sounds fine on 9v. It sounds like a fat single coil.

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[Adieu]

Re: Keeper Pickups?

Biggest keeper pickup ever (strangely - for bass!):
Discontinued old Seymour Duncan Pbass actives w/ rocker switches!!!


Cool guitar stuff:
80s Duncan JBs
Fender CS69 singles
Old Duncan Hotrails
Ibanez Super 70s
EMG 85x

 

[CountFeedback]

Re: Keeper Pickups?

I have a JBJ and a zebra Duncan Custom I'm saving for an emergency.

 

[Robbiedbee]

Re: Keeper Pickups?

I've got a Cool Rails/Vintage Rails/Cool Rails set in a Strat that I'll never tamper with. Unless one day I decide to go the Seymour Duncan Custom Shop route, because I'd love to replace the bridge pickup with something halfway between a Cool Rails and a Hot Rails in terms of output and character. I'd call it the Warm Rails, I guess. That's not to say I don't love it the way it is though.

Then the only other one I have that I'd have change is a Super Distortion in another one of my Strats. Utterly perfect.

 

[metalchurch79]

Re: Keeper Pickups?

I have a Hot Rails neck that I haven't had a chance to try yet, but I gather that it would be right in between the HRB and the CRB...

 

[The JEM Ghost]

Re: Keeper Pickups?

I got a couple of "keepers" myself as well:

- From Swineshead Pickups UK: Venom bridge bucker and Dragonfly single coils, and a Condor neck bucker, all those pickups sound real nice, and since Swineshead went out of business a couple of years ago, I'll definitely hang on to them!
- From DiMarzio: I got 2 Al DiMeola neck models laying around, even if I don't use them anymore I still hang on to them because they are not available anymore as a regular model, you can still order them from the Custom Shop though, but that'll cost you as, usual for CS stuff. Don't know if I'll ever use them again though, and if that turns out to be the case I will eventually sell them. The Steve's Special has been my main bridge (but only because I can't find more of the Venom humbuckers!) pickup for quite some years now, so I guess you could call that a keeper of mine too. If one day I'll find something that I like more, such as the Venom, they'll probably go too.
- From Bill Lawrence: an L500XL that I like enough to keep around.

From all the ones mentioned above, the Swinesheads are the most precious to me, they sound the deal, and are not made anymore, so those are my biggest "keepers"!!

 

[Mincer]

Re: Keeper Pickups?

I kept most of my Duncans except the JB. I turned it into a JB2, but still didn't like it. I have to admit it just isn't for me. All the others I kept: Custom Custom, Custom5, Alnico II Pro, Jazz, Classic Strat Stack, Five Two, 50/Custom Hybrid, etc. All are perfect for the specific guitars I have them in.

 

[teleblooz]

Re: Keeper Pickups?

Since I lived close, I would stop by Warmoth at least once a week to hang out, see what was new, buy/trade parts and let the smell of fresh cut wood intoxicate. This was many, many moons ago of course. They did away with walk in traffic years ago when the business started to soar. They had a beautiful strat made with several exotic woods for sale. While it was a beauty, I'm not really drawn to the more exotic woods. I like more traditional woods and finishes. However, I played it every time I went (never plugged it in though) and fell in love with the way it played. It was one of the first compound radius necks they had done and someone paid a lot of attention to the fret work and set up.

Months later (and several price reductions) it was still there. I finally asked Ken what the deal was. If I recall correctly, there was a mineral streak of some sort in the body. He plugged me in to an old Deluxe and the best way to describe it is that guitar was simply lifeless. I was amazed that such a nice playing, beautiful instrument could be deader than a door nail.

I wound up buying the guitar for cheap. The pickguard was aluminium with a sweet walnut veneer top cut for neck and middle single coils and a bridge mini humbucker. The pickups were Bartolini's. I had played a strat loaded with Bartolini Hi-A's and the clean tone (with a bit of reverb) was stunning.....so rich and detailed....like a baby grand piano. So, I was stoked to get the pickups and was already dreaming of using two amps in stereo. However, I never got a body routed for that mini-hum, so finally sold the pickups to a friend.

 

[Aceman]

Re: Keeper Pickups?

1979 T-Top in the neck of a Gibson 1979 Les Paul. Never going anywhere ever. In nearly 40 years only even thought of it for a week or so maybe once.

 

[AlexR]

Re: Keeper Pickups?

My old p90's aren't going anywhere, as are a couple of the special PAF clones.