a friend of mine is looking to buy a pre 98 SG standard. I figure it doesnt have the 498T and the 490R like today's because those are newer. Just doing research, what pups does it have?
Re: What pickups come stock in pre 98 SG Standards
I'm afraid you'll need to be more precise than pre-98 to solve this.
As far as I know Gibson have been putting the 498T/490R combo in Standard SGs since well before 1998. Early 90s, late 80s? Up to 2002 they put them in Les Paul Standards too - I have a '96 LP Standard, and that had the 498T/490R in it when I bought it.
So you'll need to know what year the SG in question was made and what year the 498T/490R pickups became the standard.
You could try posting at the Les Paul Forum on "The Other Gibsons" section. There's a lot of SG knowledge around there.
Re: What pickups come stock in pre 98 SG Standards
The 70's era SGs had the Super Humbucker pups in them. They were a decent output pickup and were epoxy potted, which meant that when the cover became beat up, you had to replace the pickup or live with a dull, grungy cover. They may have used other models, too, but the SGs that I own have or had those in them.