62 reissue Tele

Fatfingers

Anyone any recommendations for the neck pickup? This Tele is just like my 71– the bridge pickup is good, the neck awful. I bought it with the intention of fitting a mini humbucker or one of Ash's Firebird pickups in the neck position. 

Thoughts?

impmann

I'm probably the worst person to ask, as I love the neck pickup on a Tele...

But, I'd suggest talking to Ash or Marc at Mojo about options without hacking holes in it - and then go from there.

Fatfingers

But I want to hack holes in it - I want the look of a mini humbucker as well as the sound.

impmann

In that case... DO IT!!! ;-)

Fatfingers

I will. I'm just unsure whether to go for a mini hum or a Firebird pickup. Not sure which would compliment the bridge well.

keir

Fatfingers said:

Bought this slightly road worn model. I want to cut a hole in it and fit a mini humbucker or a Firebird neck pickup to it, so it seemed pointless buying a mint one. Having said that, the frets are fine.

Very nice!

Modellista

Yep, liking that, the chips actually give it character, you can tell they're not fake.

Interesting you like the bridge pickup, I'm in two minds whether to put new pickups in mine or keep as-is.  The neck pickup is mellow but I quite like it - it could do with raising though, have you considered that before swapping it?

Fatfingers

I haven't had it apart yet so there's no telling what the pickups actually are. I was expecting the bridge to be a bit naff, as that's the accepted wisdom on these pickups, so maybe it's already been changed?

The neck is pretty high already and I bought it with a view to a different neck pickup anyway. I have a Creamery Strat voiced neck pickup in my 71 Tele because I didn't want to chop it about. Besides, it works well. But I fancy something different on this one.

normula1

The Mojo Open-T is a great neck pickup. I got mine with a full cover as I prefer the look.

bbill335

Roughed-up burst is the only burst. 

richardhomer

There are occasions where I see an edge-bound Tele - and I'm not really a Tele fan - when I think they may just be the best-looking guitar ever made....

meltedbuzzbox

Fatfingers said:

Anyone any recommendations for the neck pickup? This Tele is just like my 71– the bridge pickup is good, the neck awful. I bought it with the intention of fitting a mini humbucker or one of Marc's Mojo Firebird pickups in the neck position. 

Thoughts?

fixed that for you

Loobs

Fatfingers said:

Having discovered that I was mistaken in thinking Les Paul's are THE BEST GUITARS, and discovering, after buying a 71 Tele, that Teles are THE BEST GUITARS, I now have the hots for a 62 reissue, so I can remind myself how hard it is to play Message In a Bottle.

Anything I should know (other than I'll have to fit my own neck PAF)?

I'll tell you a story.

I once had a Candy Apple Red one, a MIJ '62 Custom RI. It was the first Telecaster I owned. I bought it in 2005 at the London Guitar Show from Charlie Chandler. I really liked it. It served me well from the three years between 2005 and 2008. In 2008 I sold it to a good friend. Just before Christmas he posted a picture of it on instagram, and I knew I had to have it back. So I bought it from him, even making my poor mother drive me to his house in Southend straight after getting off a plane from Berlin. It felt really good to have it back in my hands. I flew it back to Berlin with me in January. For a moment it felt like I'd come home. I did a couple of gigs with it. But the second honeymoon didn't last long before I started thinking how I could 'improve it'. I decided the original frets were too small and that I 'needed' to re-fret it and re-radius it. I took it to a local man who was supposed to be good at that kind of thing. A few weeks later I got it back. It wasn't the same. I sold it to a nice German man.  

The End. 

Loobs

Jack_

Bound Tele's are the dogs, classy as fook.

Fatfingers

So, one recommendation for a Firebird neck pickup. Any other suggestions?

Fatfingers

Anyone know where I can get a suitable scratchplate? Ebay has let me down.

impmann

I have to be honest...

I tried the neck mini humbucker thing in a Tele (from an LP deluxe). It was a PITA to get a pickguard for... and it didn't sound that different to a normal neck humbucker. In fact, I'd previously had a Seymour Duncan 59 in there and it sounded great.

Fatfingers

I really fancy trying a mini and had no idea getting a scratch plate would be so tricky. eBay has black ones and other colours but I need a white three ply one. It can't be that hard surely?

meltedbuzzbox

Given that a tele neck pickup is such a beautiful sound, why do you want to ruin it?

You can get a Gibson studio for £500 and neck neck humbucker tones. 

I'd get a set of Mojo telecaster pickups personally